Murrindindi Shire Council has renewed its call for targeted structural reform to Victoria's disaster recovery system following its appearance before the Parliamentary Inquiry into the 2026 Summer Fires.
Council's submission, reinforced through Council's testimony at a public hearing held in Alexandra on Friday 24 April, sets out 15 practical, evidence-based recommendations to strengthen preparedness, response and long-term recovery.
The evidence presented to the Inquiry points to a fundamental issue at the centre of recovery.
Murrindindi was the most heavily impacted municipality in Victoria during the January fires, with almost one third of the Shire affected and nearly half of the State's structural losses occurring locally, including 216 homes, more than 520 outbuildings and widespread destruction of farming infrastructure and fencing.
Impact assessments compiled by Emergency Management Victoria show that Murrindindi experienced around 48 per cent of the State's losses.
Despite this, Council received approximately 8 per cent of recovery funding including the same $750,000 Council Support Fund allocation as most of the other 18 impacted councils.
Murrindindi Shire Council Mayor Cr Damien Gallagher said this misalignment between impact and funding was central to Council's evidence.
"Frontline in the disaster, back of the queue in recovery - that's the reality for Murrindindi," Cr Gallagher said.
"By any measure, Murrindindi sustained close to half of the State's impact, yet received a fraction of the recovery funding," Cr Gallagher said.
"Equal funding did not result in equal outcomes for our communities."
Council's submission outlines how this one-size-fits-all approach has created visible gaps in recovery, particularly in rural municipalities managing large-scale damage across dispersed communities with limited workforce capacity.
"When funding does not reflect impact, it affects the pace of recovery, the visibility of services, and ultimately confidence in the system," Cr Gallagher said.
Chief Executive Officer Livia Bonazzi told the Inquiry that while recovery is underway, many parts of the Shire remain in relief, with new requests for assistance continuing months after the fires.
"The defining issue before this Inquiry is not only the scale of the fire, but how recovery has unfolded," Ms Bonazzi said.
"Equal funding did not result in equal outcomes. The recovery system assumed impact was evenly distributed. The evidence shows it was not."
Ms Bonazzi said the consequences of this mismatch are now shaping recovery on the ground.
"Recovery is the point at which we either restore communities or quietly lose them," she said.
"Under-funded recovery does not just delay rebuilding, it compounds trauma."
Council's submission highlights broader systemic challenges exposed by the fires, including:
- Telecommunications and power failures that left communities isolated
- The absence of fit-for-purpose local relief infrastructure
- Increasing pressure on volunteers and local government capacity
- Gaps in coordination, data sharing and recovery delivery
It also reinforces the cumulative impact of repeated disasters, with Murrindindi communities still recovering from floods, storms and drought prior to the 2026 fires.
"Recovery frameworks often assume events occur in isolation. Communities experience them as cumulative, layered and unfinished," Ms Bonazzi said.
A key focus of Council's recommendations is the need to move from short-term recovery responses to proportionate, place-based funding models that reflect verified impact and support long-term recovery.
Ms Bonazzi said local government's role as the recovery coordinating authority must be properly resourced to remain effective and sustainable.
"Local government sits at the centre of recovery. We are the coordinating authority, the delivery layer, and the connection point to community," she said.
"But this is not a sustainable model if the funding that underpins it is not proportionate to the task."
"Resilience is not a funding model. Without structural reform, rural communities will continue to carry a disproportionate burden", Ms Bonazzi said.
Mayor Cr Gallagher said the Inquiry must now focus on ensuring its findings lead to real change.
"There is clear scope for this Inquiry to deliver meaningful recommendations for reform, particularly in addressing recovery funding inequity," Cr Gallagher said.
"What matters now is that those recommendations are adopted and implemented by Government, not left sitting on a shelf."
Council representatives, including Chief Executive Officer Livia Bonazzi, Mayor Cr Damien Gallagher and Director of Community and Development Andrew Paxton, appeared before the Inquiry at Alexandra Shire Hall to present evidence on behalf of the community.
While the public hearings have concluded, Council is continuing to encourage community members to continue sharing their experiences to ensure the full impact of the fires is understood.
"The hearings may have concluded, but the story of recovery is still being written," Cr Gallagher said.
"We encourage our community to continue telling their story, because every voice contributes to the change needed to build a fairer, stronger recovery system."
To read Council's full submission to the Inquiry, visit:
