ACT cmmunity vews sught on concessions review

A review of the ACT Government Concessions Program will be conducted to ensure that the current program designed to assist individuals, households and organisations is still relevant and appropriate to the needs of the Canberra community.

Minister for Disability and Community Services, Katy Gallagher MLA, said the Government provided a broad range of concessions to eligible Canberrans on lower incomes to assist them in meeting the costs of essential services.

“These concessions assist eligible applicants to meet energy, water and sewerage charges, public transport, motor vehicle registration and other costs,” Ms. Gallagher said.

“The review of these concessions will assist us in assessing the nature and impact of the concessions available to the ACT community,” she said.

“Over the years, the Concessions Program has developed on an ad hoc basis, and this has made it difficult to measure the effectiveness of the program and ensure it is appropriately targeted.

“The Government is seeking submissions from the community, in particular current concessions recipients. We are seeking views on matters such as the eligibility of concessions, their accessibility and effectiveness in mitigating essential services costs,” Ms Gallagher said.

The closing date for submissions is Friday 28 September 2007.

For more information visit www.dhcs.act.gov.au