Guide to Submissions

A formal submission to Council must comply with the following guidelines.

The submission:

  • should reach Council within the Notification Period (see below). Council will accept postal correspondence marked on the day of closure of the notification period. Late submissions may not be accepted,
  • must include the development application number, proposal and property,
  • should be signed and include the name, address and contact information of each person making the submission. Council will not accept a submission if the sender’s identity is not properly disclosed.
  • should set out the reasons for your submission and the issues you wish Council to consider.
  • must include a Political Donations and Gifts Declaration (see below).
  • must state your preferred method of contact; mail or email (see below).

If you would like to discuss your submission further with Council staff, please indicate this in your submission, including details on how you wish to be contacted (phone/email). 

Verbal submissions cannot be accepted.

You can lodge your submission with Council:

  • by email to council@snowymonaro.nsw.gov.au
  • by mail to the CEO, Snowy Monaro Regional Council, PO Box 714 Cooma NSW 2630
  • in person at Council's Customer Service Centre, 81 Commissioner Street, Cooma
  • by fax to (02) 6455 1799

A submission that does not conform to these conditions may not be valid and may not be accepted by Council.

Notification Period

The Notification Period begins from the date of this letter. The default period of notification is 14 days*. 

Acknowledgement of Submissions

Council will issue a letter acknowledging your submission within 3 days of receiving. If you do not receive an acknowledgement letter, please contact Council to ensure that your submission has been received.

Contact by Council

Please nominate your preferred method for Council to contact you for the purposes of:

  • acknowledgment of your submission,
  • providing advice as to the determination of the application,
  • discussing the issues raised in your submission, and
  • should the application require reporting to Council, advising you of the date of the Council meeting.
  • discussing the issues raised in your submission, and
  • should the application require reporting to Council, advising you of the date of the Council meeting. Council will advise you of an application being reported to Council once the Business Paper is publicly available. Council meetings are held on 3rd Thursday of the month with Business Papers provided to the public by the previous Friday. 

If Council is required to provide advice via mail, Council cannot guarantee that advice will be received by mail by the Council meeting. Therefore it is preferred that an email address be provided to ensure advanced notice is provided.

Additional Submissions

Council may again notify neighbours should Council receive additional or amended information in relation to a development application. If you have already made a submission in relation to the application, you are not required to re-submit, however may make additional submissions should you have additional concerns.

Personal Information

Under the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009, your submission may be made publicly available, however personal information including your name, contact details and any other information contained within your submission that could identify you would generally be omitted from the submission for disclosure to the public. However, access to such information may be available from other means. Please see www.oic.nsw.gov.au for further information.

Political Donations & Gifts

Under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 a person who makes a relevant public submission (section 147(5)) to Council in relation to a relevant planning application made to Council OR submits a development application (section 147(4)) is required to disclose all reportable political donations and gifts (if any) made to Councillors or staff of Snowy Monaro Regional Council by the person making the submission or any associate of that person within the period commencing two (2) years before the submission is made and ending when the application is determined. Political donations or gifts are not relevant to the determination of any development application and does not provide grounds for challenging the determination of any development application. Disclosure improves the transparency of the decision-making process.

If you have not made a Political Donation or Gift you may attach the statement at the bottom of this page OR include a statement as part of your submission, for example: ‘In accordance with Section 147 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, I declare that I have not made any political donations or gifts within the last two (2) years, nor any associate.’

If you have made a Political Donation or Gift you will be required to complete a full Political Donations and Gifts Disclosure Statement.

* Please see the SMRC Planning & Development Community Participation Plan(PDF, 1MB) for further information.