Ask any mayor in the Western Plains and they will tell you NSW Government cost shifting is the biggest problem their councils face.

An end to the long running battle over their 'ownership' of Rural Fire Assets may be over if recommendations from an Inquiry delivered last week, are acted upon.

The Inquiry was tasked to examine whether the frameworks governing assets, premises and funding for the RFS remained appropriate, effective and sustainable.

Their findings and recommendations have supported what local councils have long argued - that the current arrangements are an unnecessary burden on already-stretched council funds.

Lachlan Shire Mayor John Medcalf is among many who have greeted the findings with relish.

‘’This would take a big burden off our council," he told the Western Plains App.

“Local Government has long complained that the way that fire fighting assets are managed in NSW no longer reflects on-ground reality," NSW CountryMayors Chairman Rick Firman said.

"Most residents are not aware that virtually all RFS assets and equipment from fire trucks to sheds, are actually owned by their local council and not the RFS.

"They are not aware that even though councils own the assets, carry them on their books and are responsible for their maintenance, we have absolutely no control over them.

"In most cases councils do not even have a key to the RFS sheds they own and maintain.”

The matter has come to a head in recent years, when the depreciation of the RFS equipment has hit council finances hard.

The entire 'red fleet' may be branded with the NSW RFS colours but the buck has stopped with local councils.

The CMA, LGNSW, Joint Organisations, Regional Organisations of Councils and councils across the State have lobbied hard for what has become known as the “Red Fleet” to be removed from council asset registers and transferred to where they belong, the RFS.

Last week the Government's own Public Accounts Committee handed down a report that found that the current arrangements where the RFS exercise operational control over the Red Fleet but ownership rests with councils has created "substantial inefficiencies, administrative duplication, legal ambiguity and audit complications."

The Committee’s Report states that it received no evidence supporting the continuation of councils’ ownership of the Red Fleet.

“The CMA Board and Members strongly supports the Committee’s assessment of the current arrangements and we warmly welcome its recommendation that the Rural Fires Act be amended to recognise that the RFS owns and operates the Red Fleet” Mayor Firman said.

The recommendation is one of 14 made by the Committee which will result in updating the 1997 Rural Fires Act to better reflect the way that the RFS operates and bushfires are managed in 2025.

The CMA has written to the Minister for Emergency Services, Hon Jihad Dib MP to strongly encourage the Government to adopt and implement the Committee’s recommendations ahead of the 25/26 Bushfire season.

“The situation with the Red Fleet has festered for far too long," Mr Firman said.

“The CMA Board and Members strongly support the work of the RFS and its thousands of volunteers who constantly put their lives on the line to make our communities safer.

"Our CMA members will continue to work constructively with the RFS particularly in the areas of mitigation, vegetation management and providing resources like earthmoving equipment and road closures when emergencies occur."