Victorians have been slugged almost $17 million and hundreds of thousands of people have been sent to court for failing to vote in local council elections.

New figures from the Victorian Electoral Commission show almost 225,000 fines were lodged with the Magistrates Court of Victoria in relation to failing to vote at council elections held in 2016. That year, 78 of the state's 79 councils held elections.

Melbourne City Council was a hot spot for non-voting in 2016 council elections. Credit:Justin McManus

The VEC said almost $17 million in penalties were collected last year to be passed on to councils.

Melbourne City Council was a hot spot for non-voting, accounting for just over $1 million in fines from more than 11,000 people.