Tauranga City Council is changing its rates demand to avoid confusion between its rates and the Bay of Plenty Regional Council rates which are on the same demand.

City councillors are concerned they are being blamed for regional council rates rises, which are increasing steadily, and could skyrocket in the near future.

The Tauranga City Council is appointed by the regional council to collect rates on its behalf in Tauranga.

The decision to more clearly differentiate between the two councils was made in June this year, but too late to affect the latest rates demand.

At Monday's city council projects and monitoring committee meeting, the councillors present accepted staff suggestions to more clearly differentiate the two demands, but to keep the two demands on one page.

The system is simple, cost efficient and there is one invoice and one payment, even though two separate councils' rates are included in the total demand.

Staff reduced the cost of the shared invoices by reducing it to a single page in 2010.

Regional council rates used to be $40 each demand. Now they are $260, says Mayor Stuart Crosby.

If the Bay of Plenty Regional Council decides to stop funding itself from its Port of Tauranga shareholding, regional council rates could increase to more than $1000, says Stuart.

'And that's a conversation they are having at the moment.”