Local authorities remain in operating surplus

Local authorities had a quarterly operating surplus in the March 2012 quarter, Statistics New Zealand said today. Income exceeded expenditure by $50 million (after adjusting for seasonal effects).

"The operating surplus in the March 2012 quarter follows a surplus of $63 million in the December 2011 quarter, and are the first surpluses since the $14 million surplus in the December 2007 quarter," local government statistics manager Peter Gardiner said.

Operating income (funding earned for core services) for the March 2012 quarter was $2.0 billion, and increased by $5 million (0.3 percent) from the December 2011 quarter. Operating expenditure (spending on core services) also increased during the same period, by $19 million (1.0 percent), to $1.9 billion.

Investment income (up $19 million), and sales and other operating income (up $10 million), were the main contributors to the rise in operating income. There were smaller increases in regulatory income and petrol tax (up $7 million) and rates (up $3 million). These rises were partly offset by a fall in current grants, subsidies, and donations income (down $34 million).

The rise in operating expenditure was mainly due to increases in depreciation (up $14 million) and employee costs (up $11 million). These increases were partly offset by decreases in purchases and other operating expenditure (down $6 million) and interest expenditure (down $1 million).

Local authority statistics are quarterly accounting-based estimates of the money local authorities in New Zealand earn and spend on their core business.

See also:

Local Authority Statistics: March 2012 quarter  –  Information release