ACTCOSS’s early submission on the budget in November last year has translated into early meetings with MLAs.
So far this year, we’ve met with Treasurer Steel, Ms Carrick, and Mr Cain on this topic.
Later this month, we are scheduled to meet with the Chief Minister, Minister Orr, Minister Paterson, Minister Stephen-Smith, and Mr Emerson. The opportunity to follow up with Ministers and MLAs in time to influence budget decisions this year has been another benefit to an early budget submission that I had not fully anticipated at the outset. Other recent ACTCOSS meetings with MLAs include those with Mr Rattenbury and Mr Emerson.
Each summer, I hold my breath that there will not be any large-scale weather or fire related disasters in Canberra. The community sector will inevitably be called upon to help lead recovery, but is poorly funded and positioned to enact this hugely important role.
Just as I was starting to exhale this year, the storm over the weekend damaged two ACT schools so badly that they were unable to open on Monday. Given how many community organisations, like ACTCOSS, are based in old schools, this highlights the investment required to upgrade the sector’s facilities to better withstand extreme weather events. It is essential that the community organisations that will be called on to provide services during and after a disaster are run from facitilties which are not vulnerable to disasters.
I really appreciated engaging with so many of you at the recent forum on Allocation Policy for accessing properties managed by Infrastructure Canberra. This was a well-attended event that provoked a great deal of passion. ACTCOSS will of course be making a submission. Details of how you can have your say are available further down this e-notice. | 
