On 29 May 2023, Property Council submitted to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) on their Building Levy Review.
Why this matters to our members
The building levy supports investment in and development of the building sector. Changes to the building levy are important for our members, given that they contribute towards the levy system through the building consent application process.
Our view
Overall, Property Council felt that the consultation material was not informative enough to provide a detailed submission. Although our members are generally supportive of the levy, they would like to see more information on what services the levy is currently being spent on and how this is being reported, as this is currently unclear.
Property Council believed that a wider range of services could be funded by the levy than currently legislated, and we therefore urged MBIE to review section 11 of the Building Act. We believed that expanding the Chief Executive’s powers would better improve New Zealand’s current issues within the building and construction sector.
At a high level, we recommended that MBIE:
- Increase the building levy threshold to $65,000;
- Increase investment in MBIE’s building system services and use the current surplus to provide further funding to the Building for Climate Change Programme; and
- Reduce the building levy surplus over a three-year period.