(1) The purpose of this Act is to continue the Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa, the national body for the arts established under the Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa Act 1994, in order to encourage, promote, and support the arts in New Zealand for the benefit of all New Zealanders.

(2) In achieving the purpose of this Act, all persons performing functions or exercising powers under it must—

• (a) recognise the cultural diversity of the people of New Zealand; and

• (b) recognise in the arts the role of Māori as tangata whenua; and

• (c) recognise the arts of the Pacific Island peoples of New Zealand; and

• (d) recognise and uphold the principles of—

  • (i) participation, by supporting initiatives that encourage participation in the arts; and

  • (ii) access, by supporting the availability of projects of merit to communities or sections of the population that would otherwise not have access to them; and

  • (iii) excellence and innovation, by supporting activities of artistic and cultural significance that develop the creative potential of artists and art forms; and

  • (iv) professionalism, by maintaining and developing a professional arts infrastructure at both the national and community levels; and

  • (v) advocacy, by promoting New Zealand’s arts and artists locally, nationally, and internationally.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

This Act binds the Crown.

(1) This section continues the national body for the arts known as the Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa as a Crown entity for the purposes of section 7 of the Crown Entities Act 2004.

(2) The Crown Entities Act 2004 applies to the Arts Council except to the extent that this Act expressly provides otherwise.

(1) The principal functions of the Arts Council are to—

• (a) encourage, promote, and support the arts in New Zealand for the benefit of all New Zealanders:

• (b) promote the development of a New Zealand identity in the arts:

• (c) allocate funding to projects for professional and community arts, including funding for—

  • (i) Māori arts; and

  • (ii) the arts of the Pacific Island peoples of New Zealand; and

  • (iii) the arts of the diverse cultures of New Zealand:

• (d) uphold and promote the rights of artists and the right of persons to freedom in the practice of the arts:

• (e) maintain relationships with other agencies and organisations:

• (f) give advice to the Minister on any matter relating to or affecting the functions of the Arts Council:

• (g) perform any other functions conferred on it by this Act, any other enactment, or the Minister.

(2) In carrying out its functions, the Arts Council—

• (a) must set guidelines for the allocation of funding; and

• (b) may set guidelines for community arts councils and community arts providers; and

• (c) must establish assessment processes for the allocation of funding including, if the Arts Council considers it appropriate, the use of peer assessment; and

• (d) may obtain any advice that it considers appropriate.

(3) In establishing any assessment process under subsection (2)(c), the Arts Council must include—

• (a) Māori in any assessment process relevant to Māori arts; and

• (b) Pacific Island people in any assessment process relevant to the arts of the Pacific Island peoples of New Zealand.

The Minister may not give a direction to the Arts Council in relation to cultural matters.

(1) Without limiting sections 16 and 17 of the Crown Entities Act 2004, the Arts Council has power—

• (a) to establish any endowments or create any trusts on any terms and conditions, and for any objects within the purposes of this Act, that the Arts Council thinks fit; and

• (b) to appoint trustees in respect of any of those endowments or trusts.

(2) Trustees appointed in respect of a trust must keep accounts in a manner that will enable the Arts Council to fulfil its obligations under section 154 of the Crown Entities Act 2004.

(1) The Arts Council consists of 13 members appointed by the Minister.

(2) Members of the Arts Council are the board for the purposes of the Crown Entities Act 2004.

(3) In appointing the members, the Minister must have regard to the need for members to have among them a broad knowledge of arts practices, including knowledge of professional and community arts.

(4) At least 4 of the persons appointed as members of the Arts Council must be persons who, in the opinion of the Minister, after consultation with the Minister of Māori Affairs, are qualified for appointment, having regard to their knowledge of—

• (a) te ao Māori (Māori world view); and

• (b) tikanga Māori (Māori protocol and culture); and

• (c) Māori arts.

(5) At least 2 of the persons appointed as members of the Arts Council must be persons who, in the opinion of the Minister after consultation with the Minister of Pacific Island Affairs, are qualified by their knowledge of the arts, and of the traditions or cultures, of the Pacific Island peoples of New Zealand.

(6) This section is in addition to section 29 of the Crown Entities Act 2004.

(1) The persons appointed as members of the Arts Council under section 10(4) are a committee of the Arts Council.

(2) The functions of that committee are—

• (a) to give advice to the Arts Council on matters relevant to the functions of the Council in relation to Māori arts; and

• (b) any other functions that the Arts Council delegates to the committee.

(3) This section does not limit—

• (a) the application of the Crown Entities Act 2004 to the committee referred to in subsection (1); or

• (b) the power of the Arts Council under that Act—

  • (i) to appoint other committees; or

  • (ii) to delegate its functions.

(1) The Arts Council must, from time to time and in the manner that it thinks fit, publicly invite nominations of persons with an interest in undertaking peer assessment for the purpose of the Arts Council's function under section 7(2)(c).

(2) The Arts Council must—

• (a) keep and maintain, in any manner it thinks fit, a public register of nominations received under subsection (1); and

• (b) make the register available for public inspection at its offices during normal office hours.

(3) The purpose of the register is to enable members of the public to know who has been nominated under subsection (1).

(4) The register must contain, for each person nominated,—

• (a) the name of the person; and

• (b) the area of that person's art expertise or interest.

(5) Other information collected in the course of receiving nominations will not be publicly available.

The Arts Council is exempt from the payment of income tax.

(1) Any body involved in community arts, including any local authority, may apply in writing to the Arts Council to be designated as a community arts provider.

(2) The Arts Council may designate a body as a community arts provider if the Arts Council is satisfied that—

• (a) the body complies with any guidelines set by the Council for community arts providers; and

• (b) the body represents, in relation to the arts, either a specific geographical area or a defined community of interest.

(3) The Arts Council may, if satisfied that a designated community arts provider has not complied with, or is not performing according to, any guidelines set by the Council,—

• (a) give the community arts provider not less than 60 days’ written notice of its intention to revoke its designation; and

• (b) proceed to revoke the designation.

(4) The Arts Council must maintain a register of designated community arts providers.

(1) The Arts Council may allocate funding to a designated community arts provider.

(2) A designated community arts provider to which funds are allocated must allocate those funds to community arts projects—

• (a) in accordance with guidelines set by the Arts Council; and

• (b) having regard to the principles set out in section 3(2).

(1) The Arts Council may establish community arts councils in relation to specific geographical areas.

(2) A community arts council may regulate its own procedure, subject to—

• (a) the provisions of this Act; and

• (b) any guidelines set by the Arts Council for community arts councils.

(3) A community arts council may apply in writing to the Arts Council to be designated as a community arts provider.

(4) If the Arts Council is satisfied that a community arts council has not complied with, or is not performing in accordance with, any guidelines set by the Council, it may disestablish the community arts council after giving it not less than 60 days’ written notice of its intention to do so.

(1) This section applies if funds are allocated—

• (a) to a designated community arts provider, but the designation is revoked under section 14(3); or

• (b) to a community arts council, but it is disestablished under section 16(4).

(2) Provided the funds have not been allocated to a community arts project, the funds must be repaid to the Arts Council.

(1) The Arts Council may appoint a local authority to have administrative responsibility for a community arts council, but only if—

• (a) the boundaries of that local authority lie wholly or partly within the area for which the community arts council carries out its activities; and

• (b) the local authority has consented in writing to the appointment.

(2) A local authority—

• (a) may give consent on the terms it considers appropriate for a representative of the local authority to be a member of the community arts council; and

• (b) must either—

  • (i) provide reasonable administrative and secretarial services to the community arts council; or

  • (ii) make a reasonable grant to the community arts council to enable it to provide for those services.

(3) If a local authority has administrative responsibility under subsection (1), it may—

• (a) appoint representatives of a community arts council to attend and participate in any meeting of the local authority that is to consider funding of the arts; and

• (b) consult a community arts council on any proposed policies, facilities, or activities of the local authority that relate to the arts.

(4) The Arts Council must, if requested in writing by a local authority appointed under subsection (1), revoke the appointment of that local authority, and the revocation takes effect at the end of the period that is 3 months after the date of the request.

(5) The Arts Council may revoke the appointment of a local authority under subsection (1) after giving not less than 60 days' notice in writing to the local authority and the community arts council of its intention to do so.

(6) In this section, local authority means a territorial authority within the meaning of section 5(1) of the Local Government Act 2002.

(1) No body may be incorporated or registered under any other enactment or in any other manner under any of the following names:

• (a) Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa and Arts Council:

• (b) Creative New Zealand:

• (c) Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council:

• (d) Te Waka Toi:

• (e) any other name that so resembles a name listed in paragraphs (a) to (d) as to be likely to mislead a person.

(2) No person or body other than the Arts Council may, either alone or with another person or body, operate or carry on activities under a name listed or described in subsection (1).

(3) No body other than a community arts council within the meaning of this Act may be incorporated or registered, or may operate or carry on activities, under any enactment or in any other manner under a name that includes the words “community arts council” or “arts council”.

(4) However, subsection (3) does not apply to a body that, immediately before the commencement of this Act, included a protected name in its name.

(5) For the purposes of subsection (4), a protected name is—

• (a)  a name listed or described in subsection (1):

• (b) “community arts council”:

• (c) “arts council”.

On and from the commencement of this Act, the term of office of every member of the Arts Council appointed under section 9 of the 1994 Act and holding office immediately before the commencement of this Act expires.

(1) On and from the commencement of this Act,—

• (a) the 2 arts boards established under section 13 of the 1994 Act and the South Pacific Arts Committee (the Committee) referred to in that Act and existing immediately before the commencement of this Act are dissolved; and

• (b) the term of office of every member of those boards and of the Committee expires.

(2) Any property, information, and other assets of the arts boards or of the Committee vest in the Arts Council under this Act.

(3) Any money payable to or by the arts boards or the Committee under the 1994 Act becomes payable to or by the Arts Council under this Act.

(4) The liabilities, contracts, rights, entitlements, and authorities of the arts boards or of the Committee are transferred to the Arts Council under this Act.

(5) If, immediately before the commencement of this Act, an arts board or the Committee had any responsibility for a matter under the 1994 Act, the responsibility for that matter transfers to the Arts Council for determination under this Act.

(6) Proceedings by or against an arts board or the Committee may be continued, completed, or enforced by or against the Arts Council under this Act.

(7) The dissolution of the arts boards and of the Committee does not affect—

• (a) the validity of any decisions made in accordance with the 1994 Act; or

• (b) any guidelines set under section 14(1)(h) of that Act.

(8) No person who was a member of an arts board or of the Committee is entitled to compensation as a result of the expiry under this section of his or her term of office.

A reference in an enactment or document to the Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council is a reference to the Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa continued by this Act.

On and from the commencement of this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, references to the Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa in any contract or other instrument, document, or notice must be read as a reference to the Arts Council continued by this Act.

Matters to which the 1994 Act applied that were, immediately before the commencement of this Act, commenced but not completed under the 1994 Act are to be continued and completed by the Arts Council under this Act.

(1) This section applies to proceedings under the 1994 Act that were commenced before the date on which this Act comes into force but not finally determined or withdrawn before that date.

(2) Proceedings to which this section applies continue under this Act as if those proceedings were commenced under this Act (whether the hearing of the proceedings commenced before or after the date on which this Act comes into force).

The Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa Act 1994 is repealed.

The enactments specified in the Schedule are consequentially amended in the manner set out in that schedule.