General News
20 October, 2026
TRC missing out on grant millions
TABLELANDS Regional Council is missing out on millions of dollars in Federal grants because of a change in the methodology used to calculate what councils receive.
The impact of the change was revealed through a report showing that TRC has had its general purpose grant cut in half, taking it from $4.16 million in 2022-23 to just $1.99 million this year.
Mayor Kevin Cardew, all TRC councillors and chief executive officer Nikola Stepanov were set to discuss the matter with the Queensland Local Government Grants Commission, which distributes the federal funds, at this week’s Local Government Association of Queensland conference in Cairns.
Councils receive two grants – the General Purpose Grant (GPG) and the Identified Road Grant (IRG). But since 2022-23, the GPG has been calculated under a revised model which was phased in over three years.
Community and Corporate Services general manager Hilary Jackson outlined the situation at council’s September meeting.
“The financial assistance grant is untied Commonwealth funding that councils can spend on general service, and it’s distributed by the Queensland Grants Commission,” she explained.
“This year, our allocation is just under $6 million, made up of almost $4 million in the identified road grant and just under $2 million in the general purpose grant.
“The roads portion is based on the length and estimated maintenance costs of each council’s roads, while the general purpose grant is intended to help councils provide an average standard of service.
“It’s based on the gap between what a council needs and what it can raise itself.
“Our general purpose grant has fallen from $4.16 million in 2022-23 to $1.99 million this year as a result of changes to the commission’s methodology.”
Ms Jackson said that when assessed by population per council, TRC’s GRG equated to around $71 per resident.
“That compares with $122 per resident in Cassowary Coast and $272 in Mareeba,” she told the meeting.
“Part of the reason is that the commission assesses our capacity to raise our own revenue as very strong.
“The gap with Mareeba is mostly because our population places us in the medium band for the formula, while Mareeba sits in the small band. That difference is far greater than any genuine difference in the cost of delivering services.”
The council report advises that TRC is the third largest FNQ Regional Organisation of Councils by population, behind Cairns and Cassowary Coast, yet its GPG allocation is the lowest of any those councils and ranks 72 out of 77 Queensland councils in 2026-27.
“Cassowary Coast Regional Council, with a population approximately 10% larger than TRC’s (30,666 versus 27,902), receives $3.73 million which is almost double TRC’s allocation and equivalent to $121.61 per resident against TRC’s $71.45,” the report states.
“Mareeba Shire Council, with a population of approximately 24,205, receives a $6.59 million General Purpose Grant – more than three times TRC’s allocation – which is $272.13 per resident.
“TRC is the only FNQROC member to have an allocation that has fallen significantly since 2022-23.”
On 16 September, Ms Stepanov wrote to the Chair of the commission raising TRC’s concerns ahead of the commission’s next methodology review.
In the letter, she asked why the commission did not apply the department’s own Tier classifications for grant purposes.
“I agree that there are cost disadvantages associated with running smaller and more isolated local governments, and therefore, higher weightings and high per capita grants should be provided to these local governments,” Ms Stepanov wrote.
“However, I believe the difference in grant allocations of 381% between Tablelands and the adjoining Mareeba overinflates these cost differences given there is a moderate 15% difference in population.”
At TRC’s 24 September Ordinary meeting, all councillors agreed they would attend the annual LGAQ conference and seek to meet with the commission over the issue.
