Wellington mayor Andy Foster. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Wellington mayor Andy Foster. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Wellington City Council is looking to apply for Three Waters reform funding to help its social housing tenants pay rent.
It wants $6.5 million to go towards supporting rental affordability or costs of living for existing tenants.
Last year the Government announced a $2.5 billion funding package intended to compensate councils for the water reforms, of which $500 million was to ensure they were no worse off through the transition period.
The remainder was to allow them to pay for other infrastructure and "wellbeing investments" - but has been criticised as a "bribe" by those opposed to it. It's this part of the fund the council intends to apply to.
Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta has said the Government's reforms would save ratepayers money in the long term and enable councils to focus on the aspirations of their communities.
"This "better-off" funding can be used for those projects communities feel they need the most, be it local parks and gardens, swimming pools, libraries and community centres, or investment in public transport and infrastructure to protect against extreme weather events and sea-level rises."
The National Party and Act have both labelled it a bribe fund and said they will repeal the reforms.
Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta. Photo / Mark Mitchell
City Housing, the council's social housing arm, is in dire need of investment.
It's in financial trouble and forecast to be insolvent by next year with a current deficit of $30,000 per day. It has about 1927 properties and 3200 tenants.
The council wanted its tenants to have access to something called the Income Related Rent Subsidy (IRRS) to solve the financial dilemma.
Gaining access to this subsidy would mean those on low incomes wouldn't pay any more than 25 per cent of their income on rent. It would also turn City Housing's operating deficit into a surplus.
At the moment, the subsidy is only available for new tenants going into Kāinga Ora or Community Housing Provider (CHP) social housing.
But the council has failed in its lobbying efforts and the Government's focus remains on using the subsidy to increase new build public housing, rather than giving it to those who are already housed.
So, the council has now decided to establish a CHP so tenants can finally access the subsidy. A trust will lease and manage the council's social housing portfolio.
This still doesn't solve all of the council's problems.
Housing Minister Megan Woods has said only new tenants, not existing ones, will be eligible for the IRRS.
"It's no secret that there is enormous need for public housing, and if IRRS funding is directed to existing tenants who are already adequately housed, we won't see progress in moving people off the housing register into homes."
Mayor Andy Foster released the findings of his mayoral taskforce into the council's "broken" social housing model this afternoon.
One of the recommendations was to ensure existing tenants, who cannot receive the subsidy, are supported and not disadvantaged from their current position.
Foster said the Three Waters funding was about looking after the wellbeing of those tenants who had been discriminated against by not being granted access to the subsidy.
"It's just trying to provide a little bit of support for them to put them in a better position than they are at the moment."
Foster doesn't like the plan for reforms but said he didn't see this funding as an aspect of Three Waters "at all".
"It just happens to be that the Government's said 'here's some money to in some way compensate' and that's the way we're proposing to choose to use it."
Councillors will consider the proposal to apply for funding from the Three Waters Reform Package at a committee meeting tomorrow.
