Dear Wellington City Council,

This is an official information request to identify reasons why WCC Rates and Billing Service has been unable to reply to writer’s enquiries over a period of 13 months and did not resolve addressed matters emailed on 25 May 2022. That deadlock situation generates following questions:

[1] How many Rates Officers deal with rates payer’s enquiries?
[2] What is the average response time for rates payer’s enquiries?
[3] How many enquiries remained unattended in 2021 and 2022?
[4] What is the name of the Rates Team Leader and his phone and email contact?

I wish that the answers to these questions help to make the WCC Rates and Billing Service rates-payer friendly and resolve the initial deadlock situation.
Yours faithfully,
Klaus Schliebe

Dear BUS: Assurance,
The response actually addressed the problem.
WCC hasn't answered three statistical data, and is unwilling to name the person in charge.
Any communication in writing remains by WCC unanswered and the reply to the information request is not different.

Yours sincerely,

Klaus Schliebe

Dear BUS: Assurance,

Please pass on my answer for an Info Request extension:

To Wellington Council’s Governing Body

Thank you for your response to IRC-5309. It is unfortunate that the Council did not provide the most wanted stats as substance of the Information Request. The same declarations have been contradictory in previous years.

Again why not listing for 2023:
[1] How many enquiries have been received, answered within 5 or 20 working days, and how many are still unattended?
[2] How many people are on the payroll in given offices?

To quote “WCC is aiming” why not “doing” to meet rates payers satisfaction? Opening an escape route “called DIY” stands for given links for (1) for property search, (2) for getting notified by email, or (3) for updating contact details. The writer is conversant with using WCC web services, launched already IRC-2936 (asked why WCC’s web services sent out auto responses, but never followed up and resolved addressed issues) and the Office of the Ombudsman declined the investigation.

Something demands answers (3 examples):
when WCC pointed out delays caused by “high volumes of enquiries”, Covid, staff shortage, ill-fallen employees and by administration/management trying to white-wash failing services. Why not coming up with
[a] Stats in categories – numbers for enquiries (searched for infos, requested assistance, fixed reported problems, fault repairs…)?
[b] Stats from the Ombudsman office about breaches of rules and regulations such as council’s policy, LGOIMA, tax invoice rules…?
[c] Steps for taking corporate responsibility when in default?

Defeating WCC’s attempt to push the focus in opposite direction I need to refer and illustrate two examples:

[1] The trigger of IRC-2936 has been clearly an unacceptable breach of LGOIMA by failing to resolve a simple request. To obtain missing rates documents and following complaint procedure has taken 3 months.

[2] In return the related penalty charge has been disputed in May 2022 – and is not settled by date:
Imagine, the Rates Team sent the related invoice after “due date” and charged penalties while failing to provide services rates payers paying for.
The dispute is based on good reasons such as WCC wasn’t able answering the addressed notice and verifying dates e.g. for posted bills and payment.
It is a remarkable situation passed on to Chief Executive office. The reminder of 19 June 2023 posted directly to Chief Executive’s mail box hasn’t been answered yet.
I would like to see a reference that WCC’s penalty clause also applies explicitly to payment notes posted/received after the “due-date”.

Please confirm whether WCC agrees to include the outstanding issues [1] & [2] or not.

If WCC is asking, I would release the substance of facts when dealing with Ombudsman and Chief Executive offices in terms of timeframes, investigations, and writer’s impression how administration/management is sugar-coating professional misconduct.

I look forward to get these stats used by the Council Governing Body to set priorities for rate payers satisfaction, and
would appreciate WCC's commitment to clear up the mess.

Yours sincerely,

Klaus Schliebe