This Government omnibus bill amends the Infrastructure Funding and Financing Act 2020, under which a special purpose vehicle — not a council — borrows to build infrastructure and repays it through a levy on the properties that benefit, keeping the debt off council balance sheets. It makes levies easier to approve: simplifying levy proposals and the mandatory considerations the Minister must weigh, removing the requirement to assess a levy's affordability where developers and existing landowners support it, and limiting councils' ability to withhold endorsement once statutory requirements are met. It also widens the Act beyond local authority funding constraints — to transport projects delivered by NZTA or KiwiRail and water infrastructure delivered by the new water organisations — and lets a special purpose vehicle start recovery action once levies have gone unpaid for more than four months. The bill is before Parliament; its second reading was agreed on 30 June 2026.
Parliament advanced this bill under urgency (second reading) — moving it through faster than usual, with less time than normal for public submissions.
This Government bill updates the Infrastructure Funding and Financing Act 2020. Under that Act, a special-purpose company — not the council — borrows money to build infrastructure like water pipes or roads, then repays it through a 'levy' charged on the properties that benefit, which keeps the debt off council balance sheets. The bill makes those levies easier to approve and widens the tool to more types of projects.
It simplifies levy proposals, limits councils' ability to block a levy once legal requirements are met, and extends the scheme beyond council projects to transport work by NZTA or KiwiRail and water infrastructure run by the new water organisations. It also lets the special-purpose company start recovery action after levies go unpaid for more than four months. Supporters say it unlocks funding for growth and housing without adding to council debt; critics caution it can lock in long-term costs for the households that pay the levy.
See the Parliament.nz ↗ site for the full bill.