The NSW Government has committed to ensuring a planning system that is straightforward and ensures high-quality decisions and planning outcomes.
A number of amendment proposals to improve the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (the EP&A Act) have been developed, including:
- Enhancing community participation: establishing a new part of the Act that consolidates community consultation provisions, and requiring decision-makers to give reasons for their decisions.
- Completing the strategic planning framework: through local strategic planning statements, up to date Local Environment Plans and more consistent and workable Development Control Plans (DCP).
- Development pathways: improvements to the various development pathways and preventing the misuse of modifications.
- State significant development: through better environmental impact assessment and more effective conditions of consent.
- Clearer building provisions: simplified and consolidated building provisions, allowing conditions on construction certificates and ensuring consistency with development approvals.
- elevating the role of design: through a new design object in the act, and a Design-Led Planning Strategy
- Improving enforcement: with the introduction of enforceable undertakings in compliance actions.
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