It shall be lawful for the Postmaster of the principal post office of any Province in New Zealand from time to time to establish any local post or postal communication within such Province whenever he shall have been requested by the Superintendent acting upon an address of the Provincial Council to establish the same; and every post or postal communication so established shall be deemed to be a part of the postal service of New Zealand established under the authority of the laws in force in that behalf.

It shall be lawful for the Superintendent of any Province, by Proclamation in the Government Gazette thereof, to fix the rates of postage payable for the transmission by any such post or postal communication of letters newspapers and other papers and parcels, and from time to time by any such Proclamation to alter repeal or abolish any postage so fixed as aforesaid, and to fix any other rate of postage in lieu thereof. And all postage from time to time to become payable by virtue of any such Proclamation shall be charged and be payable accordingly: Provided always that no such rate of postage shall exceed the sum which may have been specified for any such service by the Provincial Council of such Province.

The said Postmaster shall cause a separate account to be kept of all the postal revenues accruing under this Act; and all such revenues shall be expended in defraying the cost of the various postal services established under this Act in the Province in which such revenues shall have arisen, and in no other object whatsoever.

If the revenues arising in respect of any postal service established under the provisions of this Act shall be insufficient to defray the cost of such postal service, any such deficiency shall be made up out of the Provincial revenues of the Province within which such revenue is established. And it shall not be lawful for any such Postmaster to establish any such service or incur any expense thereon until the Superintendent thereof shall have guaranteed the payment of any sums which may be necessary to make up any such deficiency as aforesaid.

This Act may be cited for all purposes as “The Local Posts Act, 1856.”