1.13 Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 No 203
Omit “section 93F” wherever occurring. Insert instead “section 116T”.Commencement
Items [6], [8] and [9] of the amendments commence on a day or days to be appointed by proclamation.
Item [7] of the amendments commences, or is taken to have commenced, on the commencement of Schedule 3.1 [6] to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment Act 2008.
(Repealed)Development applications and new or amending environmental planning instruments
Sections 72I–72K of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (the EP&A Act) allow for the making, and consideration by a consent authority, of development applications related to development that may only be carried out if an environmental planning instrument applying to the land is appropriately amended, and require the joint notification of such a development application and the draft environmental planning instrument allowing the development.The effect of item [1] of the proposed amendments to the EP&A Act is to allow these provisions to operate where the development will be allowed by a principal (and not just an amending) environmental planning instrument.
The effect of item [2] of the proposed amendments is to require joint notification of the relevant development application and environmental planning instrument only if that is practicable and, if that is not practicable, to require the separate notification of each to be given as closely together as is practicable. Item [3] makes a consequential amendment.
Ministerial directions to accredited certifiers about development contributions
Under the EP&A Act, both local councils and accredited certifiers may, when issuing complying development certificates, impose conditions requiring contributions for local infrastructure. Section 94E of the EP&A Act authorises the Minister to direct a consent authority (which is defined to include a local council in this context, but not an accredited certifier) as to various matters in relation to such contributions, including the matters in relation to which they may be imposed and the maximum amount of any such contribution.The effect of item [4] of the proposed amendments is to extend the application of the Minister’s directions under section 94E that are relevant to accredited certifiers and that relate to complying development, to accredited certifiers.
Special infrastructure contributions
The EP&A Act enables the State to require development contributions for the provision of infrastructure in relation to development on land within a special contributions area. In determining the level and nature of such a contribution, the Minister is required by section 94EE (3A) of the EP&A Act to identify what part (if any) of the contribution is for the provision of infrastructure by a local council or for the provision of certain infrastructure by the Minister, the Department or the Director-General. Those parts that are so identified are not required to be paid into the Special Contributions Areas Infrastructure Fund (the Fund) established under the Act and are instead to be paid to the local council or the Department as the case requires.Item [5] of the proposed amendments inserts a provision to clarify that section 94EE (3A) does not limit any payments being made out of the Fund to a local council or the Department for the provision of infrastructure in relation to development.
Prerequisites to issue of subdivision or occupation certificates
The EP&A Act provides for voluntary agreements between planning authorities and developers (planning agreements), under which the developer is required to provide a development contribution for a public purpose.Section 109J of the EP&A Act sets out requirements that must be satisfied before a subdivision certificate may be issued. Item [8] of the proposed amendments includes a requirement that all the requirements of a planning agreement that, by its terms, are required to be complied with before such a certificate is issued, have been met. Item [6] of the proposed amendments makes a parallel amendment to section 109H of the EP&A Act, which provides for requirements that must be satisfied before an occupation certificate may be issued. (Similar requirements exist in relation to conditions of a development consent (including any condition requiring a development contribution to be made) that are required to be met before a subdivision or occupation certificate may be issued.) Item [9] inserts a consequential savings and transitional provision.
Updating references
Item [7] of the proposed amendments updates a cross-reference as a consequence of (uncommenced) amendments to the EP&A Act by the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment Act 2008.