The Federal Government has announced that it will use its Emergency Response Fund to provide $150 million for communities devastated by the recent floods.
Specifically, the Federal Government will provide the Queensland and New South Wales (NSW) governments with $75 million each to assist in immediate disaster recovery and future disaster risk mitigation and resilience initiatives.
The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA), which has been calling for all Australian governments to lift funding for extreme weather, has welcomed the government's announcement.
“The devastation we have witnessed is evidence of the urgent need to improve community resilience in areas with [a] high risk of extreme weather impacts,” said ICA CEO Andrew Hall.
“We welcome this much-needed investment, not only for communities in desperate need of help now but which, when the time comes to build again, will need investment that makes them safer and more resilient.”
In February, the ICA released a policy platform for the Federal election, calling for doubling Federal funding to $200 million annually until reaching $2 billion over the next five years. Developed in consultation with actuarial consultancy Finity, the platform outlined six measures to make homes and communities more resilient to floods, cyclones, and bushfires.
The recent disaster fund announcement follows the Commissioner of Taxation's decision to provide assistance measures for individuals and small businesses in flood-affected areas in both states to help alleviate cashflow pressures and assist the affected communities with their recovery efforts.
Specifically, flood-affected taxpayers have additional time to meet any upcoming business activity statement obligations, while affected taxpayers paying Pay-As-You-Go instalments quarterly are allowed to vary upcoming instalments and claim a refund of previously paid instalments. In addition, any GST refunds these taxpayers are entitled to will be fast-tracked to free up cashflow and help fund their recovery efforts.
