lllawarra businesses and young job seekers have been extended a helping hand in this year's federal budget, but loose change was all that was given to some of the region's infrastructure projects.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
"Jobs and growth" was the 2016-17 catch-cry as Treasurer Scott Morrison delivered "an economic plan ... not just another budget" on Tuesday night.
People in the Illawarra, though, might have thought it was just like any other recent budget after region-specific infrastructure projects desperate for a federal funding injection were, once again, left short-changed in the budget.
Among the winners were thousands of the region's businesses, with tax cuts and incentives offered to small and medium enterprises as part of a 10-year tax plan.
From July 1, the small business tax rate will be lowered to 27.5 per cent and the turnover threshold increased from $2 million to $10 million, meaning more of the region's businesses will be classed as small.
From the same date, the government's instant tax write-off for equipment purchases of up to $20,000 - a measure announced in last year's budget - will be extended to include those businesses with a turnover of less than $10 million, prior to its expiry on June 30, 2017.
It's good news given 98 per cent of the 29,856 businesses in the Illawarra (incorporating the Wollongong, Kiama, Shellharbour, Wingecarribee and Shoalhaven local government areas) are classed as small.
Help is also on its way for the region's job seekers, who will benefit from an $840 million Youth Employment Package.
At the core of the package, dubbed by Mr Morrison as "an ambitious new attempt to get vulnerable young people into jobs" is a Youth Jobs PaTH (Prepare, Trial, Hire) program worth $752 million over four years.
PaTH will help job seekers aged under 25 improve employment outcomes, including via an intensive six-week pre-employment skills training program from April 1, 2017.
The second part of the three-stage pathway-to-work program includes an internship placement, while a youth bonus wage subsidy will be given to employers who hire an eligible job seeker in the final stage.
A separate $89 million will be spent on measures encouraging young people to start a business and create their own job.
Both announcements are expected to help combat the Illawarra's youth unemployment rate, which currently sits at 15.5 per cent.
For Illawarra residents already on the job, changes to personal tax relief could be of benefit, with the upper limit for the middle income tax bracket increased from $80,000 to $87,000 from July 1.
On the education front, the Illawarra's 89 public schools are set to share in the extra $1.2 billion the government has pledged to spend on schools between 2018 and 2020. The additional cash is contingent on the states meeting certain conditions.
Illawarra smokers be warned - the government will increase tobacco excise through four annual increases of 12.5 per cent a year from 2017 to 2020.
Infrastructure
A $50 billion nationwide infrastructure spend continued in this year's budget but, by comparison, just a few million dollars was offered to the Illawarra.
The Melbourne to Brisbane inland rail project was high on the government's infrastructure agenda, with $594 million in additional funding allocated to the Australian Rail Track Corporation over three years for land acquisition.
Closer to home, a further $115 million was included in the budget for second Sydney Airport "preparatory activities" - including money to design rail access - but, as predicted, the Maldon-Dombarton freight rail link didn't rate a mention.
The Nowra bridge did, however, feature - on an infrastructure budget media release. The government will spend $4 million in the 2016-17 financial year to continue planning for an additional crossing over the Shoalhaven River at Nowra.
The latest cash splash doesn't appear to be new money, with the release stating a total Commonwealth spend on the project between 2013-14 and 2019-20 of $10 million.
That $10 million was secured prior to the election and Gilmore MP Ann Sudmalis has said the money has already been used for initial planning work like traffic studies, geotechnical surveys and bridge inspections.
Elsewhere on the roads, $5 million was included in this year's budget for M1 Princes Motorway improvements, namely the construction of additional lanes between Bellambi Creek and Picton Road.
Work to upgrade the major thoroughfare is already under way, with the federal government's total spend between 2013-14 and 2019-20 listed as $42 million.
Much of NSW's infrastructure spending was centered around Sydney - WestConnex, NorthConnex and a Western Sydney Infrastructure Plan.
The Princes Highway road freight corridor was mentioned as part of a $2.19 billion federal cash splash thanks to the NSW government's long-term lease of the state's electricity "poles and wires".
The Albion Park Rail bypass was listed as the beneficiary of $52.5 million from the Commonwealth between 2013-14 and 2019-20 as part of the asset recycling initiative but didn't get allocated a cent in the 2016-17 budget allocation.
Industry
The budget also reiterated the recently-announced submarine and shipbuilding program would drive jobs and growth "not just in the ship yards in Perth and Adelaide, but right across the supply chain of our national economy".
Illawarra-based steelmakers and fabricators hope to get a look-in for the supply of steel for those projects.
In his speech, Mr Morrison said this year's budget was about transitioning away from an "unprecedented mining investment boom" towards a more diverse, new economy.
The shift away from heavy industry has been no more evident than in the Illawarra, which has seen the demise of its once vibrant steel industry in recent years to the point the Port Kembla steelworks almost closed.
"The Turnbull government understands the economic challenges that Australia faces," Mr Morrison said.
"This Budget is a practical, targeted and responsible economic plan that meets these challenges by clearing the way for jobs and growth, in a stronger, more diversified new economy.
"It is the right plan. We have spent time getting it right because it is such an important foundation for everything else."