The ACT government has handed down the 2022-23 budget as Canberrans deal with the pandemic impacts and rising cost of living.
Here's your guide to the budget winners and losers.
Winners:
Waterways
The government plans to spend $4.2 million to establish an Office of Water to coordinate and lead policy development and holistic water management. The healthy waterways program will also get a funding boost.
Tertiary education
The Study Canberra initiative will be extended and refreshed to attract and retain more domestic and international students to help the recovery of the tertiary education sector, which is set to improve off the back of international borders reopening. This will cost about $4.2 million over four years.
Renters
Developers will have incentives to construct build-to-rent projects with a portion of affordable rental units. It will help provide more long-term and affordable housing options for renters in Canberra's competitive and expensive rental market. The government will release land in Turner for a build-to-rent pilot.
Low income households
Low income households to get an additional one-off $50 increase in the utilities concession in 2022-23 to help with rising cost of living. It will bring the concession to $800 and will benefit about 31,200 households.
Electric car owners
More electric vehicle charging stations will be installed across the territory as we drive towards a zero emissions vehicles sales target of 80-90 per cent by 2030.
Women's health
The budget includes $12.1 million over four years to implement the ACT public maternity system plan, $4.6 million over four years for free abortions and long-acting, reversible contraception following an abortion, and funding to boost to maternity services at Calvary Public Hospital Bruce.
ACT Ambulance Service
Funding will go towards employing 30 new staff, two new frontline ambulance vehicles, five other vehicles and more resources for the clinical governance and education units.
First home buyers
Stamp duty for homes between $260,000 to $1,455,000 will be reduced by $1120, and the home buyer concession scheme income threshold will be increased from $160,000 to $170,000.
Losers:
Home of Football at Throsby
This $29 million joint project with Capital Football has been plagued by problems, including a creek running through the site which delayed construction. It was initially supposed to be complete before 2023, so that it could be a training base for the women's World Cup in 2023. That was pushed back to September 2023 when it was delayed last year. Now $19 million of funding has been moved to the 2023-24 financial year, with a projected finish date of June 2024.
Experienced teachers
Highly Accomplished and Lead Teachers who wish to renew their certification after 10 years will now need to pay a fee to the Teacher Quality Institute.
Suburb of Kenny
Rain has caused delays to the construction of Kenny High School. It is now set to be built in time for the 2024 school year, instead of the start of 2023 as originally planned. Meanwhile, land for housing won't be released in Kenny until 2024-25.
Public housing tenants
The budget includes funding for public housing maintenance and 140 new dwellings to meet the government's target of 400 new public housing homes. However, with more than 3000 people on the waiting list for public housing, this commitment is unlikely to meet the needs of all Canberrans.
People going to the tip
Landfill fees will increase by 1.17 per cent for household, commercial and industrial waste from January 1, 2023, after the fees were frozen in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The government says it will provide an incentive to reduce waste.
Local business
COVID-19 business support grants have ended. There's nothing in the budget directly benefiting businesses which are suffering from staff absences and labour shortages.
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