Feedback on resource consent transparency proposal sought

‘‘We want to make consent processing costs more transparent from the beginning so customers can better assess the project budgets.’’

Rochelle Deane

Making resource consent processing fees fairer and more transparent is just one proposal the Far North District Council is asking for public feedback on this month.

The council currently charges an initial lodgement fee to begin resource consent applications, and then invoices property owners for the balance, once fees for engineering reports, planners and other experts are known.

Customers can be surprised when they receive their final resource consent invoice, which may be considerably more than the initial lodgement fee.

Rochelle Deane, manager – environmental services, says lodgement fees do not currently provide applicants with an accurate indication of the total cost for processing and issuing consents. Actual costs are loaded at the back end of the process when final invoices are issued. The proposal to adopt higher lodgement fees will provide a more accurate indication of the total cost and better manage expectations.

‘‘We want to make consent processing costs more transparent from the beginning so customers can better assess the project budgets. We have done a lot of work to assess what it costs to process various types of resource consent. Our proposal is to increase lodgement fees, so they better reflect final costs.

‘‘We will still issue a final invoice, but in most cases, additional charges will be minimal. I want to stress that this will not increase what the council charges for resource consents. Our aim is simply to make the process clearer and to reduce unwelcome surprises after customers have started their projects.’’

She says that an itemised breakdown of costs is provided with all resource consents and, where the lodgement fee exceeds final costs, a refund is provided.

The council is also asking for public feedback on proposed changes to dog impound fees. It proposes simplifying charges by removing a $125 after-hours impounding fee and increasing handling charges from $7.70 to $15 per day. The handling charge covers the cost of feeding and housing impounded dogs and must be paid by owners before their dog is released.

Deane says the proposed $15 daily handling fee does not cover the full hygiene, medical, food and staff costs required to house dogs. ‘‘We believe $15 a day strikes a good balance. It is affordable for most owners but is high enough to discourage owners leaving their pets at the animal shelter for extended periods.’’

She says the increased daily handling fee will still be lower than similar fees charged by other Northland councils.

Finally, the council is proposing an increase in cemetery fees to better reflect changes in land values, staff and other costs. The proposal will increase fees for burial plots, interments (including ash burials), search fees, and special circumstances fees, such as when hand-digging of graves is required or burials are conducted on public holidays.

The submission period is open now and closes on April 4. For full details of the proposals and to make a submission, go to fndc.govt.nz/haveyoursay.