Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements
Following a natural disaster or terrorist act, the state government may activate what’s called the Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA) to help councils respond to, and support local communities to recover.
How does it work?
The DRFA is a cost sharing arrangement between federal and state governments to fund and support certain relief and recovery measures following a disaster.
DRFA measures consist of four categories of financial assistance and are only activated after a declared eligible event in which an Australian Government Reference Number (AGRN) has been assigned.
The scale of the event will determine the level of funding categories activated and the length of time that recovery and restoration of our community may take.
- Category A: Assistance to individuals
- Category B: Essential public assets (i.e. transport of public infrastructure)
- Category C: Community Recovery
- Category D: Exceptional circumstances
In Victoria, DRFA assistance measures are funded from the Victorian Natural Disaster Relief Trust administered by Emergency Management Group within the Department of Justice and Community Safety Victoria (DJCS).
What does this mean for Council?
Once an event has been declared, Council will undertake a number of actions to restore essential public assets and apply for support funding through the DRFA.
Council is responsible for restoration of its damaged infrastructure assets and recovery measures, however may seek reimbursement through the DRFA of expenditure.
These applications are subject to eligibility assessments by the state government, under guidelines set out by the federal government.
For events that are widespread, where the impact is of greater scale and cost, Council can access part funding, however, must follow a set process to demonstrate eligibility to receive this funding.
Recent storms and flood events in the shire
Our shire continues to recover from multiple weather events that impacted local communities in recent years, such as the 2021 storm and 2022 flood events.
Repair works have included clearing of debris, pothole patching, cleaning of table drains and minor grading along some roads. These activities are being undertaken as part of Category B.
A priority of this program is to continue to restore the road network to a safe and usable standard.
More than 12 months on, our crews are hard at work to fix the high volume of repairs required. We continue to prioritise permanent repairs within our funding applications, each going through an extensive pre-approval process prior to receiving authorisation for works to commence.
If you have any questions about the ongoing recovery efforts in the shire, call our Community Recovery team on (03) 5422 0333.
DRFA Invoices and Photo Guidelines for Contractors
If you are contracted to complete work on behalf of Council in relation to an extreme weather event, you must ensure that you follow these guidelines when issuing invoices and capturing records such as photos.
Download the guidelines(PDF, 1MB)