POLICY
AND REGULATORY COMMITTEE
Membership: 11
Meeting
Cycle: Meets on a six weekly basis, as required or at the
requisition of the Chair
Quorum: Half
of the members
Membership
Hearings: Minimum of either 3 or 4 elected
members (including the Chair) and alternates
who have current certification under the Making Good Decisions Training,
Assessment and Certification Programme for RMA Decision-Makers. The
inclusion of an independent Commissioner as the rule rather than the exception
Reports
to: Council
PURPOSE:
•
To assist the Council monitor the development of strategies and
policy that meet the current and future needs of communities for good-quality
local infrastructure, local public services, and performance of regulatory
functions in a way that is most cost-effective for households and businesses.
•
To
consider matters relating to the regulatory and quasi-judicial responsibilities
of the Council under legislation. This includes, without limitation, matters under
the RMA including the hearing of resource management applications.
Determine:
·
Maintain an overview of work programmes carried out by the
Council's Environmental Consents, Regulatory Services and strategy and policy
development activities.
•
Draft policies for public consultation, excluding those that will
subsequently be required to follow a statutory process
•
Approval and forwarding of submissions on matters related to the
Committee’s area of responsibility
•
Hearing and deciding notified resource consent applications.
•
Hearing and deciding objections to conditions imposed on resource
consents
•
Hearing and deciding any matter notified under the Local
Government Act 2002
•
Hearing and deciding objections to the classification of dangerous
dogs under section 31 of the Dog Control Act 1996 and abatement notices
regarding barking dogs under section 55 of that Act
•
Hearing and deciding objections to the classification of dogs as
menacing dogs under sections 33A and 33C of the Dog Control Act 1996
•
Hearing objections to specified traffic matters where the community
board wishes to take an advocacy role
•
Exercising the power of waiver under section 42A (4) of the
Resource Management Act of the requirement to provide parties with copies of
written reports prior to hearings
•
Authorising the submission of appeals to the Environment Court on
behalf of Council
•
To appoint a subcommittee of suitably qualified persons to conduct
hearings on behalf of the Committee. The Chair of the Policy and Regulatory
Committee is also delegated this function.
•
All statutory requirements under the Reserves Act 1977 that
require the Department of Conservation to ratify.
Conduct of
Hearings:
•
To conduct hearings where these are required as part of a
statutory process[1].
•
Hearing of submissions required on any matters falling under the
Terms of Reference for this committee or delegating to a panel to undertake
hearings (this delegation is also held by the Chair of the Policy and
Regulatory Committee).
General:
•
Any other matters delegated to the Committee by Council in
accordance with approved policies and bylaws.
NOTE:
The Ministry for the Environment
advocates that Councils offer specialist RMA training in areas of law which are
difficult to grasp or where mistakes are commonly made. This is to complement
the Good Decision Making RMA training that they run (which is an overview and
basic summary of decision making, rather than an in-depth training in specific
areas of the RMA). Therefore in order to facilitate this, the RMA training run
for councillors that wish to be hearings commissioners is mandatory.
Reasons for the importance of the
training:
1
Hearings commissioners are kept abreast of developments in the
legislation.
2
Legal and technical errors that have been made previously are
avoided (many of which have resulted in Environment Court action which is
costly, time consuming and often creates unrealistic expectations for the
community).
3
The reputation of Council as good and fair decision makers or
judges (rather than legislators) is upheld.
Policy and Regulatory
Committee
Meeting to be held in the Council Chambers, 2nd Floor,
30 Laings Road, Lower Hutt on
Monday 1 May 2017 commencing at 5.30pm.
ORDER PAPER
Public Business
1. APOLOGIES
2. PUBLIC
COMMENT
Generally up to 30 minutes is set
aside for public comment (three minutes per speaker on items appearing on
the agenda). Speakers may be asked questions on the matters they raise.
3. CONFLICT OF
INTEREST DECLARATIONS
4. Recommendations to Council
- 23 May
2017
a) Overseas Travel Approval -
Policy Change (17/651)
Report
No. PRC2017/2/110 by the Chief Financial Officer 4
Chair’s Recommendation:
|
“That
recommendations (i) and (ii) contained in the report be endorsed with a new
part (iii) to read:
(iii)
requests officers to report annually on expenditure for overseas travel
(excluding Australia).”
|
b) Redrafted Gift Policy for
Elected Members (17/587)
Report No. PRC2017/2/111 by the
Divisional Manager, Secretariat Services 25
Chair’s Recommendation:
|
“That the
recommendation contained in the report be endorsed.”
|
c) Reserve Reclassification -
Wainuiomata (17/252)
Report No. PRC2017/2/73 by the
Divisional Manager, Parks and Gardens 30
Chair’s Recommendation:
|
“That the
recommendation contained in the report be endorsed.”
|
d) Future of Molesworth Street
Reserve Pomare (17/536)
Report No. PRC2017/2/112 by the
Divisional Manager, Parks and Gardens 33
Chair’s Recommendation:
|
“That the
recommendations contained in the report be discussed.”
|
e) Proposed Road Stopping and
Sale of Legal Road on the corner of Knights Road and Birch Street Waterloo
(17/600)
Report
No. PRC2017/2/113 by the Divisional Manager, Parks and Gardens 64
Chair’s Recommendation:
|
“That the
recommendations contained in the report be endorsed.”
|
f) Dog controls for Avalon
Park (17/632)
Report
No. PRC2017/2/114 by the Divisional Manager, Regulatory Services 68
Chair’s Recommendation:
|
“That recommendation
(i) contained in the report be endorsed and part (ii) to read:
(ii)
that the Committee appoints
a subcommittee consisting of Councillors Cousins, Lewis, Bridson and Briggs, to
hear submissions on the proposed dog controls for Avalon Park and make
recommendations to Council.”
|
g) Easter Sunday Shop Trading
Policy (17/575)
Report
No. PRC2017/2/118 by the Principal Policy Advisor 76
Chair’s Recommendation:
|
“That the
recommendations contained in the report be discussed.”
|
5. Urban Development Authorities (17/634)
Report
No. PRC2017/2/117 by the Divisional Manager, Strategy and Planning 91
Chair’s Recommendation:
|
“That the
recommendation contained in the report be endorsed.”
|
6. Code of Practice - District Licensing
Committee 2017
(17/636)
Report
No. PRC2017/2/119 by the Solicitor 112
Chair’s Recommendation:
|
“That the
recommendations contained in the report be endorsed.”
|
7. General Manager's Report (17/592)
Report
No. PRC2017/2/120 by the General Manager, Governance and Regulatory 120
Chair’s Recommendation:
|
“That the
recommendation contained in the report be endorsed.”
|
8. Information Item
Policy and Regulatory
Committee Work Programme (17/505)
Report No. PRC2017/2/7 by the
Committee Advisor 151
Chair’s
Recommendation:
|
“That the
information be received.”
|
9. QUESTIONS
With reference to section 32 of
Standing Orders, before putting a question a member shall endeavour to obtain
the information. Questions shall be concise and in writing and handed to the
Chair prior to the commencement of the meeting.
Susan Haniel
COMMITTEE ADVISOR
