New Zealand 1852 Constitution (reviewed 2014)

Part 9. Miscellaneous provisions

263. Service of notices

1. Any notice under this Act may be served on any person by delivering it to that person, and may be delivered to that person either personally or by leaving it at his or her place of residence as stated on the roll or by posting it by registered letter addressed to him or her at that place of residence.
2. A notice so posted shall be deemed to have been served at the time when the registered letter would in the ordinary course of post be delivered.
3. Where any notice is sent by registered letter addressed to any person at his or her place of residence as stated on the roll, with a special request that the letter be returned to the sender at the expiration of 15 days if the person to whom the letter is addressed cannot be found, the return of the letter by a person registered as a postal operator under the Postal Services Act 1998 must be treated as sufficient proof that the person has quitted that place of residence.
4. Registered letter includes any service that—
   1. provides a system of recorded delivery; and
   2. is similar in nature to a registered post service provided by a person registered as a postal operator under the Postal Services Act 1998.

263A. Disclosure of immigration information for matching purposes

1. In this section,—
   • immigration information, in relation to any person, means—
     
     responsible department means the department of State that is, with the authority of the Prime Minister, responsible for the administration of the Immigration Act 2009.

2. The purpose of this section is to facilitate the disclosure of information from the responsible department to the Electoral Commission for the purposes of—
   1. verifying, for the purposes of this Act, that any person who is, or has applied to be, registered as an elector of an electoral district is qualified to be registered as an elector of that electoral district:
   2. verifying that a person who is, or has applied to be, registered as an elector is a person who the chief executive of the responsible department believes to be either—
      1. a person who is unlawfully in New Zealand; or
      2. a person who is lawfully in New Zealand but only by virtue of being the holder of a temporary entry class visa of whatever type.
3. For the purposes of this section, any officer or employee or agent of the responsible department authorised in that behalf by the chief executive of that department may, at the request of the Electoral Commission, supply to the Electoral Commission any immigration information held by that department.
4. If, in relation to any person, immigration information is supplied to the Electoral Commission pursuant to subsection (3), the Electoral Commission may cause a comparison of that information to be made with any information that is held by the Electoral Commission and that relates to that person.
5. If the result of a comparison carried out pursuant to subsection (4) indicates that any person who has applied to be (but is not yet) registered as an elector, or who is on the electoral roll, is—
   1. a person who the chief executive of the responsible department believes is unlawfully in New Zealand; or
   2. a person who is lawfully in New Zealand but only by virtue of being the holder of a temporary entry class visa of whatever type,— the Electoral Commission must advise the Registrar of the electoral district in which that person is, or has applied to be, registered as an elector accordingly.
6. After receiving advice from the Electoral Commission under subsection (5) that, in relation to any person, either of the circumstances referred to in subsection (5) applies, the Registrar must,—
   1. if the person has applied to be (but is not yet) registered as an elector for the district, follow the procedure specified in section 87; or
   2. if the person is registered as an elector for the district and the name of the person is on the roll for the district, object under section 96 to the name of that person being on the roll for the district.

263B. Disclosure of personal information for enrolment purposes

1. The purpose of this section is to facilitate the disclosure of information described in subsection (2) by a specified agency to the Electoral Commission only for the purposes of—
   1. identifying persons who are qualified to apply to register as an elector but who have not yet registered; and
   2. encouraging those persons identified to register as an elector; and
   3. updating and ensuring the accuracy of the particulars of persons whose names are on the roll.
2. The information referred to in subsection (1) is the following information relating to any person of or over the age of 17 years:
   1. the person’s full name:
   2. the person’s date of birth:
   3. the person’s address of residence (if known):
   4. the person’s postal address (if known and if different from the address of residence in paragraph (c)):
   5. the person’s preferred honorific (if known):
   6. the date at which the information in paragraphs (a) to (e) held by the agency was last provided to the agency.
3. For the purposes of this section, a specified agency means—
   1. the department for the time being responsible for the administration of the Social Security Act 1964; and
   2. the Registrar of Motor Vehicles; and
   3. the New Zealand Transport Agency; and
   4. the Department of Internal Affairs.
4. For the purposes of this section, any officer or employee or agent of a specified agency, authorised by the chief executive of that agency, may from time to time, at the request of the Electoral Commission, supply to the Electoral Commission any of the information described in subsection (2) held by that agency,—
   1. in the case of the department for the time being responsible for the administration of the Social Security Act 1964, in relation to any—
      1. beneficiary; or
      2. student; or
      3. borrower (as that term is defined in section 4(1) of the Student Loan Scheme Act 2011):
   2. in the case of the Registrar of Motor Vehicles, in relation to motor vehicle registration:
   3. in the case of the New Zealand Transport Agency, in relation to driver licences:
   4. in the case of the Department of Internal Affairs, in relation to any persons—
      1. who obtain New Zealand citizenship under the Citizenship Act 1977; or
      2. by whom, or on whose behalf, an application is made under the Passports Act 1992 for the issue or renewal of a New Zealand passport.
5. If, in relation to any person, information is supplied to the Electoral Commission under subsection (4), the Electoral Commission may cause a comparison of that information to be made with any information that is held by the Electoral Commission and that relates to that person.
6. In this section, Registrar of Motor Vehicles has the same meaning as Registrar in section 233(1) of the Land Transport Act 1998.

264. Review by select committee

1. The House of Representatives shall, as soon as practicable after 1 April 2000, appoint a select committee to consider the following matters:
   1. the effect of sections 35 and 36 on the operation of the electoral system:
   2. the provisions of this Act dealing with Maori representation:
   3. whether there should be a further referendum on changes to the electoral system.
2. The select committee appointed under subsection (1) shall report to the House of Representatives before 1 June 2002 and shall include in its report a statement indicating—
   1. whether, in its view, there should be changes to sections 35 and 36; and
   2. whether, in its view, there should be changes to the provisions of this Act dealing with Maori representation; and
   3. whether in its view there should be a further referendum on changes to the electoral system, and, if so, the nature of the proposals to be put to voters and the timing of such a referendum.

265. Registrars of Electors exempt from court fees

Registrars of Electors shall be exempt from the payment of any court fees in respect of any proceedings under this Act.

266. Validation of irregularities

Where anything is omitted to be done or cannot be done at the time required by or under this Act, or is done before or after that time, or is otherwise irregularly done in matter of form, or sufficient provision is not made by or under this Act, the Governor-General may, by Order in Council published in the Gazette, at any time before or after the time within which the thing is required to be done, extend that time, or validate anything so done before or after the time required or so irregularly done in matter of form, or make other provision for the case as he or she thinks fit:

provided that this section shall not apply with respect to the presentation of an election petition or to the giving of security for costs in relation to an election petition.

266A. Expenditure limits to be adjusted each year by Order in Council

1. The Governor-General must, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister, in the manner provided in subsections (2) to (6), adjust the amounts specified in the following provisions:
   1. section 204B(1)(d) (which relates to the maximum amount of advertising expenses that may be incurred by an unregistered promoter):
   2. section 205C (which relates to the maximum amount of a candidate’s election expenses):
   3. section 206C (which relates to the maximum amount of a party’s election expenses):
   4. section 206V (which relates to the maximum amount of a registered promoter’s election expenses).
2. The first Order in Council must—
   1. come into force on 1 July 2011; and
   2. adjust the amount referred to in section 206C(1)(a) to reflect the movement between the CPI for the quarter ending 30 September 2010 and the CPI for the quarter ending 31 March 2011.
3. Every subsequent Order in Council must—
   1. come into force on every following 1 July; and
   2. adjust the amounts referred to in subsection (1) to reflect the movement between the CPI for the quarter ending 31 March of the previous year and the CPI for the quarter ending 31 March of the current year.
4. If after adjustment in accordance with subsection (3)(b) any of the amounts specified in the following sections is not a whole number of hundred dollars, the adjusted amount must be rounded up to the next whole hundred dollars:
   1. section 204B(1)(d):
   2. section 205C(1)(a) and (b):
   3. section 206C(1)(b) and (2).
5. If after adjustment in accordance with subsection (2)(b) or (3)(b) the amount specified in section 206C(1)(a) or 206V is not a whole number of thousand dollars, the adjusted amount must be rounded up to the next whole thousand dollars.
6. If an adjusted amount has been rounded up in accordance with subsection (4) or (5), the adjustment to that amount made the following year must be based on the adjusted amount as it was before it was rounded up.
7. If in any year a regulated period for a general election or a by-election commences before 1 July and ends on or after that date,—
   1. the adjustments to the amounts referred to in subsection (1) made by the Order in Council that commences on 1 July of that year do not apply in respect of that election or by-election; and
   2. the adjustments to the amounts referred to in subsection (1) made by the Order in Council of the previous year apply to that election or by-election.
8. In this section CPI means the Consumers Price Index All Groups published by Statistics New Zealand.

267. Regulations

The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council, make regulations for all or any of the following purposes:

1. prescribing forms for the purposes of this Act:
2. prescribing fees, or a scale of fees, for the supply of computer-compiled lists and electronic storage media by the Electoral Commission to any person under section 114, and for the giving of remote access by electronic means under that section:
3. prescribing criteria, in addition to those specified in section 111E(3)(a) to (d), of which the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Maori Affairs must be satisfied in relation to a particular person or body of persons before designating it under section 111E:
4. defining iwi organisation and other Maori organisation for the purposes of sections 111A to 111F:
5. prescribing the time at which, and the manner in which, special voters may vote (whether at a polling place or not and whether in or outside New Zealand):
6. prescribing conditions upon or subject to which special voters may vote:
7. prescribing different methods of voting for different classes of special voters:
8. prescribing offences in respect of the contravention of or non-compliance with any regulations made under this Act:
9. prescribing penalties for offences against regulations made under this Act, not exceeding imprisonment for a term of 3 months or a fine of $1,000 or both:
10. providing for such other matters as are contemplated by or necessary for giving full effect to the provisions of this Act and for its due administration.

267A. Regulations relating to advertisement of a specified kind

1. The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister, make regulations regulating—
   1. all or any of the following matters in relation to an advertisement of a specified kind:
      1. design:
      2. layout:
      3. shape:
      4. colour:
   2. the procedures to be followed by any person before displaying an advertisement of a specified kind.
2. Regulations made under subsection (1)(a)—
   1. may be made only for the purpose of ensuring that an advertisement of a specified kind does not endanger the safety of road users; and
   2. apply only during the period beginning 2 months before polling day and ending with the close of the day before polling day.
3. Regulations made under subsection (1) may—
   1. impose different requirements for an advertisement of a specified kind depending on how it is published:
   2. override or modify any other enactment and any bylaw or other instrument.
4. In this section, advertisement of a specified kind has the same meaning as in section 221B(2).
5. This section is subject to section 267B.

267B. Requirements before Minister can recommend that regulations be made

1. The Minister may not recommend the making of any regulations under section 267A(1)(a) unless—
   1. the Minister has consulted with the Minister who is for the time being responsible for the administration of the Land Transport Act 1998; and
   2. the Minister is satisfied that the regulations do not restrict the rights of candidates and political parties any more than is reasonably necessary to ensure that an advertisement of a specified kind does not endanger the safety of road users; and
   3. the recommendation is agreed by at least half of the parliamentary leaders of all political parties represented in Parliament; and
   4. the members of Parliament of the political parties whose parliamentary leaders agree with the Minister’s recommendation comprise at least 75% of all members of Parliament.
2. The Minister may not recommend the making of any regulations under section 267A(1)(b) unless—
   1. the Minister has consulted with the Minister of Local Government; and
   2. the recommendation is agreed by at least half of the parliamentary leaders of all political parties represented in Parliament; and
   3. the members of Parliament of the political parties whose parliamentary leaders agree with the Minister’s recommendation comprise at least 75% of all members of Parliament.

268. Restriction on amendment or repeal of certain provisions

1. This section applies to the following provisions (hereinafter referred to as reserved provisions), namely,—
   1. section 17(1) of the Constitution Act 1986, relating to the term of Parliament:
   2. section 28, relating to the Representation Commission:
   3. section 35, and the definition of the term General electoral population in section 3(1), relating to the division of New Zealand into electoral districts after each census:
   4. section 36, relating to the allowance for the adjustment of the quota:
   5. section 74, and the definition of the term adult in section 3(1), and section 60(f), so far as those provisions prescribe 18 years as the minimum age for persons qualified to be registered as electors or to vote:
   6. section 168, relating to the method of voting.
2. No reserved provision shall be repealed or amended unless the proposal for the amendment or repeal—
   1. is passed by a majority of 75% of all the members of the House of Representatives; or
   2. has been carried by a majority of the valid votes cast at a poll of the electors of the General and Maori electoral districts:

   provided that this section shall not apply to the repeal of any reserved provision by a consolidating Act in which that provision is re-enacted without amendment and this section is re-enacted without amendment so as to apply to that provision as re-enacted.

Subpart 1. Transitional provisions

269. Membership of Representation Commission

1. Every person who held office as a member of the Representation Commission under section 15(2)(e) or section 15(2)(f) or section 15(3)(b) of the Electoral Act 1956 immediately before the commencement of this section shall be deemed to have been appointed as a member of the Commission under section 28(2)(e) or section 28(2)(f) or section 28(3)(b) of this Act, as the case may require.
2. For the purpose of enabling the Representation Commission to divide New Zealand into electoral districts on the first occasion after this Act is passed, the Minister shall, as soon as is practicable after the commencement of this section, specify a period of 2 months during which any Maori may exercise the option given by section 76.
3. Following the report of the Electoral Commission under section 77(6), the Government Statistician shall prepare a report on the General electoral population and the Maori electoral population in accordance with the provisions of this Act, based on the results of the periodical census conducted in the year 1991, and the report of the Electoral Commission made pursuant to section 77(6), and shall report the results of the census and his or her calculation of the electoral populations to the Surveyor-General and to the other members of the Commission.
4. Upon the receipt of that report, the Surveyor-General shall prepare maps showing the distribution of the population and provisional boundaries for the General electoral districts and the Maori electoral districts and shall then call a meeting of the Commission.
5. The report so made by the Government Statistician, and the maps so prepared by the Surveyor-General, shall be sufficient evidence as to the General electoral population and the Maori electoral population of New Zealand or of the North Island or of the South Island or of any district.
6. In relation to the first occasion on which, after the commencement of this section, New Zealand is, under this Act, divided into electoral districts, section 35(3)(f)(i) shall not apply.

270. Electoral districts, electoral rolls, general elections, and by-elections

1. Every General electoral district and every Maori electoral district in existence under the Electoral Act 1956 immediately before the commencement of this section shall remain in existence until such districts are replaced by new electoral districts in accordance with the provisions of sections 40 and 45.
2. Every electoral roll in force under the Electoral Act 1956 immediately before the commencement of this section shall continue in force until replaced by new electoral rolls in accordance with the provisions of sections 101 to 103.
3. For the purposes of any general election of members of Parliament conducted following a dissolution of Parliament that takes place before the gazetting of the notice required by section 40(1)(b) or section 45(9)(b) on the first occasion when the gazetting of such a notice is required to take place under the provisions of this Act, that general election shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of the Electoral Act 1956, notwithstanding its repeal by the provisions of this Act.
4. For the purposes of any by-election that takes place before the first general election that is conducted in accordance with the provisions of this Act, the electoral district in respect of which that election is conducted shall be the relevant electoral district that was in existence immediately before the commencement of this section, and the provisions of this Act, including subsections (2) to (4) of section 102, shall apply accordingly and with any necessary modifications, in respect of the conduct of that election.
5. Any person who immediately before the commencement of this section held the position of—
   1. Clerk of the Writs; or
   2. Deputy Clerk of the Writs; or
   3. Chief Electoral Officer; or
   4. Deputy Chief Electoral Officer; or
   5. Returning Officer; or
   6. Deputy Chief Registrar of Electors; or
   7. Registrar of Electors—

   shall, without further appointment, be deemed, as from the commencement of this section, to have been duly appointed under this Act.

Subpart 2. Amendment to Constitution Act 1986

271. Term of Parliament

Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s).

Subpart 3. Amendment to Civil List Act 1979

272. Questioned elections of members of Parliament

Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s).

Subpart 4. Amendment to Remuneration Authority Act 1977

273. Officers whose remuneration is to be determined by Remuneration Authority

Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s).

Subpart 5. Amendments to Local Elections and Polls Act 1976

[Repealed]

274. Residential electoral roll

[Repealed]

275. Supply of information by Chief Registrar of Electors

[Repealed]

276. Application for registration as parliamentary elector

[Repealed]

277. Completion of roll

[Repealed]

278. Amendments to roll

[Repealed]

279. Roll for by-election or poll

[Repealed]

280. Special voters

[Repealed]

281. Election to fill extraordinary vacancy in local authority

[Repealed]

Subpart 6. Amendment to Ombudsmen Act 1975

[Repealed]

282. Organisations to which Ombudsmen Act 1975 applies

[Repealed]

Subpart 7. Amendments to Public Finance Act 1989

[Repealed]

283. Crown entities

[Repealed]

Subpart 8. Repeals

284. Repeals

The enactments specified in Schedule 3 are hereby repealed.

Schedules 1-3

[Schedules omitted due to length – full text available at http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1993/0087/latest/whole.html?search=ts_act%40bill%40regulation%40deemedreg_electoral+act_resel_25_a&p=1#DLM307519]

Amendment Act 1. Electoral Amendment Act 2009

1. Title

This Act is the Electoral Amendment Act 2009.

2. Commencement

This Act comes into force on 1 March 2009.

3. Principal Act amended

This Act amends the Electoral Act 1993.