Local Government NSW (LGNSW) has criticised the new tax of $156 per burial, $63 per ash interment and $41 per cremation which will be levied on large operators – those who carry out more than 50 interments per year – from July 1 and for smaller operators, the levy will commence from July 1, 2025.
LGNSW President Darriea Turley AM said the levy was just the latest example of cost-shifting onto local government, with council cemeteries undertaking more than 40 percent of all burials.
Cr Turley said councils could not absorb the levy into current operational budgets and whether this year or next, they would have to pass on the levy to their residents and community members, “making interment services more expensive for grieving individuals and families who are going through one of the most challenging circumstances of their lives”.
“LGNSW calls on the Premier to step in and reverse this Government decision to impose a burial and cremation tax on the community, particularly during a cost of living crisis,” she said.
The State Government announced the levy just before Easter, saying the costs were to fund the increased regulation of the interment industry.
Even costs of dying set to soar
THE State Government’s controversial “cemeteries tax” has been slammed, as families across the State struggle with the cost of living crisis.
