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ALERT: 2021 NSW local government election results not to be declared until late September
The date for the declaration of the results of the NSW local government elections, scheduled to be held on 4 September 2021, has been pushed back, as has the date for the return of completed postal vote certificates. Following an…
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Bill to Reform NSW Development Contributions System Introduced into Parliament
As part of a suite of reforms introduced with the 2021–22 Budget, the NSW Government introduced the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Infrastructure Contributions) Bill 2021 (‘Bill‘) to the Legislative Assembly on 22 June 2021. The Bill proposes to rewrite the…
Discussion Paper – Review of Crown Land Management Act 2016 – Issues for Local Government
Recently, we published an alert (see here) about an opportunity for public input into the independent statutory review of the Crown Land Management Act 2016 (NSW) (‘CLM Act‘), run by the Crown Land Commissioner, Professor Richard Bush (‘the Commissioner‘). The…
Overview: DPI’s Guide to Biosecurity for Environmental Planners
In recent years, biosecurity has been a salient topic among policymakers and practitioners. The global COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the accelerated biodiversity loss attributed to the arrival and spread of new species, have only served to highlight the importance…
ALERT: Independent Statutory Review of Crown Land Management Act 2016
The Crown Land Commissioner, Professor Richard Bush, is undertaking an independent statutory review of the Crown Land Management Act 2016 (CLM Act) and has published a discussion paper seeking the public’s input into the review. About the statutory review The Commissioner was…
Council Obligations under the Australian Foreign Relations Scheme
Local governments play an important role in Australia’s foreign relations. Indeed, the Australian Local Government Association noted in its submission to a recent Senate inquiry (‘Senate Inquiry‘) that there are at least 37 arrangements between councils and foreign entities, as…
ALERT: New Practice Note on Voluntary Planning Agreements in NSW
On 12 February 2021, the Planning Secretary issued a new Planning Agreements Practice Note (VPA Practice Note). On the same day, the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Development Contributions) Regulation 2021 (Amendment Regulation) made a number of amendments to the…
A New Pathway for the Procurement of Legal Services
The spending of public money and the awarding of public sector contracts are areas that are rightfully subject to substantial regulation and scrutiny. Ensuring the procurement process is both efficient and effective for both agencies and service providers is not…
NSW Productivity Commission Publishes Final Report on Review of Infrastructure Contributions System
On 3 December 2020, the NSW Productivity Commission released its final report on its review of the infrastructure contributions system in NSW (Review), entitled Review of Infrastructure Contributions in New South Wales – Final Report (Final Report). Following on from the…
Can a VPA be entered into for the conservation of a privately owned heritage building?
In a recent Land and Environment Court case, IPM Holdings Pty Limited v The Council of the City of Sydney [2020] NSWLEC 1593, the Court considered whether it could impose a condition of consent requiring a voluntary planning agreement (‘VPA‘)…
Are all Drainage Reserves Classified as Operational Land?
Drainage reserves vested in local councils are public land as defined in the Local Government Act 1993 (‘LG Act‘). All public land must be classified as either community or operational under the LG Act. The Registrar-General’s Guidelines under section 12D of the…
ALERT – Revised Model Code of Conduct and Associated Procedures for Local Councils in NSW
On 7 August 2020, the NSW Government published The Model Code of Conduct for Local Councils in NSW 2020 (New Model Code) and the New Code for the Administration of The Model Code of Conduct for Local Councils in NSW…