De-Amalgamation Consideration

Council resolved to seek a de-amalgamation of Snowy Valleys Council into two new councils based on the boundaries of the former councils, Tumut and Tumbarumba.

Council has been following the demerger pathway made possible by legislation introduced and passed by the state Government in 2024.

A business case for de-amalgamation was developed and referred to the Boundaries Commission. The Commission then asked Council for more detail to outline financial impacts (including increases to rates), long term strategic plans, and the capacity of the new councils to deliver services.

Following the reciept of this information, the Boundaries Commission then recommended to the Minister for Local Government that Council’s de-amalgamation proposal, including its implementation plan and financial sustainability plan, be supported.

The Minister accepted this recommendation and gave his support for Council to hold a constitutional referendum for the community to vote on the question of de-amalgamation.

Minister for Local Government Ron Hoenig said:

“I know it’s been a long road to get here, but the work the Council has done putting together a business case has been necessary to ensure demerging would be a viable option.

“If there is majority support in the referendum and residents are prepared to accept the financial costs, then the Council can progress with the transition work required to demerge.

“If the referendum is rejected, the community and the Council must respect that outcome and get on with it.

“The important thing is the communities of Snowy Valleys are given the choice to make this decision for themselves – not have it made for them by the state government which has no mandate to interfere with local democracy.”  

 Minister Gives Support for De-Amalgamation Referendum 

DE-AMALGAMATION REFERENDUM

The de-amalgamation referendum will be held on Saturday 29 November 2025.   The referendum will be conducted by the NSW Electoral Commission and voting is compulsory. 

All enrolled voters in the Snowy Valleys must vote on the question:

“Should the Snowy Valleys Council be de-amalgamated and the former Tumut Shire and Tumbarumba Shire be re-constituted as separate local government areas?” Yes/No

The majority of the whole council area must support this vote for the demerger to proceed.

For more information about what a referendum is visit elections.nsw.gov.au

Enrol To Vote

Residential Roll

You are entitled to vote in the referendum if you are an Australian citizen 18 years or older and have lived in the Snowy Valleys for at least one month.

To update your enrolment details or to apply to enrol visit aec.gov.au/enrol or call 13 23 26.  Applications close at 6pm on Monday 20 October 2025.

Non-Residential Roll

If you are an owner, rate-paying lessee, or occupier of rateable land in the Snowy Valleys local government area, you or a nominee may be entitled to vote and be included on the roll of non-resident owners of rateable land or the roll of occupiers and ratepaying lessees for the referendum.

To apply, download one of the forms below.  Council will accept non-resident applications up until 6pm on Monday 20 October 2025.

• INDIVIDUAL-OWNERS-OCCUPIERS-AND-RATEPAYING-LESSEES-FORM(PDF, 150KB)
• JOINT-SEVERAL-CORPORATE-OR-TRUSTEE-OWNERS-FORM(PDF, 181KB)

To check whether you are enrolled on a non-residential roll contact council.  P: 1300 275 785 or E: info@svc.nsw.gov.au

To learn more about non- residential rolls visit elections.nsw.gov.au

DE-AMALGAMATION INFORMATION

De-amalgamation Flow Chart(PDF, 87KB)

The Minister has made it clear that as part of the referendum residents must be made aware they will be facing rate increases and other costs to support the demerged councils, so they can make an informed decision.