Tumbarumba Shire is a local government area in the eastern Riverina region, located in the foothills of the Snowy Mountains, on the upper reaches of the Murray River in New South Wales, Australia. The Shire includes the town of Tumbarumba and the small towns of Rosewood, Tooma, Khancoban and Jingellic.
| Tumbarumba Shire New South Wales | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Location in New South Wales | |||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 35°45′S 148°00′E / 35.750°S 148.000°E | ||||||||||||||
| Population | 3,521 (2013 est)[1] | ||||||||||||||
| • Density | 0.80150/km2 (2.0759/sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Area | 4,393 km2 (1,696.1 sq mi)[2] | ||||||||||||||
| Mayor | Cr. Ian Chaffey (Independent)[3] | ||||||||||||||
| Council seat | Tumbarumba | ||||||||||||||
| Region | Riverina | ||||||||||||||
| State electorate(s) | Albury | ||||||||||||||
| Federal division(s) | Division of Riverina | ||||||||||||||
| Website | Tumbarumba Shire | ||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
The mayor of Tumbarumba Shire is Cr. Ian Chaffey, an independent politician.[3]
Council
Current composition and election method
Tumbarumba Shire Council is composed of eight councillors elected proportionally as a single ward. All councillors are elected for a fixed four-year term of office. The mayor is elected by the councillors at the first meeting of the Council. The most recent election was held on 8 September 2012 and the makeup of the Council is as follows:[4]
| Party | Councillors | |
|---|---|---|
| Template:Australian politics/party colours/Independent| | Independents and Unaligned | 8 |
| Total | 8 | |
The current Council, elected in 2012, in order of election, is:[4]
| Councillor | Party | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Template:Australian politics/party colours/Independent| | Julie Giddings | Unaligned | |
| Template:Australian politics/party colours/Independent| | Ian Chaffey | Independent | Mayor[3] |
| Template:Australian politics/party colours/Independent| | Rodney Shaw | Unaligned | |
| Template:Australian politics/party colours/Independent| | Tony a'Beckett | Unaligned | |
| Template:Australian politics/party colours/Independent| | Alan Becke | Independent | |
| Template:Australian politics/party colours/Independent| | Brent Livermore | Independent | Deputy Mayor[3] from Sept 2014[5] |
| Template:Australian politics/party colours/Independent| | Sue Fletcher | Unaligned | |
| Template:Australian politics/party colours/Independent| | George Martin | Unaligned | |
Proposed amalgamation
A 2015 review of local government boundaries recommended that the Tumbarumba Shire merge with the Tumut Shire to form a new council. This recommendation was not supported by any of the preceding IPART and Tcorp assessments, which recommended a Tumut/Gundagai merger instead. When the NSW State Government released their proposal in December 2015, the Government's website stated that the proposal was 'broadly consistent with Tumut Council's stated preference' -website page since withdrawn. Tumut Council submitted its preferences during a consulation period following the of IPART's 'Fit for the Future' report, in October 2015 after it was found 'Not Fit'. Tumbarumba Shire Council did not elect any merger partners as part of this process, with the finding it was 'Fit' as a 'Rural Council'.
As a result, many residents of Tumbarumba Shire view[opinion] Tumut Shire Council's choice to nominate a Gundagai/Tumbarumba/Tumut merger as the catalyst behind the NSW Government proposal to merge the Tumbarumba Shire with Tumut Shire, (which was never one of Tumut Shire Council's stated preference). The resulting opposition by the residents of Tumbarumba Shire has been almost[opinion] unanimous, with a publicly convened 'Save Tumbarumba Shire' committee executing an active grass roots, public campaign.[citation needed]
The NSW Government proposal would see a combined Shire with an area of 8,960 square kilometres (3,460 sq mi) and support a population of approximately 14,953.[6] The outcome of an independent review is expected to be completed by mid–2016.
References
- ^ "3218.0 Regional Population Growth, Australia. Table 1. Estimated Resident Population, Local Government Areas, New South Wales". 3 April 2014. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
- ^ "Tumbarumba Shire Council". Department of Local Government. Retrieved 8 November 2006.
- ^ a b c d "Council and Councillors". Council. Tumbarumba Shire Council. September 2012. Retrieved 30 September 2012.
- ^ a b "Tumbarumba Shire Council: Summary of First Preference and Group Votes for each Candidate". Local Government Elections 2012. Electoral Commission of New South Wales. 13 September 2012. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
- ^ "Deputy Mayor Councillor Brent Livermore". Tumbarumba Shire Council. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
- ^ "Merger proposal: Tumbarumba Shire Council, Tumut Shire Council" (PDF). Government of New South Wales. January 2016. p. 7. Retrieved 10 March 2016.