The 2024 National State of Assets report was officially launched by the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) at the National Press Club yesterday.
ALGA commissions the report to help councils and communities understand whether the state of local government infrastructure across the country is improving, getting worse or staying the same.
The 2024 report shows that within existing resources and capacity constraints, the condition, function and capacity of local government assets has improved slightly since the 2021 report.
It found that overall, 65 to 71% of local government infrastructure assets are in ‘good’ condition, function and capacity; while around 20 to 30% are in ‘fair’ condition, function, capacity; and 8% are reported ‘poor’ to ‘very poor’.
It is estimated the replacement cost of all ‘poor’ to ‘very poor’ assets is between $50 to $55 billion; while the estimated replacement cost of assets in fair condition, function, capacity is estimated to be in the order of $143 billion – $179 billion.
Analysis of each infrastructure category shows that while there is variation between categories, each require attention and additional investment beyond current levels if the condition, function and capacity of these assets are to improve, said ALGA President, Linda Scott, who presented the report to the National Press Club on Tuesday.
“The key finding in this year’s report is that 8% of local government infrastructure assets are in poor condition, with significant defects needing intervention and repair,” said President Scott.
“Encouragingly, this is an improvement on the previous report from 2021, which identified that 10% of local government infrastructure was in poor condition.
This improvement can be attributed to a significant increase in Federal funding for local community infrastructure and services from both Coalition and Labor Governments over the past three years, she said.
“This increased funding has been welcomed by councils and communities and is delivering tangible benefits across the country. It is vital that we continue to invest in our communities, so the costs of infrastructure renewal aren’t passed on to future generations.”
“Often the infrastructure funding councils receive is limited to delivering new projects and doesn’t include support for ongoing maintenance. It is untied funding – including through federal Financial Assistance Grants – that allows us to sustainably manage our local community infrastructure and services.”
She said that while not all ‘poor’ and ‘fair’ rated infrastructure needs immediate replacement, it is important that each infrastructure asset is assessed to fully understand the implications including the risks associated with each asset when it exceeds its design life.
A report summary is available to read here, and technical report here.
