State Government dumps bin tax on councils, ratepayers
Published on 01 July 2025
Several million Queenslanders from Far North Queensland to the Gold Coast today face being slugged with a State Government bin tax.
In response the peak body for local government has launched a campaign to #BinTheTax, using an animated ibis – a bin chicken – to call for commonsense.
“From July 1, millions of Queenslanders will be forced to pay a state waste levy – a bin tax - for the waste they send to landfill,” Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) Chief Executive Officer Alison Smith said.
“Some councils are already being slugged with the bin tax while others will join them from today.
"This is happening because councils in waste levy zones will no longer receive the 100 per cent offset which has been paid by the state.
"That offset has been paid to councils in order to prevent the levy being applied to household bins.
"However that is all changing, with the offset dropping to 70 per cent for some councils this financial year, and the offset amount forecast to drop each year going forwards unless the State Government agrees to a reset."
Across Queensland, the 19 councils and their communities who will face an almost $30 million reduction in offset payments from today are: Brisbane City Council, Bundaberg Regional Council, Cairns Regional Council, Gladstone Regional Council, Gold Coast City Council, Ipswich City Council, Logan City Council, Mackay Regional Council, Noosa Shire Council, Scenic Rim Regional Council, Sunshine Coast Regional Council, Toowoomba Regional Council, Townsville City Council, Somerset Regional Council, Moreton Bay City Council, Redland City Council, Rockhampton Regional Council, Lockyer Valley Regional Council, and Fraser Coast Regional Council.
“If you’re in the waste levy zone, your council will be forced to choose between passing the cost on to ratepayers, or having less money for council services like parks, libraries and community facilities,” Ms Smith said.
“The waste levy is part of the State Government’s plan to reduce the amount of rubbish sent to landfill and to increase recycling.
"However, when the former State Government first introduced plans to reduce the levy offset paid to councils, it made two promises – ensuring the levy has no direct impact on households, and that a $2.1 billion investment into recycling options and other markets for kerbside waste occurrs to ensure households had the options they needed to divert waste out of their bins in order to avoid the tax.
“That investment and those options are not in place, meaning households don’t have appropriate waste diversion options,” she said.
This financial year the recent State Budget shows an estimated $477 million in revenue will be generated by the state government from the waste levy.
“Councils are calling for a reset,” Ms Smith said.
"We welcome the launch of a new Queensland Waste Strategy that is currently out for public consultation, but we are calling for a pause on any reduction to the waste levy offset payments to councils until this review is completed."
The LGAQ has today launched a Bin the Tax campaign, spearheaded by Queensland’s iconic and ironic waste expert, Chooky the Bin Chicken.
“Don’t dump the cost on ratepayers; bin the tax, it stinks,” is the start of Chooky’s commentary on the bin tax.
For images and video from the LGAQ’s Bin the Tax campaign, click here.
Quotes from Mayors
Gladstone Mayor and LGAQ President Matt Burnett: “In my time as a mayor, I’ve worked with the teams who collect bins, the communities who use them, and approved the budgets that keep those services running.
“Councils are proud to deliver these services, and support smart, sustainable options for residents to minimise waste.
“Councils are asking the Queensland Government to #BinTheTax until the full review of the waste levy is done.”
Fraser Coast Mayor George Seymour said the Queensland Government’s cost-shifting would force Fraser Coast Regional Council to pass on $1 million in extra costs to local households this financial year alone, and more than $22 million over the next six years.
“The Queensland Government says the waste tax helps reduce landfill and support recycling, but they’re cutting funding before regional councils have the infrastructure or support to meet their waste reduction and recycling targets,” he said.
“We strongly support better recycling, and we have already invested $31 million in a new state-of-the-art Materials Recovery Facility in Maryborough, without a single dollar of support from the Queensland or Australian governments.
“Now we’re being asked to do more, with less, and pay more for it. That’s simply not fair to our community.”
Rockhampton Mayor Tony Williams acknowledged that change was needed in the waste sector but taxing local residents when there were no investment-ready diversion methods was not the way.
“I think ultimately we all want the same thing but the State Government is going about this in the wrong order,” Mayor Williams said.
“These new charges are going to hit the community at a really difficult time and they will continue to grow out to 2030.
“For Rockhampton that means over $1 million in additional costs this year as a direct result of the State Government’s decision. That will grow to $2.9 million by 2030.
“We want to work with the Government to plan, develop and deliver waste diversion initiatives that actually work. That needs to be focused first and foremost.
“We need a rethink to this policy and a different approach from the Government.”
Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate said: “The increase in the waste levy is concerning as Council’s have no option but to pass it on to ratepayers at a time when cost of living continues to hit hard.
“All levels of government need to work together to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and this will require major community education programs and innovative solutions like waste to energy which is in widespread use throughout Asia and Europe.
“That’s why Gold Coast is investing in a waste to energy project in the north of our city at Stapylton.
“This is a major challenge that cannot be left to local government alone.
“Whilst the current State Government are still in their first year, and it was the previous Government that introduced the waste levy, I urge the Government to partner with local government across Queensland to deliver outcomes that benefit the environment and reduce costs in the longer term.”
Bundaberg Region Mayor Helen Blackburn said: “In year one this is a $1.3 million cost to Bundaberg Region ratepayers which, to put that into perspective, is the equivalent financial impact to ratepayers of a 1.4 per cent rates increase.
“By the time the levy reaches its full extent, this figure is expected to grow to $4 million per year.
“To now have these charges added to cost pressures being faced by residents without achievable, cost-effective pathways to waste diversion or reduction, it will hit Bundaberg region families right in their hip pocket.
“I’m urging the State Government to come to the table and work with us, not penalise our communities.”
Redland City Mayor Jos Mitchell said: “The widening waste levy funding gap created by the successive Queensland Governments is forecast to rise to $2.2 million in 2025–2026 for Redland City, and to $8.6 million by 2030-31.
“Redland City Council, like other Queensland councils, will struggle to bridge this increasing gap, while the impacts are borne by ratepayers already feeling the stress of a cost-of-living crisis.”
Sunshine Coast Mayor Rosanna Natoli said as one of Queensland’s fastest-growing regions, the Sunshine Coast was already feeling the pressure on our waste services.
“We’re working hard to manage that growth responsibly, without passing unnecessary costs onto our householders,” Mayor Natoli said.
“Our community expects us to deliver efficient, sustainable waste services - and we do.
“But the State’s waste levy amounts to a bin tax that hits households directly and it’s a cost we simply cannot absorb.
“This campaign is about protecting our residents.
“It’s not just about bins - it’s about fairness.
“We’re standing with the LGAQ to say no to a bin tax because it’s our job to stand up for our community.”
Scenic Rim Mayor Tom Sharp said insights gained from the SEQ Council of Mayors' overseas mission in February - which included Singapore's newest waste facility now diverting up to 800 tonnes of waste from landfill each day, minimising community and environmental impacts and achieving significant advances towards a circular economy - highlighted the urgent need for improved waste management infrastructure for South East Queensland.
"It is nearing crunch time for South East Queensland, and indeed the whole of Queensland, as the State Government’s waste levy continues to increase along with its growing impact on ratepayers," Mayor Sharp said.
"It also means councils will effectively become tax collectors on behalf of the state.
"If the government's priority is not to continue to go down the path of landfill, it's the responsibility of the state to fund the solution, not make councils collectors on its behalf."
Toowoomba Mayor Geoff McDonald said: “The Queensland State Government’s Waste Levy Bin Tax will impact Toowoomba Region ratepayers with a $4.2 million funding shortfall this financial year.
“Coupled with a $1 million freight cost for Toowoomba Region recycled material to be taken for processing to the Sunshine Coast, the cost equates to a 3 per cent rate increase for every rateable property across our region.”
For more information, please contact:
Dan Knowles, Media Advisor