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This Act may be cited as the Local Government Act 2019.
This Act commences on the day fixed by the Administrator by Gazette notice.
This Act binds the Crown in right of the Territory and, to the extent the legislative power of the Legislative Assembly permits, the Crown in all its other capacities.
The underlying principles of this Act are as follows:
(a) local government is a distinct and essential sphere of government;
the system of local government:
(i) needs to be flexible and adaptable to the diverse interests and needs of the many communities within the Territory; and
(ii) needs to be comprehensive, democratic, responsive to community needs and accountable both to local communities and the public generally.
(2) Anyone exercising a power or performing a function under this Act must, as far as practicable, uphold the principles.
(3) However, the principles do not affect the operation of any law in force in the Territory.
The rights and interests of Aboriginal traditional owners, as set out in the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976
(Cth) and the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth), are to be recognised and the delivery of local government services must be in harmony with those Acts.
This Act provides for the following:
the establishment of a democratic and effective system of local government that recognises the diversity of communities in the
Territory;
the conferral of wide powers on councils to act for the advancement, and in the best interests, of their local communities;
the enabling of councils to play a broad role in promoting the social, economic, environmental, and cultural well-being of their local communities;
the imposition of high standards of ethical conduct on council members;
the requirement on councils of high standards of governance, service delivery, asset management and financial accountability;
the requirement on councils to promote and assist constructive participation by their local communities in achieving effective local government for their areas.
A person is an associate of another person if:
they are in a close family relationship; or
they are in partnership; or
(c) one is a company and the other is a director or manager of the company; or
they are related companies; or
(e) one is a private company and the other is a shareholder in the company; or
(f) a chain of relationships can be traced between them under one or more of the above paragraphs.
The prescribed corporation is the corporate entity prescribed by regulation.
A relevant interest rate is a rate of interest:
prescribed by regulation; or
(b) if the rate of interest is not prescribed by regulation – fixed by the council.
(1) If this Act requires public notice to be given of information relating to an election, the returning officer for the election:
may publish the information in any way the returning officer considers appropriate; and
must direct the relevant council to make that information available on the council's website in accordance with section 292.
The council must comply with the direction under subsection (1)(b).
If under this Act a specified period after the giving of public notice of information relating to an election is required or allowed for a matter, the period starts on the date the information is published on the council's website.
If this Act provides for a council to adopt a policy about a particular matter, the policy must be consistent with the council's code of conduct.
Part IIAA of the Criminal Code applies to an offence against this
Act.
Note for section 13
Part
IIAA of the Criminal Code states the general principles of criminal responsibility, establishes general defences, and deals with burden of proof. It also defines, or elaborates on, certain concepts commonly used in the creation of offences.