Functions and Duties of the Board
Sections 10 to 12 of the New Zealand Geographic Board (Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa) Act 2008 set out the Board’s principal functions, certain other functions the Board may undertake in order to carry out its principal functions, and the duties of the Board.
The functions of the Board are to:
- assign, approve, alter or discontinue official or recorded names
- investigate and determine the position and extent of features with official names
- adopt policies, rules and standards for official names
- examine cases of doubtful spelling
- investigate and determine the priorities of discovery of a feature
- collect original Māori names and encourage their use on official charts and maps
- seek advice from Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori (Māori Language Commission) on the correct orthography of Māori names
- undertake research into proposals to name or alter the name of geographic features, and undertake other functions necessary to give effect to the 2008 Act or any other enactment.
The duties of the Board are to:
- administer the New Zealand Gazetteer of Official Geographic Names
- develop rules, standards, or guidelines for naming Crown protected areas in consultation with the Minister of Conservation, and
- make enquiries and recommendations on matters referred to the Board by the Minister for Land Information.
