The NSW Government has proposed regulatory changes to create the Development Coordination Authority (DCA), making the planning system faster and easier to navigate for applicants and councils.
The changes seek to centralise State agency advice and decision-making so applicants no longer need to navigate at times conflicting and confusing advice from up to 22 different areas of government.
Through the DCA, the NSW Government is putting a stop to unnecessary delays ending a system which saw a development application (DA) with just one referral take an average of 60 days longer to assess than a DA without one, and where each additional referral added up to 100 days to assessment timeframes.
This is the first public exhibition to implement the landmark Planning System Reforms Bill 2025 which passed parliament with almost universal support in November 2025.
Under proposed regulatory changes the need for expert advice from the DCA and other bodies on local DAs will be consolidated from more than 800 dispersed, duplicative and inconsistent requirements across 175 planning instruments into a single list aligned with State priorities.
This list will sit in State Environmental Planning Policy (Planning Systems) 2021, making it easier to access and understand for all users of the planning system and safeguarding areas like the environment, heritage, bush fire management and infrastructure operation with the DCA as a single point of contact on all State matters.
The DCA will be required to meet strict timelines.
The DCA and other bodies will have 28 days to provide feedback on DAs, providing consistent response times and helping speed up assessment times.
The DCA, began initial operations in December and is already helping connect applicants to the right areas of government and providing post-development consent support so projects can begin construction sooner.
Its main functions – to bring together experts from a broad range of state agencies so conflicts can be resolved quickly and allow a single, coordinated response – will begin on 1 July. Find out more here.
The proposed changes are part of a landmark overhaul of the State’s planning system designed to tackle delays and complexity adding to construction costs and create a faster, fairer and modern planning system in NSW.
How DCA will work and proposed regulatory changes, will be exhibited from Thursday, 29 January to Wednesday, 25 February 2026. To have your say, visit www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au
NSW Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, Paul Scully, said that the State Government is cutting confusion and unnecessary delays in the planning system to support more homes, jobs and improve environmental outcomes.
“The Development Coordination Authority is one part of the State Government’s reforms to make NSW’s planning system faster and easier to navigate,” Scully said.
“There is nothing more frustrating for applicants than having their DA bounced from one department to another and then getting conflicting answers as to what they need to do. It has often meant that a proponent gets to the front of one queue only to be told to join another one.
“Delivering a single front door for applicants and councils needing input from NSW Government agencies on local DAs will result in clear, consistent advice supporting better outcomes for NSW.”
