Corangamite Shire Council has 48 credit cards and about 185 full time staff, meaning there is one card for about four full-time council officers.

Warrnambool City Council, currently the subject of a council review amid mounting pressures over misuse, has 81 credit cards and 397 full time staff, which is about one card for every five full-time officers.

Those figures are much higher than other nearby councils, which have one card for between every eight to 11 full-time staff members.

The region's shire councils were forthcoming and transparent about their credit card usage and policies in response to inquiries by The Standard, some also pointed out they had policies that forbade purchases of alcohol for consumption by council staff.

All councils highlighted a trend towards using credit cards for making transactions as it saved staff time compared to other payment methods.

Corangamite Shire acting chief executive David Rae said the council had spent $508,273 in 2384 transactions on credit cards last financial year.

"This is an average of $213 per transaction. Council does not pay any interest charges on credit card transactions," Mr Rae said.

He said staff were not allowed to purchase alcohol for personal consumption with the cards, and added that the council had no plans to review its cards.

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"However, every month a full list of all transactions undertaken with a credit cards is reviewed by the senior executive team, which includes the CEO and three directors. Credit card transactions are also independently reviewed by the finance team on a monthly basis," Mr Rae said.

Moyne Shire Council chief Bill Millard said the council had 31 cards, including those issued to caravan parks and kindergartens, and spending on those cards averaged at $30,000 per month, or $360,000 annually, about two per cent of overall spending on goods and services.

"As part of our ongoing internal audit program, an independent review of council's purchase cards was conducted in April-May 2019 and confirmed the appropriate checks and balances are in place," Mr Millard said.

Moyne community and corporate support director Kevin Leddin said the council was unaware of any inappropriate use of credit cards.

"The officer has to reconcile all transactions to a tax invoice and there's a justification form that has to accompany that form. Then a direct supervisor reviews and approves the transactions," Mr Leddin said.

Glenelg Shire Council has 22 credit cards, which chief executive Greg Burgoyne declined to release the spending on, but added he was "aghast" at allegations of inappropriate spending on a Warrnambool City Council card.

"We are talking about other people's money here and we are very diligent we are not either spending it irresponsibly and doing it for the right reason," Mr Burgoyne said.

He said the council also had a policy that stopped officers from buying alcohol for their own consumption on credit cards.

"I can say categorically in my role as CEO I have never claimed alcohol on a credit card for personal use and nor have staff," Mr Burgoyne said.

"I cap my daily spend when I'm away at $25 and if it goes above that, I pay out of my pocket."

A Southern Grampians Shire Council spokeswoman said officers had 25 credit cards, and spending on those cards was expected to be $420,000 for last financial year.

"All council travel expenditure, including airfares, is carried out over credit cards in line with current guidelines and approvals. In addition, other key equipment and supply purchases are also carried out as credit card transactions as a much more efficient and effective means of purchasing," she said.

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