<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/jim-chalmers" rel="" target="" title="Treasurer Jim Chalmers"><span>Treasurer Jim Chalmers</span></a><span> has kept the door open for another round of electricity rebates, saying the government is yet to rule out what would be a second extension of its key cost-of-living relief policy.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The rebates were introduced in the 2024 federal budget, providing all households with $300 off their bills over the course of a year at a cost of $3.5 billion.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Chalmers then found an extra $1.8 billion to extend the measure in this year's budget for another two quarters – or $150 per household – taking the total spend to more than $5 billion.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/finance/inflation-australia-october-abs/bf7bd95e-cdca-4424-b8a0-903b4be71acb" rel="" target="" title=""><strong><span>Final nail in the coffin for rate cut hopes</span></strong></a><strong><span></span></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But with the rebates due to expire at the end of the year, and inflation rising – driven in large part by electricity prices – the government has been facing questions about whether they will be extended once again.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Chalmers said today that that decision was yet to be made, and suggested that an announcement on the policy will be made as part of the mid-year economic and fiscal outlook (MYEFO).</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The mid-year budget update will be towards the middle of December, as it has been on the last couple of occasions," the treasurer told reporters this afternoon.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/energy-bill-rebate-comments-treasurer-jim-chalmers-inflation/51fa0981-73dc-447e-803b-53c9f5eefe58" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We'll take a decision about electricity rebates in the context of finalising that mid-year budget update."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>EXPLAINED:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/gender-based-violence-coerced-directorships-what-is-it-how-to-get-help-everything-to-know-explained/487aeff4-33b3-4f13-b90d-1aa4885a58bb"><strong><span>The tax loophole leaving innocent Aussies with massive, secret debts</span></strong></a><strong><span></span></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Chalmers warned, though, that regardless of the decision made over the next fortnight or so, the rebates will eventually come to an end.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They are a really important way that we are helping Australians with the cost of living, taking some of the edge off these electricity price pressures that people are encountering," he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They're a really important part of our budget, but they're not a permanent feature of our budget, and we've made that clear."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Chalmers' comments came after </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/finance/inflation-australia-october-abs/bf7bd95e-cdca-4424-b8a0-903b4be71acb" rel="" target="" title="fresh data showed inflation has reached its highest level in more than a year"><span>fresh data showed inflation has reached its highest level in more than a year</span></a><span>, with rising electricity prices, caused in part by the end of state-level energy bill relief, a significant contributing factor.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/how-to-follow-9news-digital/29855bb1-ad3d-4c38-bc25-3cb52af1216f" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP</span></em></strong></a><strong><em><span>:</span></em></strong><span> </span><em><strong><span>Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. 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