The NSW Government is considering how to establish a community benefits fund from the potential development of a coal seam gas (CSG) industry in the state. The Australia Institute made a submission.

Key points:

• Gas company contributions to a Community Benefits Fund must be compulsory, as recommended by the Chief Scientist, not voluntary, as currently proposed by the NSW Government in its Gas Plan.
• Any Community Benefit Fund payments should be paid by gas companies on top of royalties paid to the government - otherwise these payments are effectively a taxpayer subsidy to support the CSG industry to enter a region. Diverting funding from other State Government uses to fund CSG community benefits is ‘robbing Peter to pay Paul’ and brings zero net benefit to the state. Funding should not be “matched” by the government, which also diverts state government funding from other priorities.
• Any Community Benefits Fund should be administered completely independently of gas companies, with strong governance, transparency and accountability.
• Any Community Benefits Fund should not allow spending on "CSG Infrastructure" i.e. Spending on public or private infrastructure designed to facilitate or enable CSG development or spending on infrastructure that can be substituted for company funded infrastructure. State governments in Australia have spent over $2 billion in recent years on measures that assist the gas industry, spending that reduces funds available for education, health and other major priorities of state governments.
• Any Community Benefits Fund should not be used to maintain public infrastructure that has deteriorated as a result of the development or expansion of CSG in the region. This should be funded separately in a works program funded by the Gas companies.