Consultation on Water Services Authority – Taumata Arowai levy for councils and CCOs

Overview

The Water Services Authority – Taumata Arowai (the Authority) and the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE) are consulting on proposed levies for councils and their council-controlled organisations (CCOs) to fund water services quality regulation, and economic regulation. 

It is proposed that councils and CCOs that deliver water services will fund the levy. For the first levy period (expected to be three years), it is intended the levies will be limited to drinking water suppliers and network operators that are local authorities or CCOs.

This is part of Local Water Done Well, the Government’s plan for financially sustainable, locally delivered water infrastructure and services. On behalf of the Minister of Local Government, the Authority is consulting on a proposed levy or levies under section 201 of the Water Services Act 2021. 

In accordance with the Water Services Act, consultation is targeted to councils and their CCOs that provide water services. The proposed levies would help fund the cost of operating the Authority. 

Why is a levy being introduced now?  
In its establishment phase, the Authority has been funded by the Crown with the intention that levies will be introduced to cover the cost of some or all of the Authority’s activities. 

The Water Services Act 2021 includes provisions for levies. 

The next four years will be a time of significant change for local government and CCOs, as the Government works with councils to deliver Local Water Done Well.  

The Authority plays a critical role in Local Water Done Well by regulating drinking water suppliers to ensure they meet drinking water quality standards and providing oversight of the environmental performance of water services networks.  

The Government has proposed that a levy or levies will be in place by 1 July 2025. We are considering what levies might look like to fund our operation, including the proposed changes in upcoming legislation to implement the new water service delivery models and other enduring settings for Local Water Done Well. 

What can I expect from the consultation? 
To inform the final levy arrangements, we welcome feedback from affected councils and CCOs on levy options, and how levy administration might best be implemented and structured. 

Our online survey includes questions you may like to respond to in your submission. Where possible, please include evidence to support your views, for example, references to facts and figures, or relevant examples. 

If you start responding to this consultation and want to return to it later, select the 'Save and come back later' option at the bottom of the page to save your progress.    

Discussion document 
We have developed a discussion document, which includes sections on: 

1. Levy structure 
2. Levy design 
3. Levy apportionment 
4. Levy implementation 

Responding to your feedback to make collating feedback across organisations easier  
We’ve had feedback that it would be helpful for submitters to have the option of printing or downloading a document with all of the consultation questions. This would make it easier to review the consultation content in its entirety, and collate feedback from across their organisation, before submitting it through the online survey.   

Accordingly, Appendix 1 in the discussion document contains a full list of consultation questions. 

However, we request that you use the online survey to provide us with your feedback. This makes it quicker and easier for us to analyse all feedback and provide you with consultation results sooner. 

This consultation closes at 5pm on Friday 24 January 2025.   

We ask that you provide all feedback via the online survey. Free text boxes are provided for any individual comments you want to provide.   

You can make a submission via:  

• our online survey 
• sending your responses to kōrero@taumataarowai.govt.nz or mailed to Level 2, 10 Brandon Street, PO Box 628, Wellington 6140, New Zealand.  

Useful links

These documents contain useful background information to help you with your submission: 

• Water services regulators’ levy consultations factsheet
• Questions and answers
• Cabinet paper
• Proposed levy interim cost recovery impact statement

Webinar recording
View a recording of a joint webinar, held on 9 December, talking through the consultations for both the Authority's and MBIE's consultations and answering questions from the audience.

What happens next?
Following consultation and analysis of feedback, a final levy proposal will be developed for consideration by the Minister of Local Government, and we anticipate regulations for a levy will come into force on 1 July 2025. 

Questions?   
If you have questions about this consultation, please email us at  kōrero@taumataarowai.govt.nz  

You can also find information on MBIE’s consultation on their ‘Have your say’ page.