Decision-making

Council Meetings

The Local Government Regulation 2012 requires local governments to meet at least once per month. Noosa Council has a Committee meeting system and holds three Committee meetings and one Ordinary meeting each month. View Council’s 2022 Council meeting dates.

Council’s meeting agendas, reports and minutes are provided on Council’s website.  These documents are released to the public at the same time as they are provided to Councillors.  All Council meetings are live streamed and recorded.  View the meeting live stream or past recordings of Council meetings on our YouTube channel.

The Local Government Regulation 2012 allows Council meetings to be closed to the public to discuss particular matters if the Councillors consider it necessary.  Council resolutions (decisions) cannot be made while the meeting is closed to the public, the matter can only be discussed.  Decisions must be made in open session. The reasons for which a Council meeting may be closed to the public are:

  • the appointment, discipline or dismissal of the Chief Executive Officer
  • industrial matters affecting employees
  • the Council’s budget
  • rating concessions
  • legal advice obtained by the Council or legal proceedings involving the Council including, for example, legal proceedings that may be taken by or against the Council
  • matters that may directly affect the health and safety or an individual or a group of individuals
  • negotiations relating to a commercial matter involving the Council for which a public discussion would be likely to prejudice the interests of the Council
  • negotiations relating to the taking of land by the Council under the Acquisition of Land Act 1967
  • a matter the Council is required to keep confidential under a law of, or formal arrangement with, the Commonwealth or State.

When considering a confidential matter, Council will often agree to remove the confidentiality of the item once the matter has been progressed.  For example, if a matter relating to the signing of a contract is discussed in confidential session, once that contract has been signed, the confidentiality is removed and the full report published on Council’s website along with the original Council meeting agenda. 

View the list of confidential matters considered by Council during closed session during this current term of Council.

 

Delegated Decisions

The Local Government Act 2009 allows a Council to delegate some decision making powers to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) who can then on-delegate those powers to another employee of Council.  Noosa Council reviews its delegations to the CEO annually.  View the 2022 delegation of authority register.

Planning Decisions

Not all decisions on planning applications are made by Councillors at Council meetings.  The ability to manage, assess and decide a range of development applications is also currently delegated to Council officers. Reports on the planning applications recently decided by delegated authority are provided each month in the Planning & Environment Committee Meetings. All meeting documents can be found on the Council Meeting, Agenda and Minutes webpage. 

You can view or track the progress of development applications from lodgement through to determination at Planning Online.