Dear Wellington Regional Council,

I am interested in the proposed GWRC 2020/21 Annual Plan and, in particular, how the 2020/21 Annual Plan Transport Rates have been calculated. I understand the GWRC Annual Plan will shortly be subject to a short public consultation. This information is requested to support a possible submission on the Annual Plan public consultation and so provision of this information in time to be analysed and included into a submission is an important element of this request.

A) Can the GWRC please provide a complete copy of the detailed calculations that were used to provide the Transport Rates information in the draft 2020/21 Annual Plan ?

B) Can the GWRC please provide a complete copy of the calculations of the 2020/21 Transport Rate allocation to ratepayers ?

C) Can the GWRC please provide a complete copy of the detailed costs for the cost amounts used in the calculation of the 2020/21 Transport Rates ?

D) Can the GWRC please provide a complete copy of the detailed revenue for the revenue amounts used in the calculation of the 2020/21 Transport Rates ?

E) Can the GWRC please provide a copy of any reports or presentations to GWRC councillors at Annual Plan 2020/21 workshops ?

F) Can the GWRC please provide a copy of the changes (contributions and withdrawals) from the Transport Reserve over the past three years including the source for the contributions and the target for the withdrawals ?

I assume that the Transport Rates information is held in electronic spreadsheet form and I would prefer it was provided to me in its complete, original electronic format as I wish to understand how the calculations were made including the formula used. Please advice if this assumption is not correct and advice what format this information is held. If this information is not to be provided in its complete, original electronic format, please provide the grounds for the GWRC refusal to provide this information in the requested format.

Please contact me if this will assist you in clarifying my request and/or providing the requested information.

Finally, can you please acknowledge your receipt of this information request ?

Yours faithfully,

Tony Randle

Dear Rebecca Dobbs,

Thank you for providing the information supporting the GWRC decisions on 2020/21 Transport Rates.

With respect to the provision of the detailed transport rate costs and revenue spreadsheets (Attachments 1 and 3), the GWRC LGOIMA response states:
"the projected cost information relating to the bus, rail and ferry contracts in the Wellington Region has been withheld in accordance with sections 7(2)(b)(ii) and 7(2)(i) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (the Act), in that releasing the breakdown of the cost estimates would be likely to unreasonably prejudice the commercial position of the operators who supplied this information and to enable GWRC’s to carry on, without prejudice or disadvantage, negotiations for upcoming contracts."

Initial analysis indicates that, in addition to withholding some entries under "TOTAL OPERATING EXPENDITURE", the GWRC has also deleted the amounts under column "Total Government Subsidies" for these same items.

Can the GWRC please provide the amounts under "Total Government Subsidies" or explain why detailed information on the contribution from the government for PT services must also be withheld under LGOIMA ?

Yours sincerely,

Tony Randle