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Legislation

This page presents a selection of legislation relevant to the production and use of official statistics. The acts are listed from latest to oldest.

Statistics New Zealand's enabling legislation is the Statistics Act 1975.

Legislation

Brief description
New Zealand Productivity Commission Act 2010 Enables access, at the Government Statistician’s discretion, to Statistics New Zealand's microdata for bona fide research or statistical purposes on productivity-related matters.
Immigration Act 2009 Covers the collection of information Statistics NZ uses to produce migration statistics.
Local Government (Auckland Council) Act 2009 When the Local Government Commission determines local board area boundaries (or subdivisions of those areas) for electoral purposes, it must ensure they coincide with the boundaries of the current statistical meshblock areas. Meshblock areas are determined by Statistics NZ and used for parliamentary electoral purposes.
Income Tax Act 2007 Covers income tax, provisional tax, and income from business or trade.
Public Records Act 2005 Covers how Statistics NZ carries out its disposal processes for all statistical schedules and other documents that are no longer required for statistical purposes.
Local Government Act 2002 Defines the minimum populations for districts and regions, and requires the boundaries of districts and regions to conform to the boundaries of statistical meshblock areas determined by Statistics NZ and used for parliamentary electoral purposes.
Accident Compensation Act 2001 Provides that injury-related statistics are a separate class of official statistics under section 4 of the Statistics Act 1975 and that the appropriate classification under that section must be used for the purposes of the administration of part 5 of the Act.

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Employment Relations Act 2000
  • Promotes building productive employment relationships through good faith in all aspects of the employment environment and of the employment relationship.
  • Recognises that relationships must be built not only on the implied mutual obligations of trust and confidence, but also on a legislative requirement for good faith behaviour.
  • Acknowledges that there is an inherent inequality of power in employment relationships.
  • Promotes collective bargaining and protects the integrity of individual choice.
  • Promotes mediation as the primary problem-solving mechanism.
Customs and Excise Act 1996 Governs the export and import of goods and documentation pertaining to that.
Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Act 1995 Authority behind the documentation of birth, death, and marriage records used in demographic statistics.
Copyright Act 1994 Protects copyrighted works. Copyright is a property right that exists in original works of the following descriptions: (a) literary, dramatic, musical, or artistic works (b) sound recordings (c) films (d) broadcasts (e) cable programmes (f) typographical arrangements of published editions.
Tax Administration Act 1994 Authorises Inland Revenue staff to provide information to Statistics NZ and enables Statistics NZ to produce official statistics from that information.
Citizens Initiated Referenda Act 1993 Statistics NZ provides advice to the Clerk of the House on the form to be used in the referendum.
Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 Relates to the guarantees given, or deemed to be given, to consumers upon the supply of goods or services, and the rights of redress against suppliers and manufacturers in respect of any failure of goods or services to comply with any such guarantees.
Electoral Act 1993 Establishes the Representation Commission, one member of which is the Government Statistician (or deputy), with the duty of dividing New Zealand into general electoral districts following each census of population and dwellings. Requires the Government Statistician to report census results to the commission, including the Māori electoral population.
Human Rights Act 1993 Provides better protection of human rights in New Zealand in general accordance with United Nations Covenants or Conventions on Human Rights.

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Privacy Act 1993 Relates to personal information. Contains special exemptions for data collected for statistical purposes (ie recognises that different privacy rules apply where data is used only to produce aggregate information where the identity of the individual is not material).
Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 Provides for the prevention of harm to employees at work, promotes excellence in health and safety management by employers, and prescribes and imposes on employers and others, duties in relation to the prevention of harm to employees.
Education Act 1989 Provides that rates of student allowances must be adjusted using the consumers price index (produced by Statistics NZ).
Public Finance Act 1989
  • Governs the use of public financial resources.
  • Provides a framework for parliamentary scrutiny of the government's expenditure proposals and the government's management of its assets and liabilities.
  • Establishes lines of responsibility for effective and efficient management of public financial resources.
  • Specifies the principles for responsible fiscal management in the conduct of fiscal policy and requires regular reporting on the extent to which the Government's fiscal policy is consistent with those principles.
  • Specifies the minimum financial and non-financial reporting obligations of ministers, departments, Offices of Parliament, and schedule for organisations.
  • Safeguards public assets by providing statutory authority and control for the borrowing of money; issuing of securities; use of derivative transactions; investment of funds; operation of bank accounts; and giving of guarantees and indemnities.
State Sector Act 1988 Governs appointment of Government Statistician (no political input) and generally sets framework for employment contracts.
Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 Similar to the Official Information Act 1982, but relates to local government.
Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987 Prescribes minimum entitlements to parental leave and protection of rights of employees during pregnancy and parental leave.
Commerce Act 1986 Governs pricing and competitive behaviour.
Official Information Act 1982 Relates to information other than personal information (which the Privacy Act covers). Requires release of information held unless there is good reason to withhold it. With the Statistics Act, Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act, Archives Act, and Privacy Act, it sets the framework for Statistics NZ data collection, retention, and disclosure policy and practice. 
Flags, Emblems, and Names Protection Act 1981 Protects name of department from use by others in same or similar form.
Contraception, Sterilisation, and Abortion Act 1977 Prescribes details to be collected on abortions, and so limits abortion statistics to those details.
Ombudsmen Act 1975 Authorises Ombudsmen to investigate complaints made against the actions of government departments.
Statistics Act 1975 Statistics NZ's enabling legislation. It also covers official statistics produced by other government departments.
Government Service Equal Pay Act 1960 Applies the principle that women should receive the same pay as men where they do equal work under equal conditions.
Oaths and Declarations Act 1957 Governs the making and taking of statutory declarations such as the Declaration of Secrecy specified in section 21 of the Statistics Act 1975.
Government Superannuation Fund Act 1956 Applies to employees who belong to this fund.

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