OCC is one of 90 local government areas in NSW sweating on an Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal decision which will hopefully allow them to increase the rates by the maximum 2.5 per cent heading into the new financial year.

Previously IPART had announced it was basing its rates pegging on population growth, meaning Orange could increase its rates by just 0.7 per cent. Councils were later advised they could apply for an additional special variation to raise the peg.

Chief executive officer David Waddell said Orange City Council was planning on adopting its 2022-23 budget at its council meeting on June 23.

"In that budget will be an assumption of 2.5 per cent," Mr Waddell said.

According to its website IPART will announce its decision on June 21. If IPART refuses council's application, Mr Waddell said staff will scramble to review its planned budget, which will need to be cut by $620,000.

"I can't believe the state government would allow such chaos to arise in this environment, with the uncertainty that's around," Mr Waddell said.

Mr Waddell said services and staff would be where council would need to make cuts.

"We would need to certainly look at our workforce. We would need to look at our service provision. This is operational money, not capital money, so effectively we'd have to look at day-to-day things, not projects.

"You're talking staffing, you're talking all the services, good services, and programs we provide."

Minister for local government Wendy Tuckerman and NSW Deputy Premier Paul Toole both addressed the Country Mayors Association conference in Sydney on Friday. Mr Waddell said neither could shed any light on IPART's position.

The matter was brought up in the most recent Orange council meeting with Cr Frances Kinghorn and Cr Glenn Floyd voting against the staff recommendation which included endorsing a resolution made on April 19 to apply for a permanent additional special variation.

"When we discussed this last time I had requested some additional information because I wanted to understand why Orange rates seem to be a bit higher than other councils and the expenditure is lower in various areas than other councils," she said during the May 17 meeting.

She said a series of pie chats and bar graphs had been emailed to her by staff.

"They were very beautiful but they didn't give me any more information. I stated at the time I won't support this unless I can understand it. So I won't be supporting it."

Cr Kevin Duffy said he felt IPART should be questioned on its position.

"It appears the IPART tribunal is living under a rock, prices have gone up so much in the last 12 months or so. Look at the price of bread, milk, fuel is enormous, the price materials have gone through the roof.

"How can it only be 0.7 per cent, when we've gone through 10 or 20 years of [rates] increases of 2.8 or 2.3, 2.5 ... all of a sudden when things go berserk and all prices rise, uh uh, it's only .7 and there's been no real wage increase over the same period of time."

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