“At their recent meeting of the Central NSW Joint Organisation Board, the Mayors of the region received advice about its value,” said Mayor Paul Smith.
“Year on year the JO delivers a return on investment of over 9:1 on the fees paid by members. This is really important as councils across the region have an ongoing battle to make ends meet,” echoed Mayor Paul Smith.
“A lot of this is through aggregated procurement. On top of the existing contracts for 20 goods and services that are already in place, the team at the JO are exploring a growing range of new contracts ranging from white collar auditing services through to pool chemicals, concrete pipes, asphalt and Microsoft licensing,” mentioned Mayor Paul Smith.
An example is the $6m saved across the region between Jan 2023 and Dec 2024 on the large sites contract for electricity.
On top of the dollars the JO is putting back into council coffers, it is also a great forum for the Mayors and General Managers of the region to advocate for our communities.
The impact of the significant number of renewable energy development across the region was a hot topic on the day.
“Not a single council in the Central West is in the so-called Central West and Orana Renewable Energy Zone (REZ). This means that all the support and funding that the communities in the REZ enjoy does not come to our communities.
This is simply unfair and the Mayors of the region are working together to go for a better more equitable outcome,” stated Mayor Paul Smith “Following the recent Federal election, the JO will work together to advocate to the government the things that are important for our communities” voiced Mayor Paul Smith.
“That is why the Board will go to Canberra for its next meeting in July,” said Mayor Paul Smith.
“This region has a reputation for working together and when one council succeeds we all succeed. Ministers like hearing that the whole region supports a policy position and that we speak with one voice,” mentioned Mayor Paul Smith.
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