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Local Government Act 2002

Planning, decision-making, and accountability - Planning and decision-making - Significance and engagement policy

76AA: Significance and engagement policy

You could also call this:

“A plan for councils to decide what's important and how to talk to you about it”

You need to know about a policy that every local council must have. This policy is about how the council decides what’s important and how they talk to you about it.

The policy says how the council figures out if something is a big deal. It tells you when and how you can have a say about different things in your area. The council uses this policy to know how much they need to talk to you before they make decisions.

The policy must list things the council thinks are very important to your area. These are called strategic assets.

The council can change this policy if they need to. When they make or change the policy, they usually have to ask what you think. But if they already know what people in the community want, they might not need to ask again.

If the council does something different from what their policy says, they have to explain why.

This policy helps you know when you can expect to be part of council decisions. It also helps the council know how much they need to talk to you about different issues.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM6236805.

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Part 6 Planning, decision-making, and accountability
Planning and decision-making: Significance and engagement policy

76AASignificance and engagement policy

  1. Every local authority must adopt a policy setting out—

  2. that local authority's general approach to determining the significance of proposals and decisions in relation to issues, assets, and other matters; and
    1. any criteria or procedures that are to be used by the local authority in assessing the extent to which issues, proposals, assets, decisions, or activities are significant or may have significant consequences; and
      1. how the local authority will respond to community preferences about engagement on decisions relating to specific issues, assets, or other matters, including the form of consultation that may be desirable; and
        1. how the local authority will engage with communities on other matters.

          1. The purpose of the policy is—

          2. to enable the local authority and its communities to identify the degree of significance attached to particular issues, proposals, assets, decisions, and activities; and
            1. to provide clarity about how and when communities can expect to be engaged in decisions about different issues, assets, or other matters; and
              1. to inform the local authority from the beginning of a decision-making process about—
                1. the extent of any public engagement that is expected before a particular decision is made; and
                  1. the form or type of engagement required.

                  2. The policy adopted under subsection (1) must list the assets considered by the local authority to be strategic assets.

                  3. A policy adopted under subsection (1) may be amended from time to time.

                  4. When adopting or amending a policy under this section, the local authority must consult in accordance with section 82 unless it considers on reasonable grounds that it has sufficient information about community interests and preferences to enable the purpose of the policy to be achieved.

                  5. Repealed

                  6. To avoid doubt, section 80 applies when a local authority deviates from this policy.

                  Notes
                  • Section 76AA: inserted, on , by section 20 of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Act 2014 (2014 No 55).
                  • Section 76AA(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).