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Resource Management Act 1991

Functions, powers, and duties of central and local government - Functions, powers, and duties of local authorities

36AA: Local authority policy on discounting administrative charges

You could also call this:

“ Rules about how local councils can give you a discount on fees when they're slow to process your application ”

You need to know about how local authorities give discounts on administrative charges. Local authorities must give a discount in certain situations. If they haven’t made their own policy, they must follow the government’s rules about discounts. If they have made their own policy, they must use whichever is better for you: their policy or the government’s rules.

The government had to make rules about discounts within 9 months of a specific law change. These rules must stay in place, but they can be changed or replaced with new rules.

A local authority can make its own policy about discounts. This policy is for situations where they don’t process your application for a resource consent or to change conditions within the required time, and it’s the local authority’s fault. To make this policy, they need to follow a special process that involves asking the public what they think.

If a local authority makes its own policy, it needs to say how much the discount will be or how they’ll work it out. It also needs to explain how you can get the discount.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM2411528.

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Part 4 Functions, powers, and duties of central and local government
Functions, powers, and duties of local authorities

36AALocal authority policy on discounting administrative charges

  1. A local authority must provide a discount on an administrative charge imposed under section 36 as follows:

  2. a local authority that has not adopted a policy under subsection (3) must provide a discount if regulations under section 360(1)(hj) require the local authority to provide a discount:
    1. a local authority that has adopted a policy under subsection (3) must provide a discount under whichever of the policy and regulations under section 360(1)(hj) is more generous in the circumstances of the particular case.

      1. The Minister must recommend to the Governor-General within 9 months of the commencement of section 32 of the Resource Management (Simplifying and Streamlining) Amendment Act 2009 that regulations be made under section 360(1)(hj) and the Minister must, before making the recommendation, consult with local authorities about the proposed regulations.

      2. The Minister must ensure that regulations made under section 360(1)(hj) remain in force, but this subsection does not prevent regulations made under section 360(1)(hj) (including the regulations made in compliance with subsection (2)) from being amended or from being revoked and replaced by another set of regulations made under section 360(1)(hj).

      3. A local authority may adopt, in accordance with the special consultative procedure set out in section 83 of the Local Government Act 2002, a policy in respect of discounting administrative charges imposed under section 36 of this Act in the circumstances where—

      4. an application for a resource consent or an application to change or cancel conditions under section 127 is not processed within the time frames set out in this Act; and
        1. the responsibility for the failure rests with the local authority.

          1. The policy must specify—

          2. the discount, or the method for determining the discount, that would be given for any application fees or charges paid or owing; and
            1. the procedure an applicant must follow to obtain the discount.

              1. Repealed
              Notes
              • Section 36AA: inserted, on , by section 32 of the Resource Management (Simplifying and Streamlining) Amendment Act 2009 (2009 No 31).
              • Section 36AA(1): replaced, on , by section 12(1) of the Resource Management Amendment Act (No 2) 2011 (2011 No 70).
              • Section 36AA(2A): inserted, on , by section 12(2) of the Resource Management Amendment Act (No 2) 2011 (2011 No 70).
              • Section 36AA(5): repealed, on , by section 12(3) of the Resource Management Amendment Act (No 2) 2011 (2011 No 70).