Complaints lodged from within councils – by councillors and council staff – are now the main driver of the state’s councillor conduct complaints, overtaking complaints from the community.
A new report from the Office of Local Government shows internal complaints made up 63% of all Code of Conduct complaints in the current council term, up from 26% in the previous term.
The Code of Conduct sets the standards councillors must follow.
An independent panel investigates complaints and can impose sanctions, including suspension.
The current council term runs from November 2022 to October 2026. Over that time, complaints from the community fell from 83 to 49.
Total complaints rose from 112 in the previous term to 132 in the current one, though formal complaints have declined in the past two years.
The report links that decline to new rules requiring councils to attempt dispute resolution before a formal complaint can be lodged.
Most councils had to comply by September 10, 2025.
Invoiced costs have reached $433,000 this term, up from $279,000. Councils bear those costs and pass them on to ratepayers.
Internal complaints account for 73% of the current term’s costs.
The report found the activity was concentrated in a small number of councils.
Five of them – Hobart, Northern Midlands, Central Highlands, Derwent Valley and Burnie – accounted for 62% of all complaints and 76% of those upheld.
Hobart and Northern Midlands together made up nearly half of the upheld complaints across the state.
In those five councils, the report said the higher complaint numbers were driven mostly by councillors and staff rather than the community, with Derwent Valley the exception.
Across the state, 24 councillors have recorded at least one substantiated breach this term or about 9% of the 263 elected members.
Northern Midlands and Hobart had the most councillors with breaches against them.
Panels can suspend a councillor for up to three months.
A councillor who receives three or more suspensions, in one term or across two consecutive terms, can be removed from office.
The Office of Local Government said the report was timely as the current term nears its end and that the framework “aims to maintain and strengthen community trust and confidence in council decision-making”.
New laws under the Local Government Amendment (Targeted Reform) Act 2026 will make determination reports public sooner, so matters no longer stay confidential while appeals run their course.
The office said it eventually plans to turn the reporting into an online dashboard, calling this report “an early, point-in-time snapshot to initiate that broader transparency effort”.
Some complaints remain open or under appeal, with the report noting the final figures for breaches and costs are expected to rise.
