As NSW residents, we all care about the planning decisions which protect and strengthen the regions, communities and streets in which we live. These decisions have a profound influence on where we work, live, play and shop. 
 
The State’s main planning law, the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act (EP&A Act), was written in 1979 and it outlines how decisions are made about what people can do with their land. For instance, it allows councils to create local environmental plans (LEPs) which broadly define where and what development can take place. It also allows councils to prepare development control plans which typically provide more fine-grain detail which guide how developments can proceed.

In July 2011 the NSW Government began a comprehensive review of the state's planning system.

The first two phases of the review are now complete. For more information, go to the Listening and Scoping phase page and the Issues Paper phase page. A Green Paper with recommendations for a new planning system in NSW is currently being prepared for the Minister for Planning & Infrastructure for release by the end of May 2012.

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