I hereby give notice that an ordinary meeting of the Governing Body will be held on:

 

Date:                      

Time:

Meeting Room:

Venue:

 

Thursday, 26 March 2015

9.30am

Council Chamber
Orewa Service Centre
50 Centreway Road
Orewa

 

Governing Body

 

OPEN AGENDA

 

 

 

MEMBERSHIP

 

Mayor

Len Brown, JP

 

Deputy Mayor

Penny Hulse

 

Councillors

Cr Anae Arthur Anae

Cr Dick Quax

 

Cr Cameron Brewer

Cr Sharon Stewart, QSM

 

Cr Dr Cathy Casey

Cr Sir John Walker, KNZM, CBE

 

Cr Bill Cashmore

Cr Wayne Walker

 

Cr Ross Clow

Cr John Watson

 

Cr Linda Cooper, JP

Cr Penny Webster

 

Cr Chris Darby

Cr George Wood, CNZM

 

Cr Alf Filipaina

 

 

Cr Hon Christine Fletcher, QSO

 

 

Cr Denise Krum

 

 

Cr Mike Lee

 

 

Cr Calum Penrose

 

 

(Quorum 11 members)

 

 

 

Elaine Stephenson

Democracy Advisor

 

19 March 2015

 

Contact Telephone: (09) 890 8117

Email: elaine.stephensoni@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

Website: www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

 

 



TERMS OF REFERENCE

 

 

Those powers which cannot legally be delegated:

 

(a)     the power to make a rate; or

(b)     the power to make a bylaw; or

(c)     the power to borrow money, or purchase or dispose of assets, other than in accordance with the long term council community plan; or

(d)     the power to adopt a long term plan, annual plan, or annual report; or

(e)     the power to appoint a Chief Executive; or

(f)      the power to adopt policies required to be adopted and consulted on under the Local Government Act 2002 in association with the long term plan or developed for the purpose of the local governance statement; or

(g)     the power to adopt a remuneration and employment policy.

 

Additional responsibilities retained by the Governing Body:

 

(a)     Approval of a draft long term plan or draft annual plan prior to community consultation

(b)     Approval of a draft bylaw prior to community consultation     

(c)     Resolutions required to be made by a local authority under the Local Electoral Act 2001, including the appointment of electoral officer

(d)     Adoption of, and amendment to, the Committee Terms of Reference, Standing Orders and Code of Conduct

(e)     Relationships with the Independent Māori Statutory Board, including the funding agreement and appointments to committees.

(f)      Approval of the Unitary Plan

(g)     Overview of the implementation of the Auckland Plan through setting direction on key strategic projects (e.g. the City Rail Link and the alternative funding mechanisms for transport) and receiving regular reporting on the overall achievement of Auckland Plan priorities and performance measures.


EXCLUSION OF THE PUBLIC – WHO NEEDS TO LEAVE THE MEETING

 

Members of the public

 

All members of the public must leave the meeting when the public are excluded unless a resolution is passed permitting a person to remain because their knowledge will assist the meeting.

 

 

Those who are not members of the public

 

General principles

 

·         Access to confidential information is managed on a “need to know” basis where access to the information is required in order for a person to perform their role.

·         Those who are not members of the meeting (see list below) must leave unless it is necessary for them to remain and hear the debate in order to perform their role.

·         Those who need to be present for one confidential item can remain only for that item and must leave the room for any other confidential items.

·         In any case of doubt, the ruling of the chairperson is final.

 

Members of the meeting

 

·         The members of the meeting remain (all Governing Body members if the meeting is a Governing Body meeting; all members of the committee if the meeting is a committee meeting).

·         However, standing orders require that a councillor who has a pecuniary conflict of interest leave the room.

·         All councillors have the right to attend any meeting of a committee and councillors who are not members of a committee may remain, subject to any limitations in standing orders.

 

Staff

 

·         All staff supporting the meeting (administrative, senior management) remain.

·         Only staff who need to because of their role may remain.

 

Local Board members

 

·         Local Board members who need to hear the matter being discussed in order to perform their role may remain.  This will usually be if the matter affects, or is relevant to, a particular Local Board area.

 

Independent Māori Statutory Board (IMSB)

 

·         Members of the IMSB who are appointed members of the meeting remain.

·         Other IMSB members and IMSB staff remain if this is necessary in order for them to perform their role.

 

Council-controlled organisations (CCOs)

 

·         Representatives of a CCO can remain only if required to for discussion of a matter relevant to the CCO.

 

 

 


Governing Body

26 March 2015

 

 

ITEM   TABLE OF CONTENTS                                                                                        PAGE

1          Affirmation                                                                                                                      7

2          Apologies                                                                                                                        7

3          Declaration of Interest                                                                                                   7

4          Confirmation of Minutes                                                                                               7

5          Acknowledgements and Achievements                                                                      7

6          Petitions                                                                                                                          7  

7          Public Input                                                                                                                    7

8          Local Board Input                                                                                                          7

9          Extraordinary Business                                                                                                8

10        Notices of Motion                                                                                                          8

11        Verbal update on the World Masters games                                                              9

12        Appointment of Auckland Council Electoral Officer                                               11

13        2015 Local Government New Zealand AGM and Conference                                15

14        Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Plan 2015-2016                                         17  

15        Consideration of Extraordinary Items 

 

 


1          Affirmation

 

His Worship the Mayor will read the affirmation.

 

2          Apologies

 

Apologies from Cr AJ Anae and Deputy Mayor PA Hulse have been received.

 

3          Declaration of Interest

 

Members are reminded of the need to be vigilant to stand aside from decision making when a conflict arises between their role as a member and any private or other external interest they might have.

 

4          Confirmation of Minutes

 

That the Governing Body:

a)         confirm the ordinary minutes of its meeting, held on Thursday, 26 February 2015, including the confidential section, as a true and correct record.

 

 

5          Acknowledgements and Achievements

 

At the close of the agenda no requests for acknowledgements had been received.

 

6          Petitions

 

At the close of the agenda no requests to present petitions had been received.

 

7          Public Input

 

Standing Order 3.21 provides for Public Input.  Applications to speak must be made to the Committee Secretary, in writing, no later than two (2) working days prior to the meeting and must include the subject matter.  The meeting Chairperson has the discretion to decline any application that does not meet the requirements of Standing Orders.  A maximum of thirty (30) minutes is allocated to the period for public input with five (5) minutes speaking time for each speaker.

 

At the close of the agenda no requests for public input had been received.

 

8          Local Board Input

 

Standing Order 3.22 provides for Local Board Input.  The Chairperson (or nominee of that Chairperson) is entitled to speak for up to five (5) minutes during this time.  The Chairperson of the Local Board (or nominee of that Chairperson) shall wherever practical, give two (2) days notice of their wish to speak.  The meeting Chairperson has the discretion to decline any application that does not meet the requirements of Standing Orders.

 

This right is in addition to the right under Standing Order 3.9.14 to speak to matters on the agenda.

 

At the close of the agenda no requests for local board input had been received.


 

 

9          Extraordinary Business

 

Section 46A(7) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (as amended) states:

 

“An item that is not on the agenda for a meeting may be dealt with at that meeting if-

 

(a)        The local  authority by resolution so decides; and

 

(b)        The presiding member explains at the meeting, at a time when it is open to the public,-

 

(i)         The reason why the item is not on the agenda; and

 

(ii)        The reason why the discussion of the item cannot be delayed until a subsequent meeting.”

 

Section 46A(7A) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (as amended) states:

 

“Where an item is not on the agenda for a meeting,-

 

(a)        That item may be discussed at that meeting if-

 

(i)         That item is a minor matter relating to the general business of the local authority; and

 

(ii)        the presiding member explains at the beginning of the meeting, at a time when it is open to the public, that the item will be discussed at the meeting; but

 

(b)        no resolution, decision or recommendation may be made in respect of that item except to refer that item to a subsequent meeting of the local authority for further discussion.”

 

10        Notices of Motion

 

At the close of the agenda no requests for notices of motion had been received.

 


Governing Body

26 March 2015

 

 

Verbal update on the World Masters games

 

File No.: CP2015/03926

 

  

 

 

Purpose

1.       World Masters Games Chair Sir John Wells and CEO Jennah Wotton will be present to provide a verbal update on the games.

 

 

Recommendation/s

That the Governing Body:

a)      thank Sir John Wells and Jennah Wotton for their verbal update.

 

 

Attachments

There are no attachments for this report.     

Signatories

Author

Elaine Stephenson - Democracy Advisor

Authorisers

Marguerite Delbet - Manager Democracy Services

Grant Taylor - Governance Director

Stephen Town - Chief Executive

 


Governing Body

26 March 2015

 

 

Appointment of Auckland Council Electoral Officer

 

File No.: CP2015/02030

 

  

 

 

Purpose

1.       To outline Auckland Council’s approach to the 2016 local government elections and to appoint an electoral officer.

Executive summary

2.       The next local government elections will be conducted by postal vote, concluding on Saturday 8 October 2016.

3.       Planning has begun to ensure a successful 2016 election. Staff have developed a strategic approach, which is to deliver:

·        an excellent experience for candidates and voters

·        a voter turnout of at least 40 per cent

·        a candidate-to-member ratio of three

·        user-centric, innovative and transparent local body elections.

4.       After reviewing the 2013 local government elections, some internal changes will be introduced to improve delivery. This includes appointing Mr Dale Ofsoske of Independent Elections Services as the council’s Electoral Officer. This change requires a Governing Body decision.

5.       Feedback has been sought from the council’s advisory panels on how to improve engagement and participation of the communities they represent in the local government elections.  Staff are also in discussion with Central Government to introduce an online voting trial for the 2016 elections. 

 

Recommendation/s

That the Governing Body:

a)      note Auckland Council’s preparations for the 2016 local government elections.

b)      appoint Mr Dale Ofsoske of Independent Elections Services as Electoral Officer for Auckland Council.

 

 

Discussion

Strategic approach

6.       Various factors contribute to the outcome and to the level of voter turnout at elections. In recent decades, election turnouts in western democracies have generally been in decline. Younger voters and those from ethnic and migrant communities have a lower incidence of voting than other groups. Local government election voter turnouts are also significantly lower than those for general elections.


 

7.       The key factors most likely to influence voter turnout for Auckland’s 2016 elections include:

·        whether there is a dynamic contest for electoral seats

·        whether key Auckland issues ignite public debate and interest

·        people’s general understanding of what Auckland Council does for them – the ‘what’s in it for me?’ factor

·        the diversity and relevance of candidates to Auckland’s communities.

 

8.       To improve on the delivery of the 2013 elections experience, we will focus on five key areas: communications; community engagement; candidate awareness; online voting; and optimum use of the council’s resources.

9.       Communications and engagement initiatives include:

·        engaging early and meaningfully with community groups to reach communities with low participation rates, with the help of the council’s advisory panels

·        early development of key messages and online content/tools to run an effective campaign across appropriate channels for the candidate awareness phase

·        working alongside the Electoral Commission and Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) to encourage voter enrolment

·        a voter awareness campaign, to go live from July to October 2016 (final dates to be confirmed – some elements of the campaign could begin earlier)

·        consistent key messages that can be delivered by all election stakeholders.

10.     Candidate awareness covers:

·        an innovative campaign that promotes the role of elected member as a career option and encourages individuals and groups to consider standing as candidates

·        developing online content/tools and support to assist candidates with:

explanation of what the council does and what being an elected member of Auckland Council entails

election nomination rules and requirements and online support

how to campaign and reach out to voters.

11.     The aim is to ensure a seamless process from first conversations, through campaigning and post-election set up, to starting as an elected member.

12.     Online voting: trialing online voting, should Central Government allow Auckland to do so.

·        In December, the Government agreed to continue work to enable a limited number of local authorities to trial online voting in the 2016 local government elections. However, Department of Internal Affairs officials’ advice to Cabinet was that Auckland Council be excluded from any trial because its size, at 1,050,000 electors, would make it harder to mitigate any risk.

·        The Cabinet paper also stated that New Zealand legislation does not permit councils to trial smaller classes of electors, such as the visually impaired or those living overseas. Where online voting has been introduced overseas, it has generally been the practice to introduce it to smaller classes of electors first, before expanding it more widely.

·        The Mayor has written to LGNZ seeking its continued support to allow Auckland Council to participate in a trial. The Government’s response is expected in late April and a final decision in November.


 

13.     Optimising the use of council and Electoral Commission resources includes:

·        making it easier to vote by using our service centres and libraries more; encouraging events/engagement on the three ‘election Saturdays’ leading up to 8 October 2016; and trialing online voting.

·        asking council and District Health Board (DHB) staff members to be ‘election ambassadors’, encouraging their family and friends to enrol and vote.

·        managing the election as a council inter-departmental programme that enables voters and candidates to get the most help possible from the council.

·        ensuring budget phasing enables us to spend money at the right time

·        working alongside the Electoral Commision to encourage younger voters to enrol.

 

The appointment of an electoral officer

 

14.     Under s15 of the Local Electoral Act 2001 (LEA), the electoral officer is responsible for:

(a)          the compilation and certification of electoral rolls

(b)     the publication of any public notice relating to elections and polls and the calling of nominations, required to be given

(c)     receiving nominations, candidate profile statements, and deposits required to be paid

(d)          issuing and receiving ordinary and special votes and other official documents

(e)          the processing and counting of votes

(f)           the declaration of results

(g)          receiving returns of electoral donations and expenses

(h)          investigating possible offences and reporting alleged offences to the Police.

15.     The electoral officer is also responsible for keeping returns of donations and expenses in the electoral officer’s office, or other place appointed by the local authority chief executive, for seven years, and to make them publicly available for inspection.

16.     The territorial authority electoral officer is the electoral officer for any licensing trust in its area (Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act s310).

17.     A DHB must appoint the territorial authority electoral officer as its electoral officer (New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act schedule 2 cl. 9B).

18.     The statutory principles in section 4 of the LEA include public confidence in electoral processes through elections being managed independently from the elected body. An electoral officer may delegate to any other person and appoint a deputy electoral officer.

19.     A local authority cannot direct an electoral officer other than to conduct an election or referendum. An elected member or a chief executive of a local authority cannot be appointed as electoral officer.

20.     Democracy Services has reviewed the most effective way of configuring resources to deliver the 2016 local government election. For the 2010 elections, Mr Dale Ofsoske, managing director of Independent Elections Services, was appointed electoral officer for Auckland’s local government elections. This had also been the practice of a number of the legacy councils.

21.     In 2013, a council officer was appointed electoral officer, while Mr Ofsoske acted as deputy electoral officer. The 2013 review found that this had created inefficiencies and ‘double-handling’ between the electoral officer and deputy electoral officer. It is therefore proposed to appoint Mr Dale Ofsoske as the council’s electoral officer for the 2016 elections.

22.     Independent Elections Services, which was Auckland Council’s elections services provider for the 2010 and 2013 elections, will manage the operational aspects of the 2016 local government elections. Its managing director Mr Ofsoske has considerable experience as an electoral officer, having managed local authority elections since 1985. He has a track record in delivering timely and accurate election results and an in-depth understanding of electoral legislation and processes. He is currently the electoral officer of ten other councils and the deputy electoral officer for three, including Auckland Council.

23.     Benefits to Auckland Council of appointing Mr Ofsoske as its electoral officer are to:

·        fully utilise Mr Ofsoske’s considerable experience and knowledge in electoral matters

·        be able to respond quickly to electoral queries (from the council, candidates and the public generally) without the need to go elsewhere for answers or guidance

·        be able to respond to and communicate authoritatively with the media on any electoral matter or concern

·        manage any operational electoral issues that may arise and deal with these expediently.

 

Staff resourcing

24.     In the past, council staff have been informally seconded to election duties, while concurrently maintaining their substantive business-as-usual work because of the additional elections workload.

25.     For the 2016 elections, staff resources will be organised differently. Dedicated seconded staff will be appointed who can focus entirely on the elections’ main workstreams of communications, community engagement and candidate awareness.

Consideration

Local board views and implications

26.     This is a statutory appointment and administrative decision of the Governing Body.

Māori impact statement

27.     This is a statutory appointment and administrative decision of the Governing Body.

Implementation

28.     This appointment will take effect immediately.

 

Attachments

There are no attachments for this report.    

Signatories

Author

Glyn Walters, Elections Planning Manager

Authorisers

Marguerite Delbet - Manager Democracy Services

Grant Taylor - Governance Director

Stephen Town - Chief Executive

 


Governing Body

26 March 2015

 

 

2015 Local Government New Zealand AGM and Conference

 

File No.: CP2015/03415

 

  

 

 

Purpose

1.       To appoint delegates to attend the Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Conference in Rotorua from Sunday, 19 July 2015 to Tuesday, 21 July 2015.

Executive Summary

2.       Auckland Council is entitled to have four official delegates to the LGNZ AGM, one of whom is the presiding (or voting) delegate. The Mayor is a member of the LGNZ National Council and the Deputy Mayor is the Mayor’s alternate for this position; Councillor Webster chairs LGNZ Zone One and is a member of LGNZ National Council; and Councillor Cashmore is a member of the Regional Sector Group of LGNZ. The Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Councillor Webster have indicated that they will be attending the AGM and conference and will take up three official delegate positions. The Chief Executive will be the final official delegate.

3.       In addition to the three elected member official delegates highlighted above and Councillor Cashmore as a member of the Regional Sector Group, additional members’ attendance at the conference should be agreed by the Governing Body so total numbers are managed.

4.       Local Board members can attend the Conference. Attendance will be considered by each Local Board, with costs to be met from Local Board budgets. As in previous years, the expectation is that Boards will approve no more than one member to attend the Conference.

5.       The Independent Māori Statutory Board will be invited to send delegates as part of Council’s delegation, as happened in previous years.

6.       Attendees at previous conferences and AGM included the following:

           

2013 Attendees

2014 attendees

Mayor Brown
Deputy Mayor Hulse
Councillor Webster
Councillor Northey

Fifteen local board members

Two Independent Māori Statutory Board members

Deputy Mayor Hulse
Councillor Webster
Councillor Cooper
Councillor Filipaina

24 local board members

No Independent Māori Statutory Board members

           

7.       The cost of registration is $1,510 incl. GST with travel and accommodation costs additional.

8.       The theme of this year’s Conference is “Leading the charge for our Community”.


 

 

Recommendation/s

That the Governing Body:

a)      appoint the Mayor, Deputy Mayor, Councillor Penny Webster and the Chief Executive (or nominee) as its official delegates to attend the Local Government New Zealand Annual General Meeting on 19 July 2015, with the Mayor as the presiding delegate, and approve their attendance at the Local Government New Zealand conference.

b)      approve the attendance of further councillors at the Local Government New Zealand conference from 19 July 2015 to 21 July 2015.

 

 

 

Attachments

There are no attachments for this report.    

Signatories

Author

Claire Giraud – Councillor Support Advisor, Zone One Secretary

Authorisers

Marguerite Delbet - Manager Democracy Services

Grant Taylor - Governance Director

Stephen Town - Chief Executive

 


Governing Body

26 March 2015

 

 

Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Plan 2015-2016

 

File No.: CP2015/04119

 

  

 

 

Purpose

1.       To approve the total levy proposed in the Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Boards 2015-16 Funding Plan.

Executive Summary

2.       Following consideration of public submissions, the Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Board (the Funding Board) has submitted its 2015-16 Funding Plan to Auckland Council for consideration.

3.       The Funding Plan proposes a total levy of $15,148,400, an $837,400 (5.85%) increase from the 2014-15 levy.

4.       A like for like comparison with last year’s levy is difficult due to:

(i)         the proposed levy for 2015-16 includes a $1million increase in funding for the trial annualisation of the Auckland Arts Festival from 2016.

(ii)        the Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust (ARHT) chose not to make an application to the Funding Board for 2015-16.  ARHT received $450,000 in 2014-15.

(iii)       Stardome Observatory received a one-off $150,000 grant in 2014-15 to undertake a strategic review. 

5.       The Finance and Performance committee considered the draft funding plan in February, and approved the council’s submission to the Funding Board.

6.       Following consideration of the public submissions (including council’s), the Funding Board has proposed an additional allocation of $40,000 to Stardome.  This proposed additional allocation would be funded from the Funding Board’s retained income, and there would be no change to the levy that was proposed in the draft funding plan.

7.       The proposed additional funding is to help keep Stardome’s technology operational and up to date.  Stardome believes this is one of its most significant areas of risk, and the additional funding relates to a technology support agreement it has entered into to help mitigate this risk.    

8.       Under the Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Act 2008 (the Act), Auckland Council’s role is to approve or reject the total levy.  In making this decision, Auckland Council must have regard to the Act’s funding principles.

9.       Auckland Council does not make the decisions relating to the allocation of funding to the individual Amenities.  That is the role of the Funding Board, which is required under the Act to act independently of Auckland Council.

10.     If Auckland Council rejects the proposed levy, the matter must be referred to arbitration.  The arbitrator would determine the total levy, but not the allocations to the individual amenities.

11.     Council staff have reviewed the Funding Plan, and discussed the Funding Plan and the amenities funding applications with the Funding Board.  Following this review and the discussions, it is considered that the Funding Plan is consistent with the funding principles, and the proposed levy should be approved.


 

 

Recommendation/s

That the Governing Body:

a)      approve the 2015/2016 levy of $15,148,400, recommended by the Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Board.

 

 

Comments

12.     The following table sets out the timeline for the 2015-16 funding process:

2015-16 Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Process

23 September 2014

Amenities submit funding applications to the Funding Board.

19 January 2015

Funding Board publically notifies draft Funding Plan.

19 February 2015

Finance and Performance committee approves council submission on draft Funding Plan.

20 February 2015

Deadline for submissions on the draft Funding Plan.

3 March 2015

Funding Board’s submissions hearing. 

17 March 2015

Funding Board considers submissions, and makes any amendments it considers appropriate to the Draft Funding Plan. The Funding Board then submits the Funding Plan to Auckland Council for consideration.

26 March 2015

Auckland Council considers the Funding Plan, having regard to the funding principles, and either approves or rejects the proposed levy.

No later than 30 April 2015

If Auckland Council approves the levy, the Funding Board meets to deliberate on and adopt its Funding Plan and fix the levy.

If Auckland Council rejects the levy, the parties go to arbitration, and the levy will be fixed by the arbitrator.

1 July 2015

Auckland Council pays the levy to the Funding Board.

 

13.     On 19 February 2015, the Finance and Performance committee approved Council’s submission on the draft Funding Plan.  The key points of Council’s submission were:

·    to acknowledge the Funding Board and the amenities for their contribution towards making Auckland a vibrant, attractive, and safe place to live and visit

·    to acknowledge the Funding Board for proposing a modest increase in total funding for the Amenities

·    to note that the majority of amenities have received substantial increases in ratepayer funding since the Act came into force, and that this may indicate that some of the amenities are becoming increasingly reliant on this funding.  The submission asked the Funding Board to continue working with the amenities to ensure each amenity has a plan for achieving financial sustainability, and ideally a decreased reliance on ratepayer funding

·    to express concern at the level of funding the amenities have indicated they will apply for in future years.  The submission asks that the Funding Board discuss with the council any substantial increases in funding that are proposed by an amenity, particularly those that are the result of the proposed increases in levels of service, and/or capital developments.

14.     Following consideration of the public submissions, the Funding Board has finalised its 2015-16 Funding Plan.  The Funding Plan can be found at Attachment A.  The Funding Board is proposing to make the following grants to the amenities:

2015-2016 Proposed of Grants to Specified Amenities

Amenity

Grant Allocated by Funding Board 2014-15

Amenity Funding Application 2015-2016

Provisional Allocation of Grant 2015-16

Year on Year Change

%

Auckland Arts Festival

$2,305,000

$3,375,000

$3,305,000

$1,000,000

43.38

Auckland Philharmonia

$2,942,000

$3,344,000

$3,042,000

$100,000

3.40

Auckland Regional Rescue Helicopter

$450,000

0

0

-$450,000

 

Auckland Theatre Company

$1,415,000

$1,450,000

$1,450,000

$35,000

2.47

Coastguard Northern Region

$670,000

$683,400

$683,400

$13,400

2.00

New Zealand Opera

$800,000

$953,538

$875,000

$75,000

9.38

Stardome Observatory and Planetarium

$1,269,000

1,253,000

1,209,000*

-$60,000

-4.73

Surf Life Saving Northern Region

$1,200,000

$1,234,221

$1,234,000

$34,000

2.83

Voyager – New Zealand Maritime Museum

$1,975,000

$3,950,000

$2,025,000

$50,000

2.53

Watersafe Auckland

$970,000

$1,168,000

$1,050,000

$80,000

8.25

Total 

$13,996,000

$17,411,159

$14,873,400

$877,400

5.98

Funding Board Administration

$315,000

$315,000

$315,000

0.00

0.00

Portion of levy funded by Funding Board

 

 

$-40,000*

$-40,000*

 

Total Levy payable by Auckland Council

$14,311,000

$17,726,159

$15,148,400*

$837,400

5.85

*        The Funding Board is proposing to provide $40,000 more funding to Stardome than was indicated in the draft Funding Plan.  This would be funded from the Funding Board’s retained earnings, and would have no impact on the levy sought from Auckland Council in 2015-16.  There may be an impact on the levy in future years.

 

 

 

Stardome Observatory and Planetarium

15.     Following consideration of the public submissions (including council’s), the Funding Board has proposed an additional allocation of $40,000 to Stardome.  This proposed additional allocation would be funded from the Funding Boards retained earnings, and therefore there would be no change to the levy that was proposed in the draft funding plan for 2015-16. 

16.     Stardome has undertaken a strategic review.  One of the recommendations of the review was that Stardome should enter into an enhanced technology support agreement with its main technology supplier.

17.     Stardome believes that one of its most significant risks is technology, and the ongoing requirements to keep the planetarium technology operational and up to date.  Stardome are also of the view that technology is a key component of its operation, and is a critical success factor in attracting visitors. 

18.     As a result of the review’s recommendation, Stardome has entered into a six year enhanced technology support agreement at a cost of $40,000 per annum.  Stardome believe this agreement will help mitigate its most significant risk.

Roles and Responsibilities

19.     The Funding Board and Council have defined roles under the Act. The Funding Board must review the amenities’ funding applications, and make determinations on the level of funding for each of the specified amenities’ for the year.  When doing so, the Funding Board must have regard to the funding principles and other requirements of the Act.  The Funding Board must then make a recommendation to Council on the total amount of the levy for the year.

20.     Council’s role is confined to approving or rejecting the total levy amount, having regard to the funding principles.  Under the Act, Council does not have a role in decisions relating to how the funding provided to the Funding Board is allocated between the individual amenities.  Council can confer with the Funding Board on the draft Funding Plan, and also make submissions to the Funding Board as part of public consultation.

21.     The Act specifies that the Funding Board has been established as a body independent of Council. Council’s role is in the provision of annual funding, not in the decision-making of how the funds are allocated between the amenities.

22.     Should the council (having regard to the funding principles) decide to reject the proposed total levy, the dispute must be referred to an independent arbitrator. The Act does not allow for renegotiation of the proposed amounts, the matter must be referred to an arbitrator in the first instance.

Consideration of the Funding Plan against the funding principles

23.     The funding principles are attached in full at Attachment B.  The most relevant funding principles are as follows:

·      the primary purpose of the funding is to contribute to the expenses that the specified amenity must incur to provide its facilities or services

·      funding is not available for any part of facilities or services that the specified amenity provides outside of the Auckland region

·           funding is not available for capital expenditure

·      funding is available only if the specified amenity has made all reasonable endeavours to maximise their funding from other available funding sources.

24.     Council staff have reviewed the Funding Plan against the funding principles.  Council staff have also discussed the amenities’ funding applications and the Funding Plan with the Funding Board.

25.     Following this review, and the discussions with the Funding Board, it is considered that the Funding Plan is consistent with the funding principles.  It is therefore recommended that the proposed levy set out in the Funding Plan be approved by Auckland Council.

Consideration

Local Board views and implications

26.     Decision-making and oversight in respect of regional activities is the responsibility of the Governing Body.

Māori impact statement

27.     The amenities make positive contributions to Māori wellbeing.  The contribution varies for each amenity.  The amenities are involved in the provision of services in the following areas: safety, rescue, education, arts and culture.

28.     One of the Independent Māori Statutory Board’s “issues of significance” is that Council fails to fully recognise and respect the perspective of Māori when making decisions, as Māori are not adequately represented on council decision-making bodies.

29.     Whilst the Funding Board is not a council decision-making body, the Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Act requires that the Funding Board must have one member who represents the interests of Māori in the Auckland Region.  This ensures a Māori perspective in the decision-making of the Funding Board.  

Implementation

30.     There are no implementation issues associated with this report.

 

Attachments

No.

Title

Page

aView

2015-16 Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Plan

23

bView

Funding Principles

69

     

Signatories

Author

Alastair Cameron - Principal Advisor CCO Governance and External Partnerships

Authorisers

John Bishop - Treasurer  and Manager CCO Governance & External Partnerships

Kevin Ramsay - Chief Financial Officer

Stephen Town - Chief Executive

 


Governing Body

26 March 2015

 

 














































Governing Body

26 March 2015

 

 

Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Act – Funding Principles

 

The funding principles are embodied in s.21 of the Act.

 

These principles are to be considered by the Funding Board and Auckland Council when assessing the funding applications and approving the total levy.

 

These principles are summarised below:

 

a) the primary purpose of the funding is to contribute to the expenses that the specified amenity must incur to provide its facilities or services;

b) funding is not available for capital expenditure;

c) funding is not available for any part of facilities or services that the specified amenity provides outside the Auckland region;

d) funding is not available for facilities or services that at any time in the five years immediately before the date on which the Funding Board or the Auckland Council applies this paragraph have been provided funding by -
 

I. a crown entity as defined in section 7 (1) of the Crown Entities Act 2004

II. a department specified in Schedule 1 of the State Sector Act 1988;

 

e) the funding for the retention and preservation of a specified amenity’s library or collection takes priority over the amenity’s other expenses;

f) funding is available only if the specified amenity has made all reasonable endeavours to maximise its funding from all other available sources;

g) total funding for all specified amenities assessed for a financial year must not exceed the maximum total levy for that year under s.34;

h) Total funding for all specified amenities assessed for a financial year should have regard to Auckland Council’s proposed rates increases for the forthcoming year;

i) Funding is available only if the specified amenity has made all reasonable endeavours to align its activities (in the Auckland region, and for which it seeks funding) with the objectives of the Auckland Plan, including by adopting relevant performance measures.

 

Note: (h) and (i) above were introduced by Auckland Council on 25 November 2012.