The state government has sacked a central Victorian council over "extensive and disturbing" financial and governance failures, which follows the charging of its CEO last month.​
The Andrews government introduced an emergency bill into parliament on Wednesday to dismiss the embattled Central Goldfields Shire Council and appoint administrators to run the shire until council elections are held in October 2020.
![Historic Maryborough is the biggest town in the Central Goldfields Shire Council.](http://web.archive.org./web/20170824223834im_/https://www.fairfaxstatic.com.au/content/dam/images/g/x/8/n/z/r/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gy23tr.png/1503461691266.jpg)
Local Government Minister Natalie Hutchins said the government's swift response to last week's damning local government inspectorate report had not been taken "lightly".Â
"We didn't have a very good indication from council that they were going to take this report seriously," Ms Hutchins said.
"Dismissing a council is a significant step, and is the result of extensive and disturbing mismanagement by council over many years.
"The Central Goldfields Shire Council has let down local residents and businesses, and lost its right to govern on their behalf."
The shire's CEO Mark Johnston was indefinitely stood down from his position in July after being charged with multiple accounts of obtaining financial advantage by deception, false accounting and conflict of interest.
The Local Government Investigations and Compliance Inspectorate found a lack of transparency and a disregard for legislative requirements in the sale of council land, which resulted in a significant loss of public funds of more than $730,000.Â
![State Local Government Minister Natalie Hutchins.](http://web.archive.org./web/20170824223834im_/https://www.fairfaxstatic.com.au/content/dam/images/g/y/2/a/q/w/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gy23tr.png/1503461691266.jpg)
The LGICI also uncovered misuse of government grants and corporate credit cards, a significant amount of government grant funding that could not be accounted for, and that the shire's employees were providing private contracting services to the council on weekends.Â
Shire mayor Cr Geoff Lovett last week acknowledged the council's processes were in "poor shape".
![Mark Johnston.](http://web.archive.org./web/20170824223834im_/https://www.fairfaxstatic.com.au/content/dam/images/g/x/d/2/v/c/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gy23tr.png/1503461691266.jpg)
The shire includes Maryborough and is home to about 13,000 residents.
More to come