Sent: Wednesday, 12 April 2023 4:38 pm
Subject: LGOIMA request - Submission policy
I refer to your online Official Information request of 13 March 2023 regarding the Submission Policy adopted on 8 February 2023, specifically:
- Who initiated the work on this and when?
- Who authorised the work on this and when?
- What issue and/or problem was this policy intended to address/solve? Please provide the data showing the issue/problem, if any
- Were any governmental agencies involved or provided advice on this policy?
- What instructions were given for the legal review of this policy to Tompkins Wake? Please provide a copy of the full advice given by Tompkins Wake on this policy.
- Provide the specific arguments/positions taken for the council’s application of their Significance and Engagement Policy to justify no public consultation on this policy.
- Provide all other internal/external communications regarding this policy from its initiation to now.
Council is always looking to improve the way in which the community can engage and provide feedback. On a number of occasions we have received verbal feedback that people do not know how to go about making submissions or what should be contained in a submission. To this end the District Leadership and Democracy Deputy Chief Executive directed staff to look at examples from other councils and government on “advice to submitters”/ submission guidelines.
Using examples from other councils and government a draft submissions policy was developed.
The guideline as set out in the policy provides assistance on:
- Who can make a submission
- Submissions are public documents
- Submission minimum criteria
- Accepted submission methods
- Accepted submission formats and languages
- Option to be heard
- Submission content conditions
- Late submissions
- Result of submission
Tompkins Wake were contacted in late January to check the policy was compliant (refer Attachments 1 and 2). Note: Contact details have been redacted as per section 7(2)(a) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act.
Attachment 1
Attachment 2
The policy was not formally consulted on as it did not breech the Council’s Significance and Engagement Policy.
The policy is a guideline to help those wishing to engage with Council. It is an operational policy which assists all parties, both the submitter and the council, to navigate through the submitting of submissions and the review of submissions before they are published ahead of council decision-making.
