Plain language law

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Public Works Act 1981

Acquisition of land for public works - Compulsory acquisition of land

26: When Proclamation may issue

You could also call this:

“When the government can officially take land for public use”

If no one objects to taking the land, or if objections are withdrawn or rejected by the Environment Court, the Minister or local authority can decide to take the land for a public work. They can do this if they think it’s necessary and if any private harm will be properly compensated.

To take the land, you need to follow these steps:

You need to make an accurate survey plan showing where the land is and how big it is. The Chief Surveyor needs to sign this plan to show it’s correct. You also need to make a copy of the title plan.

For government work, the Minister asks the Governor-General to issue a Proclamation to take the land. For local work, the local authority asks the Governor-General to take the land. They need to send the plans and a signed declaration from the chairperson, mayor, or chief executive. If the Environment Court was involved, their report needs to be included too.

The Governor-General can then issue a Proclamation to take the land for the public work. This Proclamation needs to be published in the Gazette and publicly announced within a month. The public announcement needs to clearly describe the land being taken.

Fourteen days after the Proclamation is published in the Gazette, the land becomes owned by the Crown or local authority. It’s free from any other claims or interests, unless the Proclamation or another law says otherwise.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM46014.

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Part 2 Acquisition of land for public works
Compulsory acquisition of land

26When Proclamation may issue

  1. If no objection is made within the time allowed under this Act or, if made, is withdrawn by the objector or is disallowed by the Environment Court, and the Minister or, as the case may be, the local authority, is of the opinion that the land should be taken for the public work specified in the notice given under section 23, and that no private injury will be done for which due compensation is not provided in this Act, the land intended to be taken may be taken in the following manner:

  2. subject to the provisions of section 32—
    1. a survey plan shall be prepared, in duplicate, showing accurately the position and extent of the land proposed to be taken; and
      1. such plan shall be signed by the Chief Surveyor as evidence of its accuracy; and
        1. a duplicate print of the title plan shall be prepared; and
        2. in the case of any Government work, the Minister shall recommend the Governor-General to issue a Proclamation taking the land:
          1. in the case of any local work—
            1. the local authority shall submit to the Governor-General a request to take the land proposed to be taken, together with the plan in duplicate unless the provisions of section 32 apply:
              1. every such request shall be signed by the chief executive of the local authority, and need not be under seal:
                1. a statutory declaration by the chairperson or mayor or the chief executive of the local authority, in the form set out in Schedule 2, may be accepted by the Governor-General as sufficient without making further inquiry:
                  1. every such declaration shall be accompanied, where applicable, by the relevant report of the Environment Court.

                  2. The Governor-General may, if he thinks fit, by Proclamation declare that the land described in it is taken for the public work. Every such Proclamation shall be gazetted and publicly notified within 1 month after the date of its making; and every such public notification shall contain some readily identifiable description of the land taken, but a Proclamation shall not be invalidated by any error, defect, or delay in its gazetting or public notification.

                  3. The land specified in the Proclamation shall, unless otherwise provided in the Proclamation or in this Act or in any other Act, become absolutely vested in fee simple in the Crown or in the local authority, as the case may require, freed and discharged from all mortgages, charges, claims, estates, or interests of whatever kind for the public work named in the Proclamation on the 14th day after the day on which the Proclamation is published in the Gazette.

                  Compare
                  • 1928 No 21 s 23
                  Notes
                  • Section 26(1): substituted, on , by section 9 of the Public Works Amendment Act (No 2) 1987 (1987 No 67).
                  • Section 26(1): amended, on , pursuant to section 6(2)(a) of the Resource Management Amendment Act 1996 (1996 No 160).
                  • Section 26(1)(c)(ii): amended, on , by section 262 of the Local Government Act 2002 (2002 No 84).
                  • Section 26(1)(c)(iii): amended, on , by section 262 of the Local Government Act 2002 (2002 No 84).
                  • Section 26(1)(c)(iv): amended, on , pursuant to section 6(2)(a) of the Resource Management Amendment Act 1996 (1996 No 160).
                  • Section 26(2): amended, on , by section 2(7) of the Public Works Amendment Act (No 2) 1987 (1987 No 67).
                  • Section 26(3): amended, on , by section 2(7) of the Public Works Amendment Act (No 2) 1987 (1987 No 67).