OBERON Council will soon be going into a caretaker period as the local government elections loom.
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Oberon was to have gone to an election last year, but it was delayed as a forced NSW Government merger between Oberon and Bathurst was still up in the air.
With that forced merger now no longer being pursued by the NSW Government after a dramatic about-turn early this year, Oberon will be one of a number of councils, including Bathurst, to go to an election on September 9.
At Oberon Council's ordinary meeting last week, a recommendation was carried for council to go into a caretaker period from Friday, August 11.
The Local Government (General) Regulation says that council, the general manager or any other delegate of the council (other than a Joint Regional Planning Panel or the Central Sydney Planning Committee) must not exercise the following functions during the four weeks preceding an ordinary election (caretaker period):
- Entering a contract or undertaking involving the expenditure or receipt by the council of an amount equal to or greater than $150,000 or 1% of the council’s revenue from rates in the preceding financial year (whichever is the larger),
- Determining a controversial development application, except where: a failure to make such a determination would give rise to a deemed refusal under section 82 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, or such a deemed refusal arose before the commencement of the caretaker period,
- The appointment or reappointment of a person as the council’s general manager (or the removal of a person from that position), other than: an appointment of a person to act as general manager under section 336 (1) of the Act, or a temporary appointment of a person as general manager under section 351 (1) of the Act.
A controversial development application means a development application under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 for which at least 25 persons have made submissions by way of objection.