South Burnett Regional Council

South Burnett Regional Council is a Local Government in Queensland, Australia.

Origins

This Local Government was created in March 2008 as a result of the report of the Local Government Reform Commission released in July 2007.

The new Council, located in the southern catchment of the Burnett River, contains the entire area of four existing Local Government Areas;

*Shire of Kingaroy;
*Shire of Nanango;
*Shire of Murgon; and
*Shire of Wondai.

The report recommended the new local government area should not be divided into wards and should elect six councillors and a mayor however the Interim Steering Committee applied to the State Government for four wards based on the old shire boundaries. As the total population is just a few hundred short of the level set in the report for eight councillors and a mayor, application for this was also made.

Area and Size

The South Burnett Regional Council covers an area convert|8399|km2|sqmi|0|lk=on, containing an estimated resident population of 29,734 (2006 figures) and has an estimated operating budget of AUD42m (as at 2008).

The Aboriginal community of Cherbourg has been excluded from the amalgamated area and will continue to have its own local council.

The townships of Yarraman (in the former Rosalie Shire), Tansey, Goomeri and Kilkivan (Kilkivan Shire) - formerly part of the South Burnett Local Government Association area - have also been excluded from the new South Burnett Regional Council.

The Kilkivan Shire towns will become part of Cooloola Regional Shire and Yarraman will become part of the new Toowoomba Regional Council.

The South Burnett Regional Council will cover the towns of Blackbutt, Kingaroy, Nanango, Murgon, Proston and Wondai and the villages/communities of Benarkin, Boondooma, Cloyna, Coolabunia, Crawford, Durong, Hivesville, Maidenwell, Memerambi, Tingoora and Wooroolin.

First Mayor and Councillors

As at 15 March 2008, the first Mayor elected to the South Burnett Shire Council is David Ian Carter [ [http://www.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/local/lg2008/SouthBurnettRegionalCouncil/results/mayoral/summary.html South Burnett's Election Results: Mayor] Retrieved 18 April 2008]

The first Councillors elected to the South Burnett Regional Council were as follows:

* Division 1 GREEN, Barry
* Division 2 PALMER, Debra
* Division 3 TESSMANN, Damien
* Division 4 CAMPBELL, Keith
* Division 5 DUFF, Kathy
* Division 6 DALTON, Cheryl

External links

* [http://www.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/2008/html/SouthBurnettRegionalCouncil.html Interactive Map of the South Burnett Regional Council area (Electoral Commission Queensland web site)] Retrieved 18 April 2008
* [http://www.southburnettltc.qld.gov.au South Burnett Regional Council - Local Transition Committee]

References