Council adopts 2025-26 annual Shire budget
Published on 27 June 2025
The Broome Shire Council adopted the 2025–26 Budget at the Ordinary Meeting of Council on Thursday 26 June, with a continued focus on delivering core services and maintaining community infrastructure despite ongoing economic pressures.
The Annual Budget outlines how the Shire will invest funds raised through rates, fees, reserves, and external grants over the coming year, providing a clear and consistent direction that aligns with our Council Plan.
The 2025–26 Shire Budget has been developed in a challenging economic climate, balancing rising costs – including CPI, utilities and insurance – with available income to maintain consistent service delivery for the Broome community.
According to Shire President Chris Mitchell, the 2025–26 Budget reflects the Shire’s commitment to sustainable planning and the ongoing provision of essential services.
“This year’s Budget continues our commitment to delivering high-quality services and infrastructure for the Broome community, while carefully managing our finances in this economic climate,” Cr Mitchell said.
“Our advocacy efforts at the state and federal levels have paid off, unlocking significant grant funding. This allows us to reinvest more of your rates directly into the services that matter most—like maintaining roads, footpaths, street lighting, BRAC, the library, and our parks and open spaces.”
“In fact, 45 per cent of the Shire’s total revenue in the previous financial year came from external grants, highlighting the success of our advocacy efforts and reducing the burden on local ratepayers.”
As a result, the 2025–26 Budget includes funding for several important community initiatives, such as:
- Upgrades to BRAC parking to improve access and convenience for all visitors.
- Improved roads, footpaths and street lighting to boost safety and connectivity across Broome.
- Enhanced CCTV infrastructure to support community safety and crime prevention.
- A vibrant calendar of community events to bring people together and celebrate local culture.
The Valuer General recently completed a full review of property values across the Shire of Broome for the 2024-25 year. As a result, many properties have had changes to their valuation — some going up, others going down.
Because of this, the Shire has had to adjust the Rate in the Dollar (the amount used to calculate rates) to make sure the changes in property values do not unfairly impact different ratepayers.
To keep things fair and balanced, Council has applied a 4.25% overall increase to rates and then adjusted each category (such as residential and commercial) based on the updated valuations.
This approach ensures that each group of ratepayers contributes approximately the same as they would have if property values had not changed.
Shire President Chris Mitchell said the Shire’s strong focus on grant advocacy continues to deliver major results for the Broome community.
“In recent months, we’ve secured significant funding across a number of areas—from major infrastructure projects to community events and local initiatives,” Cr Mitchell said.
“This includes a major Federal Government grant through the Regional Precincts and Partnerships Program for Stage 2 of the Walmanyjun Cable Beach Foreshore Redevelopment. Remarkably, it was the only project in Australia to receive funding in the program’s first round—an outstanding endorsement of the importance and impact of our work.”
“These successes are a clear recognition of the quality and significance of our projects, which benefit not just Broome but the wider region and Western Australia as a whole.”
“They also reflect the strength of our ongoing advocacy efforts, which ensure we can deliver real, tangible outcomes for our community—whether that’s better infrastructure, local events, or improved services—without placing extra financial pressure on local ratepayers.”
Read the full budget at www.broome.wa.gov.au/minutes_agendas