This Part of this Act shall not apply to any land which is subject to the Education Reserves Act, 1928, or the Scenery Preservation Act, 1908, or the Forests Act, 1921–22, or the Kauri-gum Industry Act, 1908.

Save as otherwise specially provided herein this Part of this Act in its application to any public reserve shall be read subject to

Land which after the commencement of this Act becomes a public reserve shall subject to the provisions of this Act be held and administered for the purpose or purposes to which it is dedicated, and no other.

All lands which are public reserves within the meaning of this Act by virtue of paragraph (a) of the definition of the term “public reserve” in section two hereof shall continue to be public reserves for the same purposes as those for which they were held immediately before the commencement of this Act.

Any local authority may, subject to the provisions of this section, by resolution declare any land vested in it to be a public reserve within the meaning of this Act.

No such resolution shall be passed before the expiration of twenty-one days after notice of intention to pass the same and calling for objections thereto in writing has been published in one or more newspapers circulating in its district, and until it has considered all such objections received within such period.

A copy of such resolution shall be forwarded to the Minister together with all objections (if any) received as aforesaid.

If no objections have been received by the local authority the Minister shall cause the resolution to be gazetted, but if objections have been received the Minister shall consider the same, and may then in his discretion cause the resolution to be gazetted or refuse to cause it to be gazetted.

No resolution under this section shall have any force or effect until it is gazetted as aforesaid.

If in the opinion of the Governor-General there is any doubt or uncertainty as to whether any land was immediately before the commencement of this Act a public reserve within the meaning of section two of the Public Reserves and Domains Act, 1908, he may by Order in Council declare either that such land as defined in such Order is a public reserve within the meaning of this Act for such purpose or purposes as are stated in such Order, or that it is not a public reserve; and every such Order shall have effect according to its tenor.

The Governor-General may (except where a reserve is given or dedicated by or pursuant to a deed of trust or a will) in like manner define the purpose to which any public reserve (whether reserved or set apart before or after the commencement of this Act) shall be dedicated in any case where doubt exists as to such purpose.

The Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council—

In the case of any public reserve for the purposes of public health, or recreation, or the use, support, or education of aboriginal Natives, neither of the powers conferred on the Governor-General by the last preceding subsection shall be exercised unless a notice of the Governor-General’s intention to issue an Order in Council under paragraph (a) or paragraph (b) of that subsection with respect to the public reserve or part thereof specified in such notice is laid before both Houses of Parliament, and each House during the session in which such notice is laid before it resolves that the proposed change of purpose or revocation be approved.

The powers conferred on the Governor-General by the foregoing provisions of this section shall not be exercised with respect to any public reserve vested in a local authority or trustees save pursuant to a resolution of such local authority or trustees consenting to the change of purpose or revocation of reservation, as the case may be.

No resolution pursuant to the last preceding subsection shall be passed before the expiration of twenty-one days after notice of intention to pass the same and calling for objections thereto in writing has been published in one or more newspapers circulating in the district of the local authority, or, as the case may be, in the district or locality for the use, benefit, or enjoyment of the inhabitants of which the reserve is held, and until the local authority or trustees have considered all such objections received within such period. A copy of such resolution shall be forwarded to the Minister, and shall be accompanied by all objections received as aforesaid.

All proceeds of the sale of any land over which a reservation for the purposes of public health or recreation has been revoked pursuant to this section shall be applied only in the purchase of other lands for such purposes.

The Governor-General may by Order in Council authorize the exchange of the land comprised in any public reserve or any part of such land for any other land of at least equal value and more suitable for the purposes of such reserve:

Provided that this power shall not be exercised with respect to any public reserve vested in a local authority or trustees, except pursuant to a resolution of such local authority or trustees requesting such authority to exchange passed after notice thereof has been given in the manner provided by subsection four of the last preceding section, and objections received thereto have been considered as required by that subsection.

The Governor-General in the name and on behalf of His Majesty and a local authority or trustees, as the case may require, may do all things necessary to effect any exchange authorized as aforesaid.

The land comprised in any public reserve or part thereof given by way of exchange pursuant to this section shall upon such exchange being effected be no longer subject to any reservation theretofore affecting it.

The land acquired by His Majesty or by a local authority or trustees, as the case may be, by way of such exchange shall be held as a public reserve under this Act, or as part of an existing reserve, as the case may be, for the same objects and purposes as the land given in exchange was held.

The Governor-General may for the better carrying-out of the purposes of any public reserve vested in His Majesty by Order in Council vest such reserve in any local authority, or in any trustees empowered by or under any Act or any other lawful authority, as the case may be, to hold and administer lands and expend moneys thereon, for the particular purposes for which such public reserve is reserved or set apart.

All lands so vested shall be held in trust for such purposes as aforesaid, and subject to such special conditions and restrictions as may be specified in the Order in Council vesting the same.

Any vesting (whether by Act, grant, Order in Council, or in any other manner, and whether before or after the commencement of this Act) in a local authority or trustees of any public reserve which before such vesting was the property of His Majesty may with the consent of such local authority or trustees be by Order in Council cancelled, and thereupon such land shall cease to be vested in such local authority or trustees and revest in His Majesty, subject to the trusts affecting the same.

If at any time the Governor-General is satisfied that a serious breach of the trusts upon which any such public reserve is vested has been committed, he may direct the Minister to call upon the local authority or trustees in which or in whom such reserve is vested to show cause why the vesting should not be cancelled.

On receiving such a direction the Minister shall cause to be served on the local authority or trustees a notice in writing stating that, unless cause to the contrary is shown in writing within ninety days after such service, the Governor-General will by Order in Council cancel the vesting.

If within such period of ninety days the local authority or trustees do not show cause as aforesaid the Governor-General may by Order in Council cancel the vesting, and thereupon the public reserve shall revest in His Majesty, subject to the trusts affecting the same.

If within such period of ninety days the local authority or trustees show cause as aforesaid the Governor-General may in his discretion either decide to take no further action or he may by Order in Council appoint a Commission of such number of suitable persons as he thinks fit to inquire and report to him on the question whether or not the vesting should be cancelled; and every such Commission shall have all the powers of a Commission under the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1908.

If the Commission recommends that the vesting be cancelled the Governor-General may by Order in Council cancel the same, and thereupon the public reserve shall revest in His Majesty as aforesaid.

On the cancellation as aforesaid of any vesting, any certificate or other instrument of title shall be cancelled by the District Land Registrar or other proper officer, who for such purpose may require any such instrument then in possession or control of the local authority or trustees or of any other body or person to be delivered up to him.

Wherever any town or other place in New Zealand has subsequently become a borough or a town district, or is incorporated in a borough or town district, all reserves for public purposes made within such town or place, or granted to or vested in the Council or Board charged with the administration of its affairs, shall be deemed to have been made for such purposes within the borough or town district for the time being existing in the stead of such first-mentioned town or place, or to have been granted to or vested in the Corporation of such borough or town district respectively as from the date when such first-mentioned town or other place or the Council or Board thereof ceased to exist.

Wherever any borough or town district becomes merged in a county, all reserves for public purposes made within such borough or town district, or granted to or vested in the Council or Board thereof, shall be deemed to have been made for such purposes within the county wherein such borough or town district is merged, or to have been granted to or vested in the Corporation thereof as from the date when such borough or town district or the Council or Board thereof ceased to exist.

No District Land Registrar shall without special authority of law register or otherwise give effect under the Land Transfer Act, 1915, to any dealing with any public reserve except in conformity with the trusts upon which such reserve is held for the time being.

The provisions of clauses one, two, three, and five of Appendix I to the Land Transfer Act, 1915, shall apply not only to land set apart or reserved by the Crown as public reserves but also to any other lands being public reserves as defined in this Act, and the notification provided for by the said clause two shall in the case of such other lands be made by the local authority or trustees in which or in whom any such other land is vested, and may be made by its inclusion in any memorandum of transfer of such other land to such local authority or trustees, or in any application to bring any such land under the provisions of the Land Transfer Act, 1915.

Where any public reserve is not for the time being required for the purpose or purposes to which it is dedicated the Governor-General in the case of any public reserve vested in His Majesty, and the local authority or trustees in any other case, may lease the whole or any part of the reserve, either by public auction or by public tender, for any period not exceeding twenty-one years, with a right of renewal for a period not exceeding twenty-one years, but not exceeding a total period of forty-two years, upon such terms and conditions as may be prescribed or approved by the Governor-General.

The powers of leasing conferred by this section may be validly exercised notwithstanding any restriction or limitation of leasing-powers with respect to public reserves imposed by any other Act in force at the commencement of this Act.

Licenses to occupy any public reserve or part of any such reserve for pastoral purposes, or for the purpose of cutting, felling, and removing timber or flax, or to win and remove stone, gravel, or similar substances, may with the approval of the Minister and subject to section nineteen hereof be granted by—

Provided that every such license shall be surrendered, either as to the whole or any part of the land comprised in the license, on demand at any time after notice of not less than twelve months, without any right to compensation on any account whatever accruing to the licensee.

Nothing in any license granted under the last preceding subsection shall affect any right of the Governor-General to take any part of the land therein mentioned for the construction of roads, railways, or tramways through the said land; and such right may be exercised by the Governor-General at any time during the currency of the license to an extent not exceeding one-twentieth part of such land without the licensee having any claim for compensation, except a reduction in his rent (if any) in proportion to the extent of land taken.

The Commissioner of Crown Lands for the land district in which is situate any public reserve vested in His Majesty shall have and exercise over such reserve all rights, powers, duties, and functions which he has over Crown lands.

In the case of any public reserve vested in His Majesty, the Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council vest the control or management of the reserve or any part thereof in any local authority, or in any special Board constituted by him for the purpose, with such powers and subject to such conditions and restrictions as may be specified in the Order.

An Order in Council under this section shall take effect according to the tenor thereof, and may at any time be in like manner amended or revoked.

The rights, powers, functions, and duties conferred and imposed on Commissioners of Crown Lands by section sixteen hereof shall in the case of any public reserve not vested in His Majesty be had and exercised by the local authority or trustees in which or in whom such reserve is vested.

The powers vested in any local authority by virtue of this section or of any other provisions of this Part of this Act shall be exercised by it in the manner in which it exercises any like powers conferred on it by the Act by or under which it is constituted.

The natural bush on any public reserve for purposes of public recreation shall not be cut or destroyed without the approval of the Governor-General in Council being first obtained.

For the purposes of this and the four next succeeding sections—

The trustees having the control of a recreation reserve may from time to time—

No agreement shall be entered into pursuant to paragraph (f) of the last preceding subsection until—

All by-laws or regulations made under paragraph (i) of subsection one hereof shall be publicly notified by advertisement as to the nature thereof in some newspaper circulating in the district in which the reserve is situate, and by being posted on some conspicuous place on the reserve so that they may be easily read.

Save pursuant to the exercise of the powers conferred by subsection one of the last preceding section, the trustees shall not so deal with the reserve that, or make any disposition thereof whereby, the public are excluded from free access thereto; and notwithstanding anything to the contrary in that subsection no person shall be required to pay any fee or charge for admission thereto or to any stand thereon on any day when the reserve or any part thereof is specially set apart as aforesaid unless public notice of such setting-apart and of the prices to be charged for admission to the reserve or to the stand has previously been given by advertisement in some newspaper circulating in the district in which the reserve is situate.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the two last preceding sections, the Governor-General may by warrant under his hand increase with respect to any specified recreation reserve the total number of days in any year or the number of consecutive days as to which the trustees of the reserve may prescribe that the public shall not be entitled to have admission to the reserve, or to any part thereof set apart for a particular purpose, unless on payment of a charge as provided in section twenty-one hereof; and in any such case the powers of the trustees shall be deemed to be extended accordingly, save that the total number of days so prescribed with respect to any reserve shall not exceed thirty in any year.

On the recommendation of the trustees of any recreation reserve the Minister may authorize, either generally or for any specified day or days, an increase of the maximum charges prescribed by paragraph (e) of section twenty-one hereof in respect of the admission to such reserve of any person, horse, or vehicle, but not so as to exceed two shillings in respect of any such person, horse, or vehicle.

Any authority granted under the last preceding subsection may be subject to the condition that such proportion of the increase as may be fixed by the Minister shall be paid to the trustees, and shall be applied for the improvement of the recreation-reserve.

For the purposes of this and the five next succeeding sections—

The trustees having the control of any racecourse reserve may from time to time make by-laws with respect to all or any of the following matters:—

All by-laws made under the last preceding subsection after the commencement of this Act shall be publicly notified by advertisement as to the nature thereof in some newspaper circulating in the district in which the reserve is situate, and by being posted on some conspicuous place on the reserve so that they may be easily read.

The reserve shall be available to any racing club for the purpose of holding race meetings, on such terms and conditions as are from time to time publicly advertised by the trustees, and at such dates as they in every such case appoint:

Provided that such racing club shall consist of not fewer than fifty members who each pay an annual subscription of not less than one pound towards the funds of the club.

The trustees may from time to time lease at such rent and on such conditions as they think reasonable the whole or any part of the reserve for any term or terms of years not exceeding seven years at any one time, and on conditions not inconsistent with the purposes of the reserve. The power of leasing conferred by this subsection is in addition to and not in substitution for the power of leasing conferred by section fourteen hereof.

All moneys received by the trustees as the rents, issues, and profits of the reserve shall forthwith after receipt by the treasurer or other proper officer of the trustees be paid into such bank as the trustees from time to time appoint to an account to be called “The [Name of racecourse reserve] Trustees Account,” and, after deducting therefrom all necessary expenses incurred in the management of the reserve, be applied in and towards the fencing of the reserve or any part thereof, the erection of stands or pavilions thereon, the cultivation and improvement thereof, and in rendering any part thereof that may be set apart as a racecourse suitable for that purpose.

Within twenty-eight days after the close of each financial year ending on the thirty-first day of March, the trustees shall cause to be prepared and submitted to the Audit Office for audit a balance-sheet, together with a statement of accounts (including a Receipts and Payments Account and an Income and Expenditure Account), showing fully the financial position of the trustees at the close of the year. The said balance-sheet and statement of accounts shall when duly audited be submitted to the Minister, accompanied by a report as to the operations of the trustees for the year.

The provisions of any Act of the General Assembly or of any Provincial Ordinance or grant dealing with or referring to any racecourse reserve, or reserve that may after the commencement of this Act be set apart and used for the purposes of a racecourse, shall so far as they may be inconsistent with this Act be read subject to the provisions of this Act, and the powers conferred by sections twenty-six to twenty-nine hereof on the trustees having control of a racecourse reserve are hereby likewise conferred on any bodies or persons having control of any such reserve as aforesaid.

In this Part of this Act, if not inconsistent with the context,—

This Part of this Act shall be read subject to the provisions of any Act (whether passed before or after the commencement of this Act) making any special provision with respect to any public domain or domains or authorizing the setting-apart for any other purpose of lands subject to this Part of this Act.

The Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council declare to be a public domain any public reserve for health or recreation purposes vested in His Majesty or any land acquired by the Crown for such purposes, and thereupon such reserve or land shall be a public domain subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act, and be known by such name as the Governor-General directs.

All lands forming part of any public domain (other than lands acquired by way of lease for the purposes of such domain) are hereby declared to be the property of His Majesty.

The Governor-General, in the name and on behalf of His Majesty, may treat and agree for the purchase or lease of any land he deems necessary for the purposes of a public domain, or for the improvement or extension of any existing public domain, and for any such purposes may enter into any contract he thinks fit.

All lands acquired by way of purchase as aforesaid shall vest in His Majesty for the purposes of this Part of this Act as a public domain or as part of an existing domain, as the case may require, and all lands acquired by the Governor-General by way of lease under this section shall during the term of such lease be subject to this Part of this Act.

The Governor-General may exchange the land comprised in any public domain or any part of such land for any other land of at least equal value and more suitable for the purposes of a domain, and in the name and on behalf of His Majesty may do all things necessary to effect such exchange.

The land comprised in any domain or part thereof shall upon such exchange being effected cease to be subject to this Part of this Act and to any other reservation theretofore affecting it.

The land acquired by His Majesty by way of such exchange shall be held as a public domain or as part of an existing domain, as the case may be.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any Act any County Council, Borough Council, or Town Board may, without further authority than this section, convey or transfer to His Majesty any land acquired by it for recreation purposes.

Any land so conveyed or transferred to His Majesty shall vest in him as a public domain under and for the purposes of this Part of this Act, whether or not any Order in Council is made pursuant to section thirty-four hereof declaring such land to be a public domain.

Any Domain Board may enter into a contract for the purchase of land upon terms providing for payment of the whole or of part or parts of the purchase-moneys at a future date or dates, and for payment of interest upon any unpaid purchase-moneys at a rate not exceeding six per centum per annum:

Provided that no such contract shall be valid unless —

All land so purchased shall on the taking possession thereof by the Domain Board be administered in accordance with the provisions of this Part of this Act as if it were part of the public domain controlled by the Board, and on the conveyance or transfer thereof to His Majesty shall become part of such domain.

The Governor-General may by Order in Council declare that any two or more public domains shall as from a date to be specified in that behalf in the Order be united to form one public domain, with such name as he thinks fit.

The Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council, but subject to compliance with the requirements of subsection two of section seven hereof, declare that the land comprised in a public domain or part thereof shall cease to be subject to this Part of this Act, and declare either that such land shall be a public reserve for the purposes of Part I of this Act, or Crown land available for disposal by way of sale for cash under the Land Act, 1924; and every such Order shall take effect according to the tenor thereof.

A sum or sums equal to the moneys paid to the credit of the Land for Settlements Account as proceeds of the sale of lands pursuant to the authority conferred by the last preceding subsection shall as directed by the Minister, and without further appropriation than this section, be paid out of that account for the purpose of purchasing lands to be held as public domains or as part of existing domains, or for the improvement and development of domains.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Act, the Governor-General may by warrant under his hand declare that the land described in such warrant, being portion of a public domain, shall as from a date to be specified in the warrant be set apart as a site for a public hall, and thereupon such land shall cease to be subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act and become a public reserve for a hall-site subject to Part I hereof.

The Governor-General may lease any land comprised in a public domain for such consideration in money or otherwise to such persons, for such period not exceeding twenty-one years, subject to such rents or conditions, and in such manner and form as he from time to time thinks fit, and may accept any surrender of any lease so granted by him:

Provided that no lease of any land subject to this Part of this Act shall authorize the erection of any building that will interfere with the use and enjoyment of the domain as a recreation - ground, or any building for use and occupation for any purpose inconsistent with the purposes of the domain:

Provided further that no member of a Domain Board may become the lessee of any land under the control of the Board without the express consent in writing of the Minister.

The Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council appoint such persons as he thinks fit (who, save as provided in section sixty-three hereof, shall not exceed nine in number) to be a Domain Board having, subject to this Part of this Act, control of the public domain named in such Order. Any person so appointed may be appointed by virtue of any office.

The Governor-General may in like manner remove from office any person so appointed, or revoke any such Order in Council.

Subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act, every member of a Domain Board shall be appointed for a term of seven years, but shall continue in office until the appointment of his successor, notwithstanding that the term for which he was appointed may have expired, and shall be eligible for reappointment.

In any case where pursuant to section forty hereof two or more public domains have been declared to be united as one domain, the Governor-General may appoint a Domain Board to control the same, and thereupon the Domain Boards (if any) controlling the several domains so united shall cease to hold office as such, and the new Board shall have in respect of the united domain all the rights and liabilities of the several old Boards in respect of such several domains.

In any case where the Board consists of any number of members less than nine the Governor-General in Council may from time to time increase the total number of members thereof to any number not exceeding nine, and make such additional appointments of members as may thereby be rendered necessary.

The members of the Board shall not be personally liable for any act of the Board done or omitted to be done in good faith in the course of the operations of the Board, nor for any debt or other liability of the Board lawfully incurred.

In lieu of appointing any persons to be a Board as aforesaid, the Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council appoint any local authority to be the Domain Board in respect of any public domain, and in every such case the Mayor or Chairman of the local authority for the time being shall be the Chairman of the Board, anything to the contrary in section fifty hereof notwithstanding.

When any member of the Board dies, or resigns his office, or is removed therefrom, or becomes of unsound mind, or is absent from three consecutive meetings without the consent of the Board, his seat shall become vacant, and the Governor-General in Council may appoint some fit person to be a member in his place:

Provided that where any member of the Board is appointed by virtue of any office he shall vacate his seat on quitting such office, and be replaced by his successor in office without any further appointment.

The first meeting of every Domain Board appointed after the commencement of this Act shall be held at a time and place to be fixed in that behalf in the Order in Council appointing such Board.

An annual meeting of every Domain Board shall be held in the month of May in every year.

Other meetings shall be held as the Board shall from time to time determine.

A special meeting of the Board may at any time be convened by the Chairman or by any two members:

Provided that not less than seven clear days’ notice of the meeting and of the business to be transacted thereat shall be given to each member, and no business other than that specified in the notice shall be transacted at such meeting.

At the first meeting of every Board and at every annual meeting and as often as the office of Chairman becomes vacant the members shall elect one of their number to be Chairman, who shall hold office until the appointment of his successor.

The Chairman shall preside at each meeting of the Board at which he is present, but in his absence from any meeting the members present shall elect a member to act as Chairman at such meeting.

The Chairman at any meeting shall have a deliberative vote, and in case of an equality of votes shall also have a casting-vote.

No business shall be transacted at any meeting of the Board unless at least a quorum of members is present thereat during the whole time at which the business is transacted.

A quorum shall consist of half of the whole number of the members of the Board (irrespective of any vacancies) when that number is even and a majority of such members when that number is odd.

Subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act, every Board may regulate its own proceedings.

Every Domain Board shall be charged with the duty of so administering, managing, and controlling its domain in accordance with the provisions of this Part of this Act and the means at its disposal as to secure to the public the proper use and enjoyment thereof for the purposes of health and recreation.

Every Domain Board may in respect of the domain under its control exercise all or any of the following powers, that is to say, it may—

The provisions of sections twenty-two, twenty-three, and twenty-four of Part I of this Act shall, with the necessary modifications, extend and apply to every public domain under the control of a Domain Board, and to such Board in respect of the exercise by it of the powers conferred by paragraph (c) of the last preceding subsection.

In any case where the Board erects a public hall pursuant to authority given by the Governor-General under paragraph (d) of subsection one of this section, it may make such charges as it thinks fit for admission to such hall, and provide musical entertainments or cinematograph or similar exhibitions therein, or may let such hall for any term not exceeding one year for the purpose of entertainments upon such conditions (including a condition as to charges to be made for admission to such entertainments) as it thinks fit to impose:

Provided that no charge for admission to such hall may be made on Christmas Day, Good Friday, or Sunday.

Save with the consent of the Governor-General in Council, the Board shall not cut or destroy or authorize any person to cut or destroy the natural bush on the domain under its control.

The Board shall have and exercise over the domain under its control all the rights, powers, duties, and functions which a Commissioner of Crown Lands has over Crown lands.

Every Domain Board may with respect to the domain under its control make by-laws for all or any of the following purposes:—

With respect to the making of by-laws the following provisions shall apply:—

No by-law made by a Domain Board shall have any force or effect unless and until it is approved by the Minister and published as provided in the next succeeding subsection.

By-laws shall be published by being painted on boards, or printed on paper or linen and affixed to boards, and displayed and kept displayed at one or more of the principal entrances to the domain.

In all legal proceedings sufficient proof of the due making of the by-laws may be given by production of a copy thereof with the Minister’s approval endorsed thereon, and of the due publication thereof by proving that the requirements of subsection two hereof had been complied with,

The funds of the Board shall consist of all moneys received by it under or by virtue of this Act or in any other manner whatever in respect of the domain under its control, and all such moneys shall forthwith after receipt by the treasurer or other proper officer of the Board be paid into such bank as the Board from time to time appoints to an account to be called “The [Name of domain] Board Account.”

The funds of the Board shall save as otherwise authorized by this Act be applied in managing, administering, and improving the domain under its control, and for no other purpose.

Where a local authority is the Domain Board of any domain, or where any member of a local authority is by virtue of his office, a member of the Domain Board, or the domain is generally used by the inhabitants of the district of a local authority, such local authority may apply any part of its ordinary funds towards the management, improvement, and maintenance of the domain, or of any part thereof, notwithstanding that the domain may be situate outside the district of such local authority.

Where a County Council makes any contribution pursuant to the last preceding subsection, such contribution may with the consent of the Councillor or Councillors representing any riding of the county be made wholly or in part out of the separate account of that riding.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any Act, any local authority which is the Domain Board of a public domain may borrow by way of special loan under the Local Bodies’ Loans Act, 1926, as if for a public work moneys for the improvement and development of the domain, and may in its capacity as such Domain Board expend moneys so borrowed.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Part of this Act, the Governor-General may by Order in Council direct that any moneys received, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, in respect of any public domain shall be applied in managing, administering, and improving any other specified public domain; or may by such Order in Council direct that any moneys that may thereafter be received in respect of any public domain for any specified period shall be applied as aforesaid for the purposes of any other specified public domain.

An Order in Council under this section authorizing the diversion of any moneys received as aforesaid in respect of any public domain shall not be issued without the written consent of the Domain Board (if any) charged with the administration of that domain.

Within twenty-eight days after the close of each financial year ending on the thirty-first day of March, the Board shall cause to be prepared and submitted to the Audit Office for audit a statement of assets and liabilities together with a statement of accounts (including a Receipts and Payments Account), and showing fully the financial position of the Board at the close of the year. The said statements shall when duly audited be submitted to the Minister, accompanied by a report as to the operations of the Board for the year.

In any case where a Domain Board having control of a public domain is of opinion that portion of the cost of the management, improvement, and maintenance of that domain should by reason of the fact that the domain is generally used by the inhabitants of the districts of more than one local authority be borne by the several local authorities of those districts, the Domain Board may serve on the Minister and on each of the local authorities concerned a notice setting forth—

If no objection from any of the local authorities concerned is received by the Minister within the aforesaid period of two months he may, on the application of the Domain Board, by notice published in the Gazette, make an order of apportionment among the several local authorities concerned in accordance with the terms of the notice, and every such order of apportionment shall have effect according to its tenor.

If within the aforesaid period of two months, or within such extended period as the Minister may allow, any of the local authorities concerned objects by notice in writing served on the Minister to the proposed apportionment, or to any other matter referred to in the notice given by the Domain Board, the Governor-General may appoint a Commission under the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1908, to inquire into and report upon the proposals of the Domain Board and the objections thereto, and to make recommendations with respect to the proposed apportionment or other proposals of the Domain Board.

On receipt of the report of the Commission the Governor-General may, by warrant published in the Gazette, make an order for the apportionment among the several local authorities named in the warrant of a specified portion of the estimated expenditure of the Domain Board in respect of the domain. Such order of apportionment may be in accordance with the report of the Commission or may vary the apportionment recommended therein, but not so as to provide for the apportionment of a greater amount in the aggregate in any year than was originally proposed by the Domain Board.

Any order of apportionment made under this section either by the Governor-General or by the Minister of Lands may relate particularly to the capital expenditure of the Domain Board in respect of any specified work or works, or may relate generally to the expenditure of that Board for any year, or for two or more years, or for an unlimited period.

Any moneys payable to a Domain Board by any local authority pursuant to an order of apportionment made under this section shall be recoverable as a debt due by that local authority to the Domain Board, and may be paid by the local authority out of its ordinary funds, or may in the case of a County Council be paid in whole or in part out of any separate riding account.

In addition to any other rating-power every local authority affected by an order of apportionment made under this section shall have power to make and levy a rate over all rateable property in its district or in any defined part thereof sufficient to provide the amount payable by it pursuant to such order of apportionment.

For the purpose of affording representation on the Domain Board to the local authorities required by virtue of an order of apportionment made under this section to contribute towards the cost of any public domain controlled by that Board, the Governor-General in Council may appoint such additional number of members as he thinks fit, notwithstanding that the Emit prescribed by section forty-four hereof may thereby be exceeded. Any additional member appointed pursuant to this subsection may be appointed by virtue of any office, and shall continue to be a member of the Board only so long as he holds such office, and on his retirement from office his successor in office shall without further appointment be deemed to be a member of the Domain Board.

Save as provided in the last preceding subsection, additional members appointed under this section shall unless sooner removed continue in office only until the other members appointed under this Act retire from office, but shall be eligible for reappointment.

Any order of apportionment under this section, whether made by the Governor-General or by the Minister may be at any time in like manner revoked.

The powers, functions, and duties conferred and imposed on Domain Boards by this Part of this Act shall with respect to any public domain which is not controlled by such a Board be exercised and performed by the Minister save that—

All moneys received in respect of any public domain not controlled by a Domain Board shall in accordance with directions by the Minister be applied in managing, administering, and improving the domain in respect of which they were received, or in accordance with a direction of the Governor-General pursuant to section sixty-one hereof or otherwise in carrying out the objects of this Part of this Act.

Every person who offends against any by-law made under this Part of this Act is liable to a fine of five pounds.

Any Field Inspector, any constable, or any person employed in a public domain may, without further warrant or authority than this section, summarily interfere to prevent any actual or attempted breach of this Part of this Act or of any by-law thereunder.

Every person is liable to imprisonment for three months or to a fine of fifty pounds who without being authorized by the Domain Board or, where there is no Domain Board, by the Minister, does any of the following things within the boundaries of any public domain, that is to say,—

In addition to any penalty under the last preceding subsection every person convicted of an offence thereunder shall be liable for any loss or damage caused by the offence, and such loss or damage may be awarded by the Court in fixing the penalty, and may be recovered as a fine.

In every case where under the last preceding section wilful intent must be shown, such intent shall be presumed until the contrary is proved.

If within the domain or in its vicinity any person is found in possession of any wood, tree, shrub, fern, or any plant, bird, egg, nest, or animal, or any part of any such thing, and, upon being thereunto required by any Field Inspector or any constable or any person employed in the domain fails or refuses to give a satisfactory account of the manner in which he became possessed of the same, he shall be deemed to have wilfully removed or taken the same in breach of this Act, unless he satisfies the Court to the contrary.

All fines under this Part of this Act shall when recovered be paid into the Public Account, and after deducting an amount equal to five per centum thereof, which shall be credited to the Ordinary Revenue Account of the Consolidated Fund, shall, without further appropriation than this section, be paid to the Domain Board of the domain in respect of which they were recovered, and where there is no such Board shall be applied in the manner provided by section sixty-five hereof:

Provided that any moneys awarded by a Court in respect of loss or damage and recovered as a fine shall be so paid or applied without any such deduction being made.

In this Part of this Act, if not inconsistent with the context,—

The Governor-General may at any time and from time to time by Order in Council declare that the land described in such order, being any Crown land subject to the provisions of the Land Act, 1924, or any land subject to the Forests Act, 1921–22, or any public reserve vested in His Majesty subject to Part I or any public domain subject to Part II of this Act, or any land subject to the Scenery Preservation Act, 1908, shall be a national park subject to this Part of this Act and may from time to time in like manner add any such land to the park:

Provided that no land subject to the said Forests Act, 1921–22, shall be declared to be subject to this Part of this Act except on the joint recommendation of the Minister of Lands and the Commissioner of State Forests.

For the purpose of providing more suitable boundaries, or for the purpose of effecting, under the authority of section one hundred and sixty of the Land Act, 1924, or other lawful authority, any exchange of land within the park for other land more suitable for the purposes of the park, the Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council declare that any land forming part of the park shall be excluded therefrom.

When any land is excluded from the park as aforesaid any reservation theretofore affecting the same shall be deemed to be cancelled, and such land shall thereupon become Crown land subject to the Land Act, 1924.

Where any public domain under the control of a Domain Board is declared to be or becomes part of a national park the appointment of the Domain Board shall be deemed to be revoked, and its funds and other property and all its rights and liabilities shall become the funds, property, rights, and liabilities of the National Park Board.

Where any public domain not under the control of a Domain Board is declared to be or becomes part of a national park any public moneys held in respect of such domain shall, without further appropriation than this section, be paid to the National Park Board and shall become part of its general funds.

The Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council appoint such persons as he thinks fit to be a Board having, subject to this Part of this Act, the control and management of any such park, and any Board so constituted shall be deemed to be a local body within the meaning of the Public Contracts and Local Bodies’ Contractors Act, 1908. Any person may be appointed as aforesaid by virtue of any office.

The Board shall be a body corporate under the name of “The National Park Board,” with perpetual succession and a common seal, and shall be capable of holding real and personal property and of doing and suffering all that bodies corporate may do and suffer.

With respect to each of the members of the Board the following provisions shall apply:—

The Chairman of the Board shall be such member thereof as the Minister may appoint.

The first ordinary meeting of the Board shall be held at such time and place as the Chairman appoints, and subsequent ordinary meetings shall be held at such times and places as the Board appoints.

Special meetings of the Board may be called at any time by the Chairman, and he shall call one whenever any three members so request in writing.

At all meetings of the Board four members not prohibited from acting as such shall form a quorum.

The Chairman shall preside at all meetings of the Board at which he is present, and shall have a deliberative vote, and in case of equality of votes shall also have a casting-vote.

In the absence of the Chairman from any meeting of the Board the members present shall appoint one of their number to act as chairman at that meeting, and the member so appointed shall whilst so acting have all the powers of the Chairman.

With respect to the Board the following provisions shall apply :—

The Board may appoint a secretary and treasurer, and such rangers, officers, and servants as may be deemed necessary, at such salaries or other remuneration as it thinks fit, subject to the approval of the Minister, and may define their duties and functions.

Subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act, the Board shall have and may exercise in respect of the park all the powers which by Part II of this Act, or any other Act, Domain Boards have in respect of public domains controlled by them, and in addition to such powers may from time to time make by-laws for—

Provided that by-laws made by the Board shall not come into operation until they have been approved by the Governor-General and have been gazetted:

Provided further that nothing in such by-laws shall permit the cutting of timber for trade purposes:

Provided also that no person shall have or be given authority to fell any trees growing in the park without the approval of the Governor-General in Council first being obtained.

The publication in the Gazette of any by-laws purporting to have been made by the Board under this Part of this Act and to have been approved by the Governor-General shall be conclusive evidence that the same have been duly made and approved in accordance with this Act.

Every person who commits a breach of any by-laws made under this Part of this Act is liable to a fine of five pounds.

Every person is liable to imprisonment for three months or to a fine of fifty pounds who, without being authorized by the Board, or in breach of any by-law made by the Board, does any of the following things within the boundaries of the park, that is to say:—

In addition to any penalty under the last preceding subsection, every person convicted of an offence thereunder shall be liable for any loss or damage caused by the offence, and such loss or damage may be awarded by the Court in fixing the penalty, and may be recovered as a fine.

In every case where under the last preceding section wilful intent must be shown, such intent shall be presumed until the contrary is proved.

If within the park or in its vicinity any person is found in possession of any wood, tree, shrub, fern, or any plant, bird, egg, nest, or animal, or any part of any such thing, and upon being thereunto required by any ranger or by any constable or by any person employed in the park fails or refuses to give a satisfactory account of the manner in which he became possessed of the same, he shall be deemed to have wilfully removed or taken the same in breach of this Part of this Act unless he satisfies the Court to the contrary.

All fines under this Part of this Act shall when recovered be paid into the Public Account, and after deducting an amount equal to five per centum thereof, which shall be credited to the Ordinary Revenue Account of the Consolidated Fund, shall, without further appropriation than this section, be paid to the Board of the park in respect of which they were recovered:

Provided that any moneys awarded by a Court in respect of loss or damage and recovered as a fine shall be so paid without any such deduction being made.

Any ranger or any constable or any person employed in the park may, without further warrant or authority than this section, summarily interfere to prevent any actual or attempted breach of this Part of this Act or of any by-law thereunder.

It shall be lawful for the Board to issue licenses in respect of lands within the park—

The Board may from time to time make by-laws prescribing—

The Board may establish or provide or assist in the establishment or provision by persons or companies of huts, hostels, accommodation-houses, and other buildings and conveniences, and may let or lease any such buildings or conveniences on such terms and conditions as the Board with the approval of the Minister thinks fit, or the Board may itself control, carry on, or conduct any such buildings or conveniences; and the Board may establish and maintain recreation-grounds within such parts of the park as it may from time to time decide; and for the use of any such buildings, conveniences, or recreation-grounds, or in connection therewith the Board with the approval of the Minister may make such charges as it from time to time determines.

For the purpose of facilitating the provision of any such buildings or conveniences by persons or companies the Board may with the consent of the Minister and subject to such terms and conditions as he approves lease any lands within the park as sites for such buildings or conveniences.

The Board may with the consent of the Minister and subject to such conditions as he may approve grant rights of way or other easements over any tracks or roads or other parts of the park for the purposes of access to any area included in any lease granted under the powers conferred by this Part of this Act, or for the utilization of water-power for the generation and transmission of electric current for heating, lighting, or power purposes, or for the provision of high-pressure water-systems, or otherwise for the development or use of the park or any part of the same as a tourist resort.

Nothing in this Part of this Act shall confer on the Board or the Minister any jurisdiction or authority with respect to any part of any public road which is within the boundaries of the park.

Except with the consent of the Board, it shall not be lawful for any local authority to make roads or tracks over or through the park.

The Board may levy and collect from all persons camping or picnicking in the park such fees as may from time to time be fixed by the Board and approved by the Minister.

The expenses incurred by the Board in managing and improving the park and generally in administering this Part of this Act shall be paid out of its general funds.

The general funds of the Board shall consist of—

The Board may from time to time, subject to the Local Government Loans Board Act, 1926, borrow moneys for the purpose of erecting buildings, forming roads, or making improvements in the park, or carrying out any other works authorized by this Part of this Act; and such moneys shall be borrowed in the manner prescribed by the Local Bodies’ Loans Act, 1926, and for that purpose the Board shall be deemed to be a local authority under that Act:

Provided that any loan may be raised by the Board by resolution without poll or other proceeding, and the security to be given or pledged by the Board shall be such of the funds, property, or revenues of the Board as it thinks fit.

The Audit Office shall be the auditor of the Board, and shall have the same duties and powers in respect of the moneys and accounts of the Board and of every person dealing therewith as if the Board were a local authority within the meaning of section one hundred and twenty-four of the Public Revenues Act, 1926.

Within twenty-eight days after the close of each financial year ending on the thirty-first day of March the Board shall cause to be prepared and submitted to the Audit Office for audit a balance-sheet, together with a statement of accounts (including a Receipts and Payments Account and an Income and Expenditure Account), showing fully the financial position of the Board at the close of the year. The said balance-sheet and statement of accounts shall when duly audited be submitted to the Minister accompanied by a report as to the operations of the Board for the year.

The Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council make, either generally or with respect to any particular national park, all such regulations as he deems necessary for effectually carrying out the provisions of this Part of this Act.

The District Land Registrar for the Land Registration District in which is situated any public reserve vested in His Majesty, or any public domain subject to Part II or any national park subject to Part III of this Act shall, on the completion of such surveys (if any) as may be necessary, and on being requested in writing so to do by the Commissioner of Crown Lands of the appropriate land district, issue a certificate or certificates of title under the Land Transfer Act, 1915, in the name of His Majesty the King, in respect of any land for the time being comprised in such reserve, domain, or park, and is hereby directed to register under the provisions of that Act all registrable instruments issued under the authority of this Act upon presentation of such instruments for registration.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any Act or in any rule of law, it shall be lawful for any person being one of the trustees of a public reserve, or a member of a special Board, or a member of a Domain Board or a National Park Board, to contract with the trustees or Board for the supply of anything to or the doing of any work for the trustees or Board where the payment to be made by or on behalf of the trustees or Board in respect of any such contract does not exceed five pounds in the case of a single contract, or ten pounds altogether in any financial year in the case of two or more contracts:

Provided that in any special case the Audit Office, where application is made to it in that behalf before the contract is made, may authorize payment and receipt of such amount as it thinks fit not exceeding in the aggregate twenty pounds in any financial year in respect of any contract or of two or more contracts.

Notwithstanding anything in Parts I, II, and III of this Act, or in any other Act, the Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council make regulations providing for the exclusion from public reserves (other than racecourse reserves), public domains, and national parks of persons acting thereon in contravention of the provisions of any law prohibiting betting or gaming.

Nothing in this Act shall in any way restrict the operation of any of the provisions of the Mining Act, 1926, with respect to dealings under that Act with public reserves as defined by that Act:

Provided that the term “public reserve” as defined by the said Mining Act, 1926, shall not be deemed to include a public reserve within the meaning of this Act which does not consist of land vested in His Majesty or alienated from the Crown as a public reserve, but shall include a public domain subject to Part II and a national park subject to Part III of this Act.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this or any other Act the Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council declare to be subject to the Coal-mines Act, 1925, or to any specified provisions of that Act, as if it were Crown land as defined by that Act, any public reserve within the meaning of this Act consisting of land vested in His Majesty or alienated from the Crown as a public reserve, or any public domain subject to Part II or any national park subject to Part III of this Act, which contains coal:

Provided that no coal-mining rights over any such land so declared to be subject to the said Coal-mines Act, 1925, or to any specified provisions thereof, shall be granted by a Warden or Commissioner of Crown Lands save with the consent in writing of the Minister of Lands.

All proceedings in respect of offences under any Part of this Act shall be taken in a summary way on the information of—

Any appointment under the last preceding subsection may be for the purpose of laying an information in respect of a particular offence, or may be a general appointment to lay informations in respect of offences.

The enactments mentioned in the Schedule hereto are hereby repealed, and with respect to those enactments the following provisions shall apply :—