For the next three days Tauranga City Councillors are going to be hearing public feedback on their proposals to reduce the city's debt in the formal annual plan submissions process.

This year the council received more than 770 submissions on the council's proposals to save money by reducing spending on services and to raise a stormwater levy through rates.

Tauranga City Council will begin hearing feedback on the proposed annual plan today.

Last year's annual plan received 125 submissions.

The three days of hearings begin today with Vanessa Hamm wishing to be heard on her opposition to the plan proposals concerning aquatics. She doesn't support reducing opening hours to save money.

Later this morning Ted Petrie will tell councillors why he doesn't support the proposed rates increase, or the reduced levels of service.

They are among 26 people being heard today, from the more than 100 ratepayers wishing to speak in person to the councillors about the plan.

The draft plan proposes cutting the city's spending by $27 million and debt by $14 million in what councillors say is their response to a clear mandate to reduce the city's debt.

This is the first annual plan by the current council, 70 percent of whom were elected last October.

Councillors see the proposed plan and the associated cuts and what the community was asking for when it voted out 70 per cent of the previous council.

The plan also includes a proposed rates rise of 6.7 per cent for the 2014/15 year, comprised of a general rates increase of two percent, plus 4.7 per cent for a storm water levy intended to raise $5 million from rates to pay for stormwater work neglected by previous councils.