The 2021-22 State Budget delivers on the McGowan Labor Government's commitment to limit cost of living pressures for Western Australian households, including capping household electricity and water charges to inflation.
From July 1, 2021, the household basket of fees and charges rose by 1.6 per cent, below the projected Consumer Price Index of 1.75 per cent in 2021-22. The cost to Government of keeping fees and charges low is expected to be $377 million.
During the election, the McGowan Government committed to ensuring increases to household electricity and water charges were capped at inflation. As promised, these have been limited to the projected inflation across the forward estimates.
Transperth and Transwa fare increases have also been frozen in 2021-22, benefiting hundreds and thousands of Western Australians throughout the State.
The State Budget also delivers on the McGowan Government's election commitment for a two-zone fare cap on Transperth fares, beginning on January 1, 2022 - this will save some households up to $8.20 per one-way fare for every trip. This benefit is not captured in the household basket, which assumes a two-zone fare.
The delivery of this commitment means a household living, for example, in Dawesville will potentially save more than $3,000 per year.
The average household will save $28 on the Emergency Services Levy (ESL) this year compared to 2019-20, despite a 4.3 per cent increase, following the McGowan Government's decision to pass on the benefit of lower gross rental values in 2020-21.
The ESL for the average metropolitan household will therefore be $283 in 2021-22 compared to $311 in 2019-20.
Motor vehicle related charges will rise by a total of three per cent compared to 2020-21.
Overall, the basket of fees and charges for the average household will increase by $99.36 or less than 30 cents per day.
Household fees and charges will be just 0.6 per cent higher in 2021-22 compared to pre-COVID levels (2020-21), given a decline in the household basket last financial year.
The 2021-22 State Budget also delivers $20.8 million in additional support to customers most in need, including:
- $19.8 million for Synergy and Horizon Power energy concessions to support rebates and concessions including the Energy Assistance Payment, Dependent Child Rebate and Air Conditioning Rebate; and
- $1 million for the expansion of the Water Corporation's Medical Assist Program that provides households that have a person with kidney disease undertaking home dialysis an allowance of up to 30,000 litres of water free of charge on every two-monthly bill.
Over the past three years, the McGowan Government has spent $1.9 billion to keep household fees and charges low and provide relief through the COVID-19 pandemic.
For more information, visit https://www.ourstatebudget.wa.gov.au
As stated by Premier and Treasurer Mark McGowan:
"My Government is committed to continuing to build strong, safe and fair communities.
"At the election we made a number of commitments to ease cost of living pressures on WA households, and today we deliver on those promises.
"We are using the surpluses created by my Government's strong financial management to put more money back in the pockets for WA households.
"This year we are spending about $397 million to limit cost of living pressures including delivering our commitment to cap household water and electricity prices to inflation, as well as providing further support to customers most in need.
"This comes on top of the $600 Household Electricity Credit we provided last year to reduce the average household's fees and charges by 10.4 per cent.
"Delivering these important election commitments for Western Australians has only been possible due to my Government's strong and sensible financial management.
"The former Liberal National Government never contained household fees and charges to inflation in any year over their two terms, with costs for households $2,100 higher by the time they left office because their reckless budget management provided them no capacity to do so."
