14Referral application

1. A person may apply to use the fast-track approvals process for a Part B listed project or an unlisted project by lodging a referral application with the responsible agency.

2. The applicant must be,—

3. in the case of a Part B listed project, the authorised person; and
4. in any case, a person who, for each of the proposed approvals, would be eligible to apply for any corresponding approval under a specified Act.

5. The referral application must—

6. include the information specified in subsection (3) ; and
7. specify all of the proposed approvals, but need only provide a general level of detail about each proposed approval, sufficient to inform the Minister's decision on the referral application; and
8. if the proposed approvals include approvals described in section 24C(3)(aa) or (g) (certificate of compliance or archaeological authority), also include as proposed approvals those required by section 24C(5) and (6)(a) .

9. The information to be included in the referral application is as follows:

   Proposal and effects

10. a description of the project and the activities it involves:
11. an explanation of how the project meets the criteria in section 22B :
12. a description or map of the whole project area that identifies its boundaries in sufficient detail to enable consideration of the referral application:
13. the anticipated commencement and completion dates for construction activities (where relevant):
14. a statement of whether the project is planned to proceed in stages and, if so,—
    1. an outline of the nature and timing of the stages; and
    2. a statement of whether a separate substantive application is to be lodged for each of the stages; and
    3. an explanation of how each stage meets the criteria in section 22B :
15. a statement of whether a part of the project is proposed as an alternative project in itself and, if so,—
    1. a description of that part of the project; and
    2. an explanation of how that part of the project meets the criteria in section 22B :
16. a description of the anticipated and known adverse effects of the project on the environment:
17. a statement of any activities involved in the project that are prohibited activities under the Resource Management Act 1991:

Persons affected

18. a list of the persons the applicant considers are likely to be affected by the project, including—
    1. relevant local authorities:
    2. iwi authorities and groups that represent hapū that are parties to relevant Mana Whakahono ā Rohe or joint management agreements:
    3. other relevant iwi authorities:
    4. relevant Treaty settlement entities:
    5. relevant protected customary rights groups and customary marine title groups:
    6. ngā hapū o Ngāti Porou, if the project area is within or adjacent to, or the project would directly affect, ngā rohe moana o ngā hapū o Ngāti Porou:
    7. relevant applicant groups under the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011:
    8. persons with a registered interest in land that may need to be acquired under the Public Works Act 1981:
19. a summary of—
    1. the consultation undertaken for the purposes of section 16 and any other consultation undertaken on the project with the persons and groups referred to in paragraph (ha) ; and
    2. how the consultation has informed the project:
20. a summary of the steps taken for the purposes of section 16A :
21. a list of any Treaty settlements that apply to the project area, and a summary of the relevant principles and provisions in those settlements:
22. a description of any processes already undertaken under the Public Works Act 1981 in relation to the project :
23. any relevant principles or provisions in the Ngā Rohe Moana o Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Porou Act 2019:
24. information identifying the parcels of Māori land, marae, and identified wāhi tapu within the project area:

Information relating to potentially ineligible activities

25. whether the project involves an activity on land described in section 4A(1)(a) and, if so, whether the applicant has secured the agreement referred to in that section:
26. whether the project involves an activity on land or in an area described in section 4A(1)(b), (j), or (k) and, if so, whether the applicant has secured the relevant agreement referred to in that section:
27. whether the project involves an activity in an area described in section 4A(1)(c) and, if so,—
    1. whether the applicant has secured the agreement referred to in that section; and
    2. an assessment of the effects of the activity on the exercise of the protected customary rights:
28. whether the project involves an activity in an area described in section 4A(1)(da) and, if so,—
    1. whether the applicant has secured the agreement referred to in that section; and
    2. an assessment of the effects of the activity on the use and management of the area:
29. whether the project involves an activity described in section 4A(1)(e) and, if so, whether the applicant is authorised to apply for a coastal permit under the Resource Management Act 1991 for that activity:

What is needed to complete the project

30. a description of the applicant's legal interest (if any) in the land on which the project will occur, including a statement of how that affects the applicant's ability to undertake the work:
31. an outline of the types of consents , certificates, designations, concessions, and other legal authorisations (other than contractual authorisations or the proposed approvals) that the applicant considers are needed to authorise the project, including any that the applicant considers may be needed by someone other than the applicant:

Other matters

32. whether any activities that are involved in the project, or are substantially the same as those involved in the project, have been the subject of an application or a decision under a specified Act and,—
    1. if an application has been made, details of the application:
    2. if a decision has been made, the outcome of the decision and the reasons for it:
33. a description of whether and how the project would be affected by climate change and natural hazards:
34. evidence of compliance with subsection (1A)(b) :
35. a summary of compliance or enforcement actions (if any), and the outcome of those actions, taken against the applicant under a specified Act:

Matters relating to specific proposed approvals

36. if the proposed approvals include—
    1. an approval described in section 24C(3)(a) or (b) (resource consent or designation), the information specified in clause 1A of Schedule 4 :
    2. an approval described in section 24C(3)(aa) (certificate of compliance), the information specified in clause 1B of Schedule 4 :
    3. an approval described in section 24C(3)(d) (land exchange), the information specified in clause 17A of Schedule 5 :
    4. an approval described in section 24C(3)(h) (marine consent), the information specified in clause 4 of Schedule 9 .

37. The responsible agency must approve a form for referral applications and ensure that it is made available on an internet site maintained by or on behalf of the responsible agency.

38. The referral application must be made in the approved form.

39. In subsection (3)(ua) ,application includes a notice of requirement and any other means by which a decision may be sought under a specified Act.