Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Local Government Act 2002

Planning, decision-making, and accountability - Planning and decision-making - Planning

97: Certain decisions to be taken only if provided for in long-term plan

You could also call this:

“Councils must plan big changes in advance and ask for your ideas”

This law is about important decisions that local authorities (like your local council) can make. It says they can only make certain big decisions if they’ve planned for them in advance.

The decisions this law covers are:

  1. Changing how much of a service they provide, including starting or stopping an important service.
  2. Giving away or taking control of something that’s very important to the community.

Before the local authority can make these decisions, two things need to happen:

  1. The decision must be clearly written in their long-term plan.
  2. They must have asked for people’s opinions about it in a special document called a consultation document.

There are some exceptions to this rule. The local authority doesn’t need to follow these steps if:

  1. They’re adopting a plan to reorganise how things are run in the area.
  2. They’re making changes because the government has ordered them to reorganise.
  3. They’re asking people to pay a lump sum to fund a big project, as long as they’ve followed the rules about how to do this.

This law helps make sure that big decisions about your community are planned carefully and that you get a chance to have your say before they happen.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM172350.

Topics:
Government and voting > Local councils
Rights and equality > Anti-discrimination
Previous

96: Effect of resolution adopting long-term plan or annual plan, or

“Council plans are like promises, but not set in stone”

Next

98: Annual report, or

“Councils must write a yearly report about what they did and how they spent money”

Part 6 Planning, decision-making, and accountability
Planning and decision-making: Planning

97Certain decisions to be taken only if provided for in long-term plan

  1. This section applies to the following decisions of a local authority:

  2. a decision to alter significantly the intended level of service provision for any significant activity undertaken by or on behalf of the local authority, including a decision to commence or cease any such activity:
    1. a decision to transfer the ownership or control of a strategic asset to or from the local authority.

          1. A local authority must not make a decision to which this section relates unless—

          2. the decision is explicitly provided for in its long-term plan; and
            1. the proposal to provide for the decision was included in a consultation document in accordance with section 93E.

              1. Nothing in this section applies to a decision of a local authority—

              2. to adopt a local authority-led reorganisation plan under clause 22A of Schedule 3 or clause 15 of Schedule 3A; or
                1. that is required in order to implement a reorganisation in accordance with an Order in Council under section 25 or 25A; or
                  1. to fund a capital project by lump sum contributions, if the local authority has complied with section 117B(3)(c)(i) of the Local Government (Rating) Act 2002.

                    Notes
                    • Section 97 heading: amended, on , by section 49 of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 124).
                    • Section 97(1)(c): repealed, on , by section 15 of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 124).
                    • Section 97(1)(d): repealed, on , by section 15 of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 124).
                    • Section 97(2)(a): amended, on , by section 49 of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 124).
                    • Section 97(2)(a): amended, on , by section 10 of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Act 2006 (2006 No 26).
                    • Section 97(2)(b): amended, on , by section 75 of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Act 2014 (2014 No 55).
                    • Section 97(3): replaced, on , by section 28 of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Act 2019 (2019 No 54).
                    • Section 97(3)(a): amended, on , by section 45 of the Local Government Electoral Legislation Act 2023 (2023 No 57).