South Australia
Local Government (Elections) Regulations 2010
under the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999

Contents
Part 1—Preliminary
1	Short title
2	Commencement
3	Interpretation
Part 2—Elections and polls
4	Declaration of eligibility
5	Manner in which nominations are made
6	Ballot papers for elections
7	Ballot papers for polls
8	Notice of use of postal voting
9	Issue of postal voting papers
10	Collation of certain information
11	Campaign donations return
12	Conduct of council during election period
Schedule 1—Prescribed forms
Schedule 2—Revocation of Local Government (Elections) Regulations 1999
Legislative history

Part 1—Preliminary
1—Short title
These regulations may be cited as the Local Government (Elections) Regulations 2010.
2—Commencement
These regulations will come into operation on 27 August 2010.
3—Interpretation
	(1)	In these regulations—
Act means the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999.
	(2)	In these regulations, a reference to a form of a particular number is a reference to the form of that number set out in Schedule 1.

Part 2—Elections and polls
4—Declaration of eligibility
For the purposes of section 8(2)(b) of the Act, the prescribed form for a declaration of eligibility is set out as Form 1.
5—Manner in which nominations are made
	(1)	For the purposes of section 19(1) of the Act, a form nominating a person as a candidate for election to an office of a council (being a form determined by the Electoral Commissioner) must be delivered to the returning officer before the close of nominations.
	(2)	For the purposes of section 19(2)(b) of the Act, the following requirements are prescribed with respect to a profile:
	(a)	the profile must be in typed or printed form;
	(b)	the profile must not exceed 150 words;
	(c)	the profile must be accurate and must not—
	(i)	be misleading; or
	(ii)	contain offensive or obscene material; or
	(iii)	refer to another person who has nominated as a candidate for election to the council (whether at the same election or any other election to be held on the same day) without the written consent of that person; or
	(iv)	comment on decisions or actions that have been made or taken by the council or on the decisions or actions of past or present members of the council;
	(d)	the profile must contain contact details of the candidate being—
	(i)	an address (not being a post office box); or
	(ii)	an email address; or
	(iii)	a telephone number.
	(3)	If—
	(a)	a profile submitted with a nomination form exceeds 150 words; and
	(b)	the candidate has not reduced the size of the profile to 150 words or less by the close of nominations,
the returning officer will exclude from the profile all words appearing after the 150th word (other than the contact details provided under subregulation (2)(d)).
	(4)	The profile must (in accordance with section 19(2)(c) of the Act) be accompanied by a statement declaring that the candidate is responsible for the content of the profile and such statement must be signed and dated by the candidate.
	(5)	The returning officer is not responsible for checking the accuracy of any information included in a profile and the returning officer bears no liability with respect to the publication of a profile under the Act and these regulations.
	(6)	A written consent required under subregulation (2)(c)(iii) must be lodged with the profile.
	(7)	Nothing in subregulation (2)(c) prevents a profile including declarations of public policy or promises of public action.
	(8)	For the purposes of section 19(3) of the Act, the following requirements are prescribed with respect to a photograph provided with a profile:
	(a)	unless otherwise approved by the returning officer, the photograph must be the same size as an Australian passport photograph;
	(b)	the photograph must only (or predominantly) show the head and shoulders of the candidate;
	(c)	the photograph must have been taken within the preceding period of 12 months;
	(d)	the photograph must bear on its back an endorsement by the candidate to the effect that the photograph is a photograph of the candidate that has been taken within the preceding 12 months.
6—Ballot papers for elections
Pursuant to section 29(5) of the Act, a ballot paper for an election—
	(a)	must be in a form determined by the Electoral Commissioner; and
	(b)	must—
	(i)	identify the council, and the election to which it relates; and
	(ii)	include directions to voters as to how to record a valid vote.
7—Ballot papers for polls
	(1)	Pursuant to section 33(3) of the Act, a ballot paper for a poll must contain—
	(a)	a statement of the proposition being submitted to electors at the poll; and
	(b)	2 squares—
	(i)	1 clearly indicated as the square to be marked by a person who is in favour of the proposition being submitted to electors at the poll; and
	(ii)	1 clearly indicated as the square to be marked by a person who is against the proposition being submitted to electors at the poll.
	(2)	The statement under subregulation (1)(a) will be determined by the relevant council after consultation with the returning officer.
8—Notice of use of postal voting
	(1)	For the purposes of section 38 of the Act, information to the following effect is prescribed:
	(a)	that the specified election or poll will be conducted entirely by means of postal voting and that no polling booth will be open for voting on polling day;
	(b)	that voting papers will be issued by post to every natural person, body corporate and group who or which has his, her or its name on the voters roll to be used for the purposes of the election or poll or, at the discretion of the returning officer, by personal delivery to potential voters at certain locations;
	(c)	that the voting papers being issued by post should be delivered to natural persons, bodies corporate and groups on the voters roll not later than a date specified by the returning officer1;
	(d)	that a person who does not receive voting papers but who believes that he or she is entitled to exercise a vote at the election or poll may take specified steps to apply for voting papers.
	(2)	A notice under section 38 of the Act may include other information which may, in the opinion of the returning officer, assist prospective voters to understand the postal voting system and processes under the Act and to participate in the election or poll.
Note—
1	This date must be consistent with section 39(1) of the Act.
9—Issue of postal voting papers
	(1)	Pursuant to section 39(3) of the Act, envelopes used under section 39(1) for ballot papers sent by post must have an extension to a flap on the back of the envelope that bears the name and address of—
	(a)	the natural person to whom the voting papers are issued; or
	(b)	in the case of papers issued to a body corporate or group—the designated person for the body corporate or group.
	(2)	For the purposes of section 39(6) of the Act, an explanatory notice will be prepared by the returning officer and must outline the steps which a voter must follow in order to comply with the requirements of section 40 of the Act.
10—Collation of certain information
For the purposes of section 51(1a) of the Act, a return must show, in relation to the relevant election—
	(a)	the number of ballot papers printed for the election; and
	(b)	the number of ballot papers issued on the basis of names on the voters roll; and
	(c)	the number of ballot papers issued on the basis of names declared to have been omitted in error from the voters roll; and
	(d)	the number of ballot papers replaced due to the re‑issue of voting papers; and
	(e)	the number of declaration envelopes accepted at the count; and
	(f)	the number of declaration envelopes rejected at the count; and
	(g)	the number of declaration envelopes returned because they have not been able to be effectively delivered; and
	(h)	the number of ballot papers removed from envelopes accepted at the count; and
	(i)	the number of ballot papers included in the count; and
	(j)	the number of ballot papers rejected as informal.
11—Campaign donations return
For the purposes of section 80(2) of the Act, the prescribed form for a campaign donations return is set out as Form 2.
12—Conduct of council during election period
	(1)	For the purposes of section 91A of the Act, the following kinds of decisions are excluded from the definition of designated decision:
	(a)	a decision of a kind referred to in paragraph (c) of the definition if the decision—
	(i)	relates to the carrying out of works in response to an emergency or disaster within the meaning of the Emergency Management Act 2004, or under section 298 of the Local Government Act 1999; or
	(ii)	is an expenditure or other decision required to be taken under an agreement by which funding is provided to the council by the Commonwealth or State Government or otherwise for the council to be eligible for funding from the Commonwealth or State Government; or
	(iii)	relates to the employment of a particular council employee (other than the chief executive officer); or
	(iv)	is made in the conduct of negotiations relating to the employment of council employees generally, or a class of council employees, if provision has been made for funds relating to such negotiations in the budget of the council for the relevant financial year and the negotiations commenced prior to the election period; or
	(v)	relates to a Community Wastewater Management Systems scheme that has, prior to the election period, been approved by the council;
	(b)	a decision of a kind referred to in paragraph (a) of the definition if the decision is for the suspension of a chief executive officer for serious and wilful misconduct.
	(2)	In this regulation—
election period has the same meaning as in section 91A of the Act.

Schedule 1—Prescribed forms
Form 1—Declaration of eligibility
Name of declarant:
Address:
Office:
Council:
Area/ward:
I declare that I would, if an election were held for the office set out above, be eligible to stand as a candidate for election to the office.
Signature:
Date:
Form 2—Campaign donations return
Name of candidate:
Disclosure period to which the return relates (section 81(3)(a)):
I declare that during the disclosure period:
[Tick 1 box]
	□	no gifts of a kind required to be disclosed were received by me
	□	gifts of a kind required to be disclosed were received by me
Total amount/value of all gifts received during disclosure period (section 81(1)(a)):
Number of persons who made those gifts (section 81(1)(b)):
Details of each gift are provided in the following table:

Amount or value of each gift	Name and address of each donor	Date on which gift made	

			
Signature:
Date:

Schedule 2—Revocation of Local Government (Elections) Regulations 1999
The Local Government (Elections) Regulations 1999 are revoked.

Legislative history
Notes
	•	For further information relating to the Act and subordinate legislation made under the Act see the Index of South Australian Statutes or www.legislation.sa.gov.au.
Principal regulations
Year	No	Reference	Commencement	
2010	194	Gazette 26.8.2010 p4469	27.8.2010: r 2