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Local Government Act 2002

Governance and management of local authorities and community boards - Local authorities - Governing bodies and chief executives

41A: Role and powers of mayors

You could also call this:

“The mayor leads the city and makes important decisions”

The mayor’s job is to be a leader for the other members of the territorial authority and for the people in the district. You are in charge of helping to create plans, policies, and budgets for your area.

As a mayor, you have some special powers. You can choose who will be the deputy mayor. You can also set up committees and pick who will lead each one. You can even choose yourself to lead a committee if you want to.

But the territorial authority can still make changes. They can remove the deputy mayor you picked or change the committees you set up. They can also create new committees and change who leads them.

You are automatically a member of every committee in your territorial authority. You can’t give your special powers to anyone else to use.

If you don’t want to use your power to choose a deputy mayor, the territorial authority can elect one. The same goes for choosing committee leaders - if you don’t want to do it, the territorial authority can.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM5679200.

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Part 4 Governance and management of local authorities and community boards
Local authorities: Governing bodies and chief executives

41ARole and powers of mayors

  1. The role of a mayor is to provide leadership to—

  2. the other members of the territorial authority; and
    1. the people in the district of the territorial authority.

      1. Without limiting subsection (1), it is the role of a mayor to lead the development of the territorial authority's plans (including the long-term plan and the annual plan), policies, and budgets for consideration by the members of the territorial authority.

      2. For the purposes of subsections (1) and (2), a mayor has the following powers:

      3. to appoint the deputy mayor:
        1. to establish committees of the territorial authority:
          1. to appoint the chairperson of each committee established under paragraph (b), and, for that purpose, a mayor—
            1. may make the appointment before the other members of the committee are determined; and
              1. may appoint himself or herself.

              2. However, nothing in subsection (3) limits or prevents a territorial authority from—

              3. removing, in accordance with clause 18 of Schedule 7, a deputy mayor appointed by the mayor under subsection (3)(a); or
                1. discharging or reconstituting, in accordance with clause 30 of Schedule 7, a committee established by the mayor under subsection (3)(b); or
                  1. appointing, in accordance with clause 30 of Schedule 7, 1 or more committees in addition to any established by the mayor under subsection (3)(b); or
                    1. discharging, in accordance with clause 31 of Schedule 7, a chairperson appointed by the mayor under subsection (3)(c).

                      1. A mayor is a member of each committee of a territorial authority.

                      2. Repealed

                      3. To avoid doubt, a mayor must not delegate any of his or her powers under subsection (3).

                      4. To avoid doubt,—

                      5. clause 17(1) of Schedule 7 does not apply to the election of a deputy mayor of a territorial authority unless the mayor of the territorial authority declines to exercise the power in subsection (3)(a):
                        1. clauses 25 and 26(3) of Schedule 7 do not apply to the appointment of the chairperson of a committee of a territorial authority established under subsection (3)(b) unless the mayor of the territorial authority declines to exercise the power in subsection (3)(c) in respect of that committee.

                          Notes
                          • Section 41A: inserted, on , by section 21 of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Act 2012 (2012 No 93).
                          • Section 41A(5A): repealed, on , by section 6 of the Resource Management (Natural and Built Environment and Spatial Planning Repeal and Interim Fast-track Consenting) Act 2023 (2023 No 68).