Council staff were notified in March nine positions could be made redundant at the organisation.

Benalla mayor Justin King said the best word to describe the budget this year was “tight”.

“It’s certainly conservative,” he said.

Cr King said the onset of rate capping and the indexation on financial assistance grants had been an issue for the municipality.

“Federal grants being cut has played a part in the financial position,” he said.

“With the current interest rate on our loan we have and our savings not accumulating much interest … there’s a list of things that have gone against the budget.

“Despite being tough and with unfortunate staff redundancies… there has been no impact on service delivery.”

Cr King said federal and Victorian government grants for projects like the airport master plan had helped the council to try to get significant redevelopments shovel ready.

“We’ve tried to get into a good financial position so the next term of council can do things like the Benalla Art Gallery, visitor and aquatic centre upgrades,” he said.