Resource Legislation Amendment Bill

The Local Government and Environment Committee has presented its report to the New Zealand House of Representatives.

The majority of the committee recommend amending the Resource Legislation Amendment Bill. The bill proposes a range of changes to the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) and other laws. Some of the recommendations are to:

  • amend iwi participation arrangements in several ways, including enabling iwi to initiate the arrangements with local authorities
  • remove some of the Minister’s proposed regulation-making powers
  • introduce a single development and consultation process for national direction
  • amend the notification regime and submission strike-out provisions for resource consents
  • adjust the infringement regime for offences relating to stock-exclusion from water bodies
  • expand upon the proposed amendments to the Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effects) Act 2012 relating to the decommissioning of offshore petroleum production structures.

Read the committee’s report here.

What happens next?

The next step is for the committee’s recommendations to be debated by the New Zealand House of Representatives in a second reading debate.

Government