Delegations (prior to July 2017)

Archive - this information is for reference only and no longer maintained.

Introduction

This section provides a summary of the NZ Transport Agency's planning, funding and procurement delegations.

Delegations in Agency

The Transport Agency has three levels of delegation:

• from the Board to Board Committees or the Chief Executive;
• from the Chief Executive to Group Managers; and
• from Group Managers to staff.

This section summarises current planning, funding and procurement delegations. Transport Agency staff are advised to refer to the original Delegations page on the Transport Agency intranet, to ensure full understanding of the delegations.

Delegations outside Agency

The Transport Agency Board has agreed that Approved Organisations may receive delegated power to make funding approvals for small improvement projects up to $5 million construction/implementation cost per activity, provided that:

• the Transport Agency is confident that the Approved Organisation has the financial management, governance, risk management, and staff capability to exercise the delegations,
• the Approved Organisation enters into a formal agreement with the Transport Agency,
• there are sufficient (up to $5 million)  projects in the Approved Organisation's programme to warrant setting up the delegation.

In effect, the Instrument of Delegation is from the Group Manager Planning & Investment to the Approved Organisation. The formal agreement is between the relevant Regional Manager Planning & Investment and the Approved Organisation, and sets out the respective responsibilities, including meeting Transport Agency expectations, principles and policy, as detailed in this Knowledge Base.

Programme management delegations

Organisations have delegated authority to manage programmes of activities, which may include the authority to transfer approved allocated funds between work categories and activity classes within the programme subject to terms and conditions formally advised by the Transport Agency (Planning & Investment). These programmes are:

• road maintenance programmes (road controlling authorities)
• public transport services programmes (regional authorities)
• minor improvements programmes (road controlling authorities and regional authorities)
• small improvement project programmes (as at July 2014, this delegation is to the Transport Agency (state highways) and Auckland Transport only)
• road safety promotion programmes (Approved Organisations and the Transport Agency)

Delegations structure

The following diagram summarises the flow of delegated authority from the Transport Agency Board to staff and Approved Organisations.

Investment decisions

The Transport Agency requires that all investment decisions are made by:

• applying the Transport Agency's Planning and Investment Principles, ensuring that the activity is eligible for Transport Agency funding, a planning and investing for outcomes approach is applied and Transport Agency operational policy is followed.
• using the Transport Agency's Assessment Framework to assess the priority of the activity for investment.

Expectations for exercising delegations

Those making investment decisions under delegation shall ensure that:

• investment decisions are made within delegation limits, such as maximum project size (construction cost estimate) or annual expenditure limit, at all times.
• the Transport Agency significance policy is applied.  This policy defines what is meant by "significant" and guides delegates to consider whether a decision is “significant” and should therefore be elevated to a higher level within the Transport Agency for the decision to be made. Approved Organisations that receive delegations for funding approvals are expected to be aware of the principles of the Transport Agency significance policy and to apply these to all decisions. 
• the scrutiny principle is applied to investment decisions for proposed Transport Agency activities. This principle requires that the Transport Agency must give a similar level of scrutiny to its own proposed activities as it would give to those proposed by approved organisations.
• the appropriate expertise to assess the application and make a recommendation is applied to the proposed activity. This will include expert independent peer review where necessary.
• the cash-flow profile for the proposed activity can be supported by the forecast Transport Agency funds, i.e. to ensure there are sufficient funds available to fund the activity. This should be determined in consultation with the P&I Investment Framework Manager.
• account is taken of any Transport Agency current cash-flow management  directives, which may include a moratorium on approving certain new activities.
• account is taken of any directive or guidance on current priority thresholds for approving investment in activities. Any proposal to invest in an activity outside the current priority threshold will trigger the Transport Agency significance policy.

Removal of delegations

Failure to meet Transport Agency expectations in exercising delegations may result in the full or partial removal of authority to make decisions under delegation. The removal of delegations may be permanent or temporary and reinstatement of delegations may require evidence that any issue that led to their removal has been rectified.

Delegations may also be removed by the Group Manager Planning & Investment, where he considers that the risk to Transport Agency investment has grown to an unacceptable degree. 

Approving funding assistance rates

Support strategies and endorse packages

Note: only if developed prior to the Business case Approach being implemented , i.e. developed during the 2012-15 NLTP.

* - "P&I" = Transport Agency Planning & Investment Group

- "HNO" = Transport Agency Highway & Network Operations Group, shown as Transport Agency (state highways) elsewhere in the Knowledge Base

Support Strategic Cases 

Support Strategic Cases and approve funding for development of Programme Business Cases that are listed in the current NLTP* (under Work Category 004)

 Adding Programme Business Cases to the NLTP

Varying the NLTP to add Programme Business Cases (under Work Category 004)

Support Programme Business Cases

 Support Programme Business Cases (for approving funding once the Programme Business Case is complete see "Activities progressed under Business Case Approach" below).

Other planning activities

Approve funding and variations of RLTP development management, model development and activity management planning.

Activities progressed from strategies and studies 

Approving funding of any phase of an improvement activity developed prior to Business Case Approach.

Activities progressed under Business Case Approach

Approving funding for development and delivery of any business case beyond development of the Programme Business Case.

Endorsement of Preferred Option

* Note that this does not include any funding approval.

Delegates should consider the scale and significance of the activity, and seek higher endorsement as appropriate.

Adding activities to the NLTP

Variations to the NLTP to add activities (other than Programme Business Cases). 

For information on delegations for adding Programme Business Cases to the NLTP see the "Adding Programme Business Cases to the NLTP" section

*  Proposals to add Approved Organisation or state highway activities to the NLTP will require prior variation of relevant RLTPs, unless already included in an RLTP or exempt. See the Prior RLTP variation not required section of the Unlisted Activities and Programme Variations overview for exemptions.

Cost-scope adjustments and programme variations

* Cumulative means the total of all cost-scope adjustments, including the proposed adjustment, since funding for the activity was initially approved. If the cumulative cost-scope adjustment means that the project construction/implementation cost will exceed the delegated authority for approving funding of any phase or business case, the proposed cost-scope adjustment must be elevated for approval to the appropriate level of delegation.

* If the cost-scope adjustment results in a change in the funding priority of an activity, e.g. to less than "Reserve", this will trigger the Agency's significance policy and require the decision to approve the adjustment to be elevated. 

* A decision on Significance needs to consider the impact of a scope change on the outcomes that will be delivered from the activity. If these are materially impacted, the significance of the proposed change should be viewed as High and would also require prior variation of the relevant RLTP. 

Emergency works activities

Note that the limits are per event.

* If cumulative variations mean that the cost will exceed the delegated authority for approving funding of the activity, the proposed variation must be elevated for approval to the appropriate level of delegation.

Cost variations other than Cost-Scope Adjustments

Note that all variations are subject to NLTF cash-flow constraints.

* Regional Managers may sub-delegate approval of fiscally neutral cost variations to Planning & Investment Managers and Senior Investment Advisors as appropriate.

Funding transfers between activity classes

* Where expenditure is likely to fall outside of the GPS range, the Minister's approval will be required to adjust the GPS range

Use of debt facility

Purchase of State Highway property

All property purchased under work category 331.

Procurement decisions 

Signing off that conditions of approval have been fulfilled