Regulation Review - IPART - NSW Government

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2 Local government compliance and enforcement functions 2.5.2 Types of coordination and cooperation between councils There are over 600 collaborative arrangements between councils in NSW, across a variety of areas. 39 These include: County Councils – there are 14 County Councils formally established under the Local Government Act to provide joint services for member councils (7 for water supply, 6 for weeds eradication, and 1 for floodplain management) .40 Regional Organisations of Councils (ROCs) – most councils in NSW are members of one or more of the 18 ROCs that cover most of the state. 41 ROCs can be forums for regional advocacy, research, planning, and sharing resources and knowledge between constituent councils. Other collaborative arrangements aimed at sharing information, expertise and resources and/or achieving a common goal – such as: – Sister City agreements – eg, the Liverpool Plains Shire Council/Blacktown City Council Sister City Agreement involves staff exchanges covering areas such as noxious weed control, planning and ranger services. 42 – Advisory committees, alliances and regional schemes – eg, the Illawarra Urban Development Committee, the Mid Lachlan Alliance of Councils, the South Western Regional Waste Management Group. – ROC-based collaborations – eg, Riverina Eastern ROC’s initiative ‘Start your Business here’. This is an on-line, self-guided computer program. It allows start-up businesses to determine what regulations and planning controls they must comply with in each of the Local Government Areas that comprise the Riverina Eastern ROC region. 43 – Creation of joint entities of councils dedicated to providing functions on behalf of the councils – eg, Hunter Councils Inc, which represents 12 councils in the Hunter Valley and is a shared services and regional procurement entity. It has a dedicated local government training institute, a regional data centre, an environmental division, and legal services. 44 – Agreements for sharing specific resources, services or approaches – eg, Coffs-Bellingen Trade Waste Inspection Services, Griffith Region Food Safety Inspection Agreement. – Agreements relating to specific projects and other collaborations – eg, Waverley, Woollahra and Randwick Councils’ Ecological Footprint Project. 45 39 NSW Independent Local Government Review Panel, Strengthening your Community – Consultation Paper, July 2012, p 11. 40 Ibid. 41 Ibid. 42 NSW Department of Local Government, Collaborative Arrangements between Councils – Survey Report, June 2011, p 41. 43 See: http://startyourbusinesshere.com.au/, accessed 11 September 2012. 44 See: http://www.huntercouncils.com.au/, accessed 17 August 2012. 45 NSW Department of Local Government, Collaborative Arrangements between Councils – Survey Report, June 2011, pp 75-214. 28 IPART Regulation Review
2 Local government compliance and enforcement functions Table 2.3 below provides examples of collaborative arrangements between councils, by operational or regulatory area. Table 2.3 Examples of collaborative arrangements between councils, by area Area Regional planning Waste management Environmental health Water and sewerage Example Regional General Managers groups/meetings Shared facilities, approaches to illegal dumping, recycling projects Shared lab services, pest control Regional water schemes, floodplain management Development assessment and town planning Shared staff, joint building inspections, development control Roads and engineering Joint employment of road safety officers, shared maintenance Weed management Noxious weeds groups and shared noxious weeds officers Companion animal management Shared ranger and impounding services Training Shared training services Note: This is not a complete list and we have focused on areas that fall within the priority regulatory areas. Source: Department of Local Government, Collaborative Arrangements between Councils – Survey Report, June 2011, pp 215-222. Related to cooperation and coordination, is the issue of consolidation of local government. This is not within the scope of our review. 2.5.3 Leading practice in local government coordination and cooperation In its recent review of local governments as regulators, the PC recognised the value of cooperation and coordination between councils to achieve economies of scope and scale in resources and skills. 46 It identified the following examples: In Victoria, there is a Rural Planning Flying Squad, which sends out planning experts to councils that are experiencing shortages in planning resources and skills 47 In NSW, Conargo, Deniliquin and Murray have agreed to have common development applications forms and procedures In Western Australia, several councils in the South West have agreed to develop online building and health permits using the same software. 48 46 Productivity Commission, Performance Benchmarking of Australian Business Regulation: The Role of Local Government as Regulator, July 2012, Vol 1, pp 181-182. 47 Ibid, pp 175-176. 48 Ibid, p 198. Regulation Review IPART 29
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