General News
5 September, 2026
Rate debt collectors hired by council
SO-called sovereign citizens, who say there is no local government in the constitution, and therefore no legal requirement to pay rates, will have to take their arguments to debt collectors.
Speaking to a motion to approve a contracted debt collection service for Cairns which began this week, Cr Rob Pyne said council staff had suffered enough in terms of time and energy trying to collect rates from certain groups in the community.
It was time to “hand it over to the people who do it professionally,” he said.
“So, if you want to tell us that there’s no local government in the constitution, and you don’t have to pay rates, tell it to the debt collector before they sell your house,” Cr Pyne said.
“I certainly know, in terms of some of our staff dealing with different groups in the community, some, for example, who call themselves sovereign citizens, cause our staff tremendous inconvenience and loss of time and, of course, that’s ratepayer money at the end of the day.”
Cr Rhonda Coghlan said council would continue to support residents having difficulty paying.
“Council is committed to working with ratepayers experiencing financial difficulty and actively encourages customers with overdue rates and water accounts to contact council early as early as possible to discuss payment arrangements and available financial hardship options,” she said.
“Early engagement can assist customers to avoid the accumulation of overdue interest, additional recovery costs – and an escalation of enforcement action.”
The motion, which was carried unanimously, awarded the contract to Recoveries and Reconstruction (Aust) Pty Ltd on a cost neutral basis. The contract was scheduled to begin on 1 September and run for two years, with extension options. Only debts where customers have not responded or engaged with council will be considered for further recovery action.
