Ngā whakawātanga tukanga ngārahu motuhake Special consultative procedure hearings

Some council decisions must follow 'special consultative procedures' under the Local Government Act 2002.

We must follow these procedures when we:

• review or introduce new bylaws or policies
• carry out other consultative processes like representation reviews.

The panel at these procedures can be made up of:

• elected representatives
• Houkura members (formerly known as Independent Māori Statutory Board)
• independent commissioners An independent commissioner is a person who oversees a hearing and has no connections to the involved parties. They ensure decisions are fair and neutral. .

We hold Have Your Say (HYS) events for bylaws and policies that the public can attend. We do this to give people the chance to have their say if they are affected by the bylaws and policies.

A deliberation panel made up of elected and Houkura members will be at the HYS event to listen to the feedback.

After the HYS events, we:

• review all feedback
• publish a summary report of the feedback on the AK Have Your Say website
• provide a copy of the report to the deliberation panel.

The panel then discusses the report at a council venue. The public can attend, but will not have speaking rights.

Once deliberations are over, the panel will make a recommendation about the bylaw or policy to the Governing Body, committee or local board.

Visit Topics you can have your say on for more information about ways to have your say in this process.

Sometimes, a special consultative procedure may take place for matters other than a bylaw or policy, like representation reviews and gambling policies. We might hold a hearing in these circumstances.

If you have requested to speak at the hearing, we will let you know when the hearing will be about two weeks before the hearing date.

About one week before the hearing, we will tell you approximately what time you can speak and for how long.

To share your views about a special consultative procedure hearing, you can make a submission on the consultation feedback form on the AK Have Your Say website.

If the proposal goes to a hearing, we will send everyone who submits feedback a notification letter.

This letter will include the hearing:

• time
• date
• venue.

You must respond to the notification letter or email if you want to speak at the hearing.

The hearing will be held at a council venue and the public can attend.

At the start of a special consultative procedure hearing, the chairperson will introduce the panel and council staff. They will then outline the procedure for the hearing.

You will be called to speak in the order on the agenda.

Members of the hearing panel can ask questions about the submissionsMaking a submission is a way people can express their views, opinions and suggestions on proposed changes, and influence the decisions being made. Anyone can make a submission, from individuals to community groups and organisations. . You can suggest questions for the panel to ask, but the panel does not have to ask them.

Once all the submissions have been heard, the panel will discuss the information presented.

If the panel meets in public, you cannot speak during the deliberation process, but you can stay and listen to the discussion.

The panel will then make a recommendation to the Governing Body, committee or local board.

We will send a copy of the decision to you and everyone else who made a submission.

If you made your submission after the closing date, the panel may ask you to explain why they should accept your late submission.

If the panel accepts your reasons, you will be able to speak in support of your submission.