The local government funding model has changed considerably in 2014 and, in particular, the establishment of Irish Water and its financial relationship with the local government sector has a considerable impact on the arrangements for local authority financing. The funding to be provided to local authorities for the provision of water services in 2014 is governed by Service Level Agreements between Irish Water and individual authorities. The Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013 provides Irish Water with responsibility for charging customers for the provision by it of water services.
The Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013 also assigns responsibility for the economic regulation of the water sector, including the setting of charges, to the Commission for Energy Regulation. It is envisaged that the Commission will engage in public consultation as part of this process. A key role for the regulator will be to protect the interests of all customers and to drive efficiencies in the water services sector. The vast majority of household waste is collected by private waste collectors. In the very few areas where local authorities still collect waste, they do so in a market open to competition from private operators. As waste charges represent a fee for a service provided, primarily by the private sector, their inclusion with the Local Property Tax does not arise.
