South Australia’s small business sector deserves further energy rebates in the face of soaring costs, according to the state’s Business Chamber, which says $650 in bill relief from the SA and federal governments should be doubled.
The South Australia Business Chamber released its 2024-2025 state budget wishlist on Tuesday, highlighting energy prices as a key and lingering concern for small businesses in the state.
Small businesses in the state pay an average electricity bill of $10,425, the highest of any state or territory, according to Energy Consumers Australia.
They also experienced an average price hike of $1,935 between October 2022 and October 2023, the most of any jurisdiction Australia-wide.
To counteract the toll of soaring energy prices, the state and federal governments last year agreed to provide $650 in bill relief to small businesses nationwide.
However, the Business Chamber says does not go far enough.
“We encourage the state government to not only continue with this scheme in 2024-25, but to double it to $1300, given the continuously escalating electricity costs,” the Business Chamber said.
The call speaks not only to the state government, but directly to Canberra, where Treasurer Jim Chalmers will hand down the 2023-2024 federal budget in four weeks’ time.
Such an extension would likely grant further bill relief to businesses across the map, lest the federal government be seen to be playing favourites.
However, recent comments from Chalmers suggest major rebate support is unlikely to come from Canberra, leaving South Australian lawmakers to consider going it alone.
Speaking on ABC’s RN Wednesday morning, Chalmers said the federal budget will put a “real premium on responsibility”, given the lingering effects of inflation and what appears to be the narrow path to another budget surplus.
More broadly, recent comments have framed the upcoming federal budget as one dedicated to providing incentives to the private sector, rather than providing it with extra public funds.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese revealed on Wednesday that $585 million in government loans, not handouts, will be provided to critical minerals projects on South Australia and Queensland in the budget.
Beyond that, Chalmers said the government’s Future Made in Australia platform will largely focus on targeted tax incentives and concessions to bolster future-proof industries.
So far, further energy rebates have not emerged as a feature of the scheme, and by extension, the upcoming federal budget.
The South Australia Business Chamber’s submission taps into another nationwide discussion, too, by calling on the state to reform its payroll tax structure.
Payroll tax is administered by the states, resulting in varying rates and thresholds across the board.
Federal lawmakers, including Senator Jacqui Lambie, have called on Prime Minister Albanese to wrangle state and territory leaders into a unified tax framework.
Rising employee wages have contributed to bracket creep, exposing more South Australian businesses to payroll tax requirements than ever before, the Business Chamber said.
As such, the payroll tax threshold should increase from its current level of $1.5 million to $2.1 million in taxable wages, it said.
Exemptions should also apply for businesses in regional South Australia and those employing trainees and apprentices, with further leniency shown to new and newly-growing businesses.
The state government should provide training to small businesses that will soon be indirectly exposed to ESG reporting requirements, the Business Chamber continued, with additional training needed to bring SMEs up to speed on new psychosocial safety and industrial manslaughter rules.
The South Australian budget will be delivered on June 6.
Senior Business Journalist
Focused on the small business sector, David’s work covers the political, regulatory, and economic issues facing Australian entrepreneurs. Prior to joining SmartCompany, he was a reporter for Business Insider Australia. You can follow him on LinkedIn.
