Local Government Act 1974 (New Zealand)

Local Government Act 1974
New Zealand Parliament
  • An Act to consolidate and amend the law relating to the reorganisation of the districts and functions of local authorities, to make better provision for the administration of those functions which can most effectively be carried out on a regional basis, and to make provision for the establishment of united councils, regional councils, district councils, district community councils, and community councils, and to consolidate and amend the Municipal Corporations Act 1954, the Counties Act 1956, the Local Authorities (Petroleum Tax) Act 1970, and provisions of other Acts of the Parliament of New Zealand relating to the powers and functions of regional councils, united councils, and territorial local authorities
Royal assent8 November 1974
Commenced1 December 1974
Administered byDepartment of Internal Affairs
Legislative history
Introduced byHenry May
Passed1974
Amended by
1989
Related legislation
Local Government (New Zealand) Act of 2002
Status: Current legislation

The Local Government Act 1974 of New Zealand consolidated the previous law relating to local government that applied to territorial local authorities, regional and district council bodies in New Zealand.

The Act made provision for the establishment of:

The Act consolidated and amended the Municipal Corporations Act 1954, the Counties Act 1956, the Local Authorities (Petroleum Tax) Act 1970, and provisions of other Acts of the Parliament of New Zealand relating to the powers and functions of regional councils, united councils, and territorial local authorities.

The legislation is the legal basis for the governances of the cities, districts and regions of New Zealand.

Although most of the Act was repealed when the Local Government Act 2002 was enacted, some sections, providing for the management of roads, transport, navigation, drainage, rivers and waste management, still apply.[2]

  1. ^ McKinnon, Malcolm (ed.) (1997). New Zealand Historical Atlas. Auckland: David Bateman. Plate 98.
  2. ^ Harris, R. (2004). "Local government and development legislation", page 128, Chapter 3G, in Harris, Rob (ed.) (2004). Handbook of Environmental Law (1st ed.). Wellington: Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Inc., ISBN 0-9597851-8-3.