What is the Fire Services Property Levy (FSL)?
In 2013, the Victorian Government introduced a property-based levy to fund the:
This Fire Services Property Levy (FSL) replaces the previous insurance-based funding model (as recommended by the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission following on from the 2010 Black Saturday tragedy).
The FSL applies to all rate assessments property (land and buildings) and includes a fixed component as well as a variable charge based on the capital improved value (CIV) of the property. There are different levy rates depending on the location of the property and the property type.
The levy is collected by local Councils each year. If you are currently receiving a pension rebate for your Council rates, you will automatically receive a rebate for the FSL (as determined by the State Government).
The FSL charges are State Government charges and are calculated and advised to all Councils on an annual basis.
Council is the collection agency on behalf of the State Government and all income raised from this Levy is passed to the Victorian Government.