The purpose of this Act is to—

• (a) facilitate the response to the Canterbury earthquake:

• (b) provide adequate statutory power to assist with the response to the Canterbury earthquake:

• (c) enable the relaxation or suspension of provisions in enactments that—

  • (i) may divert resources away from the effort to—

    • (A) efficiently respond to the damage caused by the Canterbury earthquake:

    • (B) minimise further damage; or

  • (ii) may not be reasonably capable of being complied with, or complied with fully, owing to the circumstances resulting from the Canterbury earthquake:

• (d) facilitate the gathering of information about any structure or any infrastructure affected by the Canterbury earthquake that is relevant to understanding how to minimise the damage caused by future earthquakes:

• (e) provide protection from liability for certain acts or omissions.

(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

(2) For the purposes of this Act, the Minister responsible for the administration of an enactment that is or forms part of subordinate legislation is the Minister responsible for the administration of the enactment under whose authority the legislation was made.

This Act binds the Crown.

(1) The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the relevant Minister, make any provision reasonably necessary or expedient for the purpose of this Act.

(2) In making a recommendation under subsection (1), the relevant Minister must—

• (a) take into account the purpose of this Act; and

• (b) consult the recovery commission (if any) if practicable; and

• (c) have regard to the recommendations of the recovery commission (if any).

(3) The recommendation of the relevant Minister may not be challenged, reviewed, quashed, or called into question in any court.

(4) An Order in Council made under subsection (1) may grant an exemption from, or modify, or extend any provision of any enactment, including (but not limited to)—

• (a) the Building Act 2004:

• (b) the Cadastral Survey Act 2002:

• (c) the Commerce Act 1986:

• (d) the Earthquake Commission Act 1993:

• (e) the Health Act 1956:

• (f) the Health and Disability Services (Safety) Act 2001:

• (g) the Historic Places Act 1993:

• (h) the Land Transport Act 1998:

• (i) the Land Transport Management Act 2003:

• (j) the Local Government Act 1974:

• (k) the Local Government Act 2002:

• (l) the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987:

• (m) the Local Government (Rating) Act 2002:

• (n) the Public Works Act 1981:

• (o) the Rating Valuations Act 1998:

• (p) the Reserves Act 1977:

• (q) the Resource Management Act 1991:

• (r) the Road User Charges Act 1977:

• (s) the Social Security Act 1964:

• (t) the Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Act 1941:

• (u) the Transport Act 1962:

• (v) the Waste Minimisation Act 2008.

(5) An exemption from, or modification of, or extension of a provision—

• (a) may be absolute or subject to conditions; and

• (b) may be made—

  • (i) by stating alternative means of complying with the provision; or

  • (ii) by substituting a discretionary power for the provision.

(6) Despite subsections (1) and (4), an Order in Council made under this section may not make or authorise—

• (a) an exemption from or a modification of a requirement to—

  • (i) release a person from custody or detention; or

  • (ii) have any person’s detention reviewed by a court, Judge, or Registrar; or

• (b) an exemption from or a modification of a restriction on keeping a person in custody or detention; or

• (c) an exemption from or a modification of a requirement or restriction imposed by the Bill of Rights 1688, the Constitution Act 1986, the Electoral Act 1993, the Judicature Amendment Act 1972, or the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990; or

• (d) an amendment to this section, or section 7, 17, or 21.

(7) Subsections (4) and (5) do not limit subsection (1).

(1) While it remains in force, every Order in Council made under section 6 has the force of law as if it were enacted as a provision of this Act.

(2) An Order in Council made under section 6 must provide that it comes into force on a date specified in the Order in Council and that date may be before or on or after the date on which it is made, but not earlier than 4 September 2010.

(3) An Order in Council made under section 6 expires on a date appointed in the Order in Council, being a date not later than 1 April 2012, and different dates may be appointed for the expiry of different provisions.

(4) An Order in Council made under section 6 may be retrospective only to the extent provided for in subsection (2).

(5) No Order in Council made under section 6 may be held invalid because—

• (a) it is, or authorises any act or omission that is, repugnant to or inconsistent with any other Act; or

• (b) it confers any discretion on, or allows any matter to be determined or approved by, any person.

(6) Subsection (5) is subject to section 6(6).

Despite section 7(1), the Regulations (Disallowance) Act 1989 applies to an Order in Council made under section 6.

A recovery commission to be called the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Commission is established, and consists of the following 7 commissioners:

• (a) the mayor of the Christchurch City Council; and

• (b) the mayor of the Selwyn District Council; and

• (c) the mayor of the Waimakariri District Council; and

• (d) 4 appointed persons with the relevant expertise or appropriate skills, 1 of whom must be an Environment Canterbury commissioner or, if there is no such commissioner, the chairperson of the Canterbury Regional Council.

The functions of the recovery commission are to—

• (a) provide advice, on request or on its own initiative, to—

  • (i) the relevant Minister in relation to Orders in Council that may be required for the purpose of this Act; and

  • (ii) the responsible Ministers in relation to how resources may be prioritised and funding allocated for the response to the Canterbury earthquake; and

• (b) provide a central contact point between central and local government in the management of the response to the Canterbury earthquake.

(1) The responsible Ministers must, by giving written notice of appointment, appoint the persons referred to in section 9(d).

(2) The written notice of appointment must—

• (a) state the date on which the appointment takes effect; and

• (b) state the term of the appointment.

(3) The first appointment of a person as a commissioner takes effect on the date specified in the written notice of appointment given to that person.

(4) As soon as practicable, the Minister must notify the appointment in the Gazette.

(1) The responsible Ministers must provide the commissioners with written terms of reference, which must—

• (a) specify the secretariat services to be provided; and

• (b) be consistent with the purpose of this Act.

(2) The responsible Ministers—

• (a) may at any time amend the terms of reference for the commissioners; and

• (b) must, as soon as practicable after the amendment, notify the commissioners of the amended terms of reference.

(3) The Minister must publish the terms of reference and any amended terms of reference in the Gazette.

(1) The responsible Ministers may appoint a commissioner to replace an appointed commissioner who vacates office.

(2) Section 11 applies to the appointment of a commissioner to fill a vacancy.

(1) The responsible Ministers must appoint one of the appointed commissioners (other than the Environment Canterbury commissioner or the chairperson of the Canterbury Regional Council, as the case may be) to be the chairperson of the recovery commission.

(2) The responsible Ministers must appoint one of the appointed commissioners to be the deputy chairperson of the recovery commission.

(3) The responsible Ministers must make each appointment by giving the person appointed a written notice of appointment.

(4) As soon as practicable, the Minister must notify the appointment in the Gazette.

(5) The responsible Ministers may terminate the appointment of a commissioner as chairperson or deputy chairperson by written notice to that person.

(1) The term of office of an appointed commissioner ends when the commissioner vacates office or on a date no later than 1 April 2012, whichever occurs first.

(2) An appointed commissioner vacates office if he or she—

• (a) is removed by written notice given by the responsible Ministers; or

• (b) resigns by written notice given to the responsible Ministers.

(3) The responsible Ministers may in their complete discretion remove an appointed commissioner by written notice at any time.

(4) As soon as practicable, the Minister must notify the removal or resignation of an appointed commissioner in the Gazette.

(1) An appointed commissioner is entitled to be paid—

• (a) remuneration by way of salary, fees, and allowances at a rate determined by the responsible Ministers; and

• (b) travelling allowances and expenses in accordance with the Fees and Travelling Allowances Act 1951.

(2) However, a person appointed under section 9(d) or 13 is not entitled to any remuneration for services as a member of the recovery commission in addition to his or her remuneration in respect of his or her service as—

• (a) an Environment Canterbury commissioner or the chairperson of the Canterbury Regional Council (as the case may be); or

• (b) a chief executive or employee of a department listed in Schedule 1 of the State Sector Act 1988.

Sections 6 to 16 cease to apply on the earlier of the following:

• (a) a date specified by the Governor-General by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the responsible Ministers; or

• (b) the close of 1 April 2012.

A commissioner is not liable for any act done or omitted to be done by him or her in good faith in the performance or intended performance of his or her functions, responsibilities, or duties as a commissioner, or in the exercise or intended exercise of his or her powers as a commissioner.

(1) This section applies to any person—

• (a) who does or omits to do anything, if the act or omission is authorised by, or is made lawful by virtue of, an Order in Council made under section 6; or

• (b) whose functions, responsibilities, duties, or powers are authorised, exempted, modified, or extended by, or are made lawful by virtue of, an Order in Council made under section 6.

(2) In respect of the period beginning 4 September 2010 and ending with the expiry of this Act, a person to whom this section applies is not liable for any act done or omitted to be done by that person in good faith—

• (a) in doing or omitting to do anything that is authorised or lawful by virtue of an Order in Council made under section 6; or

• (b) in the performance or intended performance of his or her functions, responsibilities, or duties, or in the exercise or intended exercise of his or her powers in relation to—

  • (i) any function, responsibility, duty, or power conferred or imposed by an Order in Council made under section 6; or

  • (ii) any enactment affected by an Order in Council made under section 6.

Nothing in this Act confers any right to compensation or is to be relied on in any proceedings as a basis for any claim to compensation.

This Act expires, and any Order in Council made under section 6 is revoked, on the date that sections 6 to 16 cease to apply.