Billions of dollars of spending money will be outlined to Canterbury communities in the coming weeks, as councils release their proposed Long Term Plans

Councils will ask people how much they're willing to pay in rates as part of the consultation phase.

Large rate rises have already been announced for Christchurch and Selwyn.

Canterbury Mayoral Forum chair Nigel Bowen says there will be challenging conversations with people over rate rises.

He says it's an opportunity to educate ratepayers on the true cost of what councils are delivering for them.