Tauranga residents have until mid-February to have their say on the Government's new Three Waters Reform bills.

Tauranga City Council is advising residents that time is of the essence for anyone keen to share their feedback on the latest chapter in the Government's Three Waters Reform process.

Three Waters is a government-led initiative to merge and standardise water services nationwide.

Before its summer break, the Government released two new legislative bills, the Water Services Legislation Bill and Water Services Economic Efficiency and Consumer Protection Bill.

Submissions open

The two bills are open for submissions from councils and the wider public until mid-February.

Individuals have until February 12, 2023, to make a submission, with council submissions closing February 17, 2023.

Due to a short submission window and breadth of the legislation, TCC has joined forces with 21 other councils in the Entity B area to enlist the aid of Simpson Grierson, a legal firm specialising in public policy analysis.

Thorough review

The firm will assist TCC and the other councils to conduct a thorough review of the bills. This will allow TCC to submit an accurate and impactful response within the Government's timeframe.

According to TCC, the limited timeframe to submit responses also means the council is unable to incorporate community feedback into its formal council submission.

Instead, TCC encourages people submit their feedback on the two bills via the submission portals. To make individual submissions follow the submission prompts on New Zealand Parliament's webpages for the Water Services Legislation Bill and the Water Services Economic Efficiency and Consumer Protection Bill. Or see: www.parliament.nz/en/pb/sc/make-a-submission

Transfer of water services from councils to the new entities is scheduled to happen July 1, 2024.

Tauranga's water services will transfer to Water Services Entity B, along with 21 other councils.