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Building Act 2004

Miscellaneous provisions - Other offences and criminal proceedings - Proceedings for offences generally

389: Fines to be paid to territorial authority or regional authority instituting prosecution

You could also call this:

“Money from fines for breaking this law goes to the local council that started the court case.”

When you are found guilty of an offence under this Act, the court will order you to pay a fine. This fine will go to the territorial authority or regional authority that started the legal case against you.

However, not all of the fine goes to the authority. Ten percent of the fine will be given to the government. The Minister of Finance will decide which bank account this money goes into.

Sometimes, the court might award money to cover losses or damages. If this money is collected as a fine, all of it will go to the authority. The government won’t take ten percent from this part.

When the court orders the fine to be paid, the person who receives the payment (called the Registrar) will split it up. They will give ten percent to the government and the rest to the authority.

There’s a rule in another law called the Public Finance Act 1989 that doesn’t apply to these fines.

It’s important to know that these rules only apply when a territorial authority or regional authority started the legal case. If someone else started the case, the fine might be handled differently.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM309041.

Topics:

Government and voting > Local councils

Crime and justice > Criminal law

Money and consumer rights > Taxes

388: Strict liability and defences, or

“You can be found guilty of breaking this law even if you didn't mean to, but you can defend yourself if you had a good reason.”

390: Civil proceedings may not be brought against chief executive, employees, etc, or

“You can't take certain people to court if they did their job properly under this law.”

Part 5 Miscellaneous provisions
Other offences and criminal proceedings: Proceedings for offences generally

389Fines to be paid to territorial authority or regional authority instituting prosecution

A court must order that a fine imposed on any person in relation to the person's conviction for an offence under this Act be paid to the territorial authority or, as the case may be, the regional authority that commenced the proceedings for that offence.
However, an amount equal to 10% of every amount payable to the territorial authority or the regional authority under subsection (1) must be credited to a Crown Bank Account nominated by the Minister of Finance for the purposes of this subsection.
If any money awarded by a court in respect of loss or damage is recovered as a fine, and that fine is ordered to be paid to a territorial authority or a regional authority under subsection (1), no deduction is to be made under subsection (2) in respect of that money.
An order of the court made under subsection (1) is sufficient authority for the Registrar receiving payment of the fine to—
pay 10% of the fine to the Crown in accordance with subsection (2); and
pay the balance of the fine to the territorial authority or the regional authority entitled to it under the order.

Nothing in section 73 of the Public Finance Act 1989 applies to a fine ordered to be paid to a territorial authority or a regional authority under subsection (1).
To avoid doubt, this section does not apply if the proceedings for the offence were commenced by a person other than a territorial authority or a regional authority.

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Notes

Section 389(1): amended, on 1 July 2013, by section 413 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011 (2011 No 81).
Section 389(6): amended, on 1 July 2013, by section 413 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011 (2011 No 81).