Emergency Management Bill
The Emergency Management Bill is a proposed new law that would replace the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002. If enacted, the Bill would change how emergency management is organised and delivered across New Zealand, including the roles of central government, regional groups, local councils, iwi, community organisations, and infrastructure providers.
The Bill is currently progressing through Parliament and, if passed, will introduce a new legislative framework for emergency preparedness, response, and recovery.
Key proposals
Revised roles and responsibilities
The Bill sets out a revised structure for how emergency management responsibilities are shared across the system. It defines the expected roles of central government agencies, regional emergency management arrangements, and local councils, with the intention of reducing uncertainty during emergency events.
For councils, this includes clearer expectations about decision‑making authority, coordination responsibilities, and how local responses interface with regional and national arrangements. The Bill also introduces stronger accountability mechanisms across agencies involved in emergency management.
Updated emergency management planning requirements
The Bill introduces changes to how emergency management planning is prepared, approved, and maintained. This includes new requirements for national, regional, and local emergency management plans to align with the updated legislative framework and prescribed standards.
Councils would be required to ensure local plans are kept current, coordinated with other agencies, and consistent with national direction. Planning obligations under the Bill are broader than current requirements and would place greater emphasis on readiness, recovery planning, and continuous improvement.
Updated emergency powers and tools
The Bill revises and clarifies the powers available during emergencies. This includes powers related to directing activities, accessing property, coordinating agencies, and managing responses during declared emergency events.
The updated powers are intended to apply more consistently across different types of emergencies and provide clearer legal authority for actions taken during response and recovery phases.
Provisions relating to essential services and infrastructure
The Bill includes measures relating to the operation and protection of essential services during emergencies, such as water supply, wastewater, transport, electricity, and telecommunications.
The framework places greater emphasis on coordination between emergency management organisations and infrastructure providers to ensure continuity of services during and after emergency events.
System oversight and performance monitoring
The Bill enables increased monitoring and oversight of how emergency management functions are delivered across the system. This includes mechanisms for reviewing performance, identifying gaps, and driving improvements over time.
For councils, this is expected to introduce additional reporting and assurance activities linked to emergency management responsibilities.
Council's submission
Council is broadly supportive of the proposal but has made a joint submission alongside 11 members of the Canterbury Mayoral Forum, recommending refinements. We believe that while the bill’s intent is admirable, it fails to deliver the level of transformation required. The bill makes incremental enhancements but does not address long-term disaster resilience or establish structured frameworks for recovery.
Key recommendations
Improve clarity of roles and accountability across the system
While the Bill aims to clarify roles, the submission identifies multiple areas where responsibilities, powers, and hierarchies remain inconsistent or unclear—particularly between national, regional, and local roles, and between controllers at different levels.
This lack of clarity creates operational risk during emergencies. It should be amended to clearly and consistently define roles, powers, and accountabilities across all emergency management functions, using consistent terminology throughout the legislation.
Clarify essential infrastructure and services
While the Bill improves recognition of essential infrastructure, the submission identifies gaps in how essential services and providers are defined and included. The definition of essential infrastructure and services should be expanded to reflect real‑world dependencies, including flood protection, telemetry systems, waste services, fuel supply, finance, and critical digital services.
Ensure national guidance supports implementation
Many new requirements in the Bill rely on future rules, standards, and guidance that have not yet been developed. In several areas, the Bill proposes commencement before guidance will be available.
Key provisions should not come into force until supporting national guidance, standards, and implementation tools are available, and councils have had time to plan and budget accordingly.
Address undeclared and pre‑emergency situations
The submission identifies a gap between business‑as‑usual activities and formally declared emergencies. Many urgent actions occur before a declaration is made, without clear legal protection or mandate.
The Bill must provide a clearer statutory framework for undeclared and pre‑declaration emergency situations, including appropriate powers and protections for those acting to protect life and safety.
Strengthen local controllers' authority
The joint submission recommends that District Controllers be given clearer powers to direct the use of resources during local emergencies, rather than being limited to a coordination role. Many emergency events are localised and time‑critical and requiring all direction to sit at regional level can delay response and create unnecessary operational complexity.
The recommendation supports retaining regional oversight, while ensuring District Controllers have sufficient authority to act quickly and effectively within their districts. It also emphasises the importance of maintaining clear accountability, with District Controllers remaining responsible for powers they delegate to others.
Increased responsibility should come with increased funding
The Bill follows a pattern by the Government when it comes to local government. More responsibility with less power and less money. Government officials have identified initial costs of $82.8 million to councils with ongoing costs thereafter; with ratepayers left footing the bill.
Councils are already under pressure to prepare for and implement several major reform programmes. Without Government funding and rates capping, the bill’s outcomes are not achievable.
Any increase in statutory responsibilities for councils must be accompanied by realistic funding, investment mechanisms, and implementation support.
