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Local Government (Water Services) Act 2025

Miscellaneous provisions - Water services bylaws

264: Ongoing review of water services bylaws

You could also call this:

"Councils must regularly check and update their water rules"

Illustration for Local Government (Water Services) Act 2025

When a territorial authority makes a water services bylaw, you need to know it must review it. The territorial authority must review the bylaw no later than 10 years after it is made and no later than 10 years after it was last reviewed. The review must be done in a certain way, which is explained in section 160 of the Local Government Act 2002.

As part of the review, the territorial authority must ask water organisations for their ideas on the bylaw. The territorial authority must think about each idea and then decide what to do with the bylaw. It can keep the bylaw the same, change it, get rid of it, or get rid of it and make a new one.

The territorial authority only needs to ask a water organisation for its ideas if the organisation provides water services related to the bylaw. If a territorial authority works with other authorities to provide water services, they must work together to review the bylaws.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS1004588.

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263: Initial review of bylaws, or

"Councils must review and update their water service rules within two years to make sure they are fair and follow the new law."

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Part 5Miscellaneous provisions
Water services bylaws

264Ongoing review of water services bylaws

  1. A territorial authority must review a water services bylaw it has made under this Act or under any other Act—

  2. no later than 10 years after the date on which it makes the bylaw; and
    1. no later than 10 years after the bylaw was last reviewed under paragraph (a).

      1. A review under this section must be completed in accordance with section 160 of the LGA 2002, with any necessary modifications.

      2. As part of the review of a bylaw under this section, the territorial authority must—

      3. invite each water organisation operating in the territorial authority’s district to propose a new bylaw or an amendment to the existing bylaw; and
        1. consider each proposal made under paragraph (a); and
          1. decide whether to confirm the bylaw, or to amend, revoke, or revoke and replace the bylaw to ensure it is consistent with the provisions in this Act.

            1. However, subsection (3) does not require a territorial authority to consult a water organisation unless the water organisation provides water services that are relevant to the topic of the bylaw.

            2. If a territorial authority has established a water organisation under a joint arrangement with 1 or more other territorial authorities, the territorial authorities must jointly complete the review under this section of the water services bylaws under which the water organisation operates.