Sunshine Coast residents have been given an extra week to pay their rate bill as Sunshine Coast Council moves to help residents affected by the recent Queensland COVID lockdown and Noosa residents are offered flexible payment options.
Noosa Mayor Clare Stewart said help is at hand for residents and businesses facing difficulty paying their rates due to the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown.
“Council offers pensioner discounts and instalment options to help make paying rates more manageable for Noosa ratepayers,” the Mayor said.
“I urge our ratepayers to make the most of these options.”
“Lockdowns and financial assistance are chiefly state and federal government responsibilities, but we will again do what we can to support our community, just as we did last year with business subsidies, waived fees, fast-tracked payments, advocacy and other assistance.”
Sunshine Coast Council Finance Portfolio Councillor Ted Hungerford said residents now had until August 27 to pay their rate bills without incurring interest.
“The Sunshine Coast local government area is one of 11 areas across south-east Queensland which was placed into lockdown and it is important that council once again does everything it can to help our residents during what is a difficult time.
“Council is very aware of the strain hard lockdowns, like the one we recently experienced, place on communities and especially on people who run businesses or whose employment is affected.
“By providing additional time for ratepayers to either set up a payment arrangement or pay their rates in full before interest applies, we’re supporting residents when they need it most.”
Ratepayers who cannot make their rate bill payment by the extended date of 27 August are encouraged to apply to enter into an interest-free payment arrangement.