Executive Allocation of Responsibility for Smart Meter RF Oversight
SPENCER JONES made this Official Information request to Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
Currently waiting for a response from Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, they must respond promptly and normally no later than (details and exceptions).
From: SPENCER JONES
Dear Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet,
Subject: OIA – Executive Allocation of Responsibility for Smart Meter RF Oversight
Request:
Pursuant to the Official Information Act 1982, I request:
Any Cabinet minute, Cabinet paper, Cabinet Office circular, Ministerial direction, or machinery-of-government decision that assigns responsibility for oversight of radiofrequency (RF) exposure from Advanced Metering Infrastructure (smart meters).
Any documentation identifying a lead agency responsible for:
Oversight of RF exposure standards as they relate to smart meters;
Cross-agency coordination regarding smart meter RF concerns;
Periodic reassessment of NZS 2772.1:1999 in light of AMI deployment.
If no such allocation instrument or executive assignment exists, please confirm that no explicit allocation document is held.
I am seeking confirmation of formal allocation of responsibility, not scientific assessment material.
Kind regards,
Spencer Jones
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
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From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
[IN-CONFIDENCE]
Kia ora,
Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA)
received on 24 February 2026, copied below. We will respond to your
request within the statutory timeframes set out in the Act. If we are
unable to meet these timeframes we will notify you.
Your request will be managed by the Ministerial Services team within DPMC.
If you have any queries, please feel free to contact us at
[1][DPMC request email].
DPMC may publish the response to your OIA request. If we publish the
response your personal information, including your name and contact
details, will be removed.
Ngā mihi,
Ministerial Coordinator
Ministerial Services
Corporate
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
E [2][DPMC request email]
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communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
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From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
[UNCLASSIFIED]
Kia ora,
Please see the attached letter regarding your recent OIA request.
Ngā mihi,
Ministerial Coordinator
Ministerial Services
Corporate
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
E [1][DPMC request email]
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
Link: [2]File-List
Link: [3]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [4]themeData
Link: [5]colorSchemeMapping
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The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
References
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1. mailto:[DPMC request email]
2. file:///tmp/Signature_files/filelist.xml
3. file:///tmp/Signature_files/editdata.mso
4. file:///tmp/Signature_files/themedata.thmx
5. file:///tmp/Signature_files/colorschememapping.xml
6. file:///tmp/Signature_files/filelist.xml
7. file:///tmp/Signature_files/editdata.mso
8. file:///tmp/Signature_files/themedata.thmx
9. file:///tmp/Signature_files/colorschememapping.xml
From: OIA Requests
Kia ora Spencer,
Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (the
Act), received by the Ministry of Health - Manatû Hauora on 27 February
2026. You requested:
"Any Cabinet minute, Cabinet paper, Cabinet Office circular, Ministerial
direction, or machinery-of-government decision that assigns responsibility
for oversight of radiofrequency (RF) exposure from Advanced Metering
Infrastructure (smart meters).
Any documentation identifying a lead agency responsible for:
• Oversight of RF exposure standards as they relate to smart meters;
• Cross-agency coordination regarding smart meter RF concerns;
• Periodic reassessment of NZS 2772.1:1999 in light of AMI deployment.
If no such allocation instrument or executive assignment exists, please
confirm that no explicit allocation document is held.
I am seeking confirmation of formal allocation of responsibility, not
scientific assessment material."
The reference number for your request is H2026079376. We will endeavour to
respond to your request as soon as possible and in any event no later than
27 March 2026 being 20 working days after the day your request was
received. If we are unable to respond to your request by then, we will
notify you of an extension of that timeframe.
If you have any queries regarding your request, please feel free to
contact the OIA Services Team on [1][email address]. If any
additional factors come to light which are relevant to your request,
please do not hesitate to contact us so that these can be taken into
account.
Under section 28(3) of the Act you have the right to ask the Ombudsman to
review any decisions made under this request. The Ombudsman may be
contacted by email at: [2][email address] or by calling 0800
802 602.
Ngâ mihi,
OIA Services Team
Ministry of Health | Manatû Hauora
M[3]inistry of Health information releases
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References
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mailto:[email address]
2. mailto:[email address]
mailto:[email address]
3. https://www.health.govt.nz/about-ministr...
https://www.health.govt.nz/about-ministr...
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
[UNCLASSIFIED]
Kia ora
Please find attached a letter regarding your recent OIA request.
Ngā mihi
Ministerial Coordinator
Ministerial Services
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
E [1][DPMC request email]
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
Link: [2]File-List
Link: [3]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [4]themeData
Link: [5]colorSchemeMapping
show quoted sections
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[DPMC request email]
mailto:[DPMC request email]
2. file:///tmp/Signature_files/filelist.xml
3. file:///tmp/Signature_files/editdata.mso
4. file:///tmp/Signature_files/themedata.thmx
5. file:///tmp/Signature_files/colorschememapping.xml
6. file:///tmp/Signature_files/filelist.xml
7. file:///tmp/Signature_files/editdata.mso
8. file:///tmp/Signature_files/themedata.thmx
9. file:///tmp/Signature_files/colorschememapping.xml
SPENCER JONES left an annotation ()
Public Annotation – Transfer to MBIE (Machinery-of-Government Significance)
The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has transferred this request to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) under section 14(b)(ii) of the Official Information Act. 
The request seeks confirmation of whether any formal executive allocation instrument exists assigning responsibility for oversight of radiofrequency (RF) exposure from advanced metering infrastructure (smart meters), including:
• Oversight of RF exposure standards in the smart meter context;
• Cross-agency coordination responsibility;
• Responsibility for periodic reassessment of NZS 2772.1:1999.
The Cabinet Office confirms that it holds Cabinet material, but has transferred the request on the basis that the information is considered more closely connected with MBIE’s functions. 
This transfer is procedurally standard.
However, it is structurally significant because it signals that executive responsibility for smart meter RF oversight may be anchored within the energy/standards/market portfolio rather than solely within the health portfolio.
The substantive question remains:
• Does a formal allocation instrument exist?
• Has Cabinet expressly assigned responsibility?
• Or is oversight operating through portfolio convention without explicit designation?
MBIE now has the statutory timeframe to respond.
I will update this thread once MBIE has issued its decision
From: Ministerial Services
Kia ora Spencer Jones,
On behalf of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment I
acknowledge your email of 24 February 2026 sent to the Department of the
Prime Minister and Cabinet requesting, under the Official Information Act
1982, the following:
"Pursuant to the Official Information Act 1982, I request:
Any Cabinet minute, Cabinet paper, Cabinet Office circular, Ministerial
direction, or machinery-of-government decision that assigns responsibility
for oversight of radiofrequency (RF) exposure from Advanced Metering
Infrastructure (smart meters).
Any documentation identifying a lead agency responsible for:
Oversight of RF exposure standards as they relate to smart meters;
Cross-agency coordination regarding smart meter RF concerns;
Periodic reassessment of NZS 2772.1:1999 in light of AMI deployment.
If no such allocation instrument or executive assignment exists, please
confirm that no explicit allocation document is held.
I am seeking confirmation of formal allocation of responsibility, not
scientific assessment material."
Your request has been transferred to the Ministry of Business, Innovation
and Employment from the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet on 2
March 2026 and is being processed in accordance with the Official
Information Act 1982. A response will be sent to you in due course.
We will endeavour to respond to your request as soon as possible, and no
later than 30 March 2026, being 20 working days after the day your
request was received. If we are unable to respond to your request by then,
we will notify you of an extension of that timeframe. If you have any
enquiries regarding your request feel free to contact us via email to
[1][email address].
Nāku noa, nā
Ministerial Services
Strategy and Assurance
Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment
15 Stout Street, Wellington 6011 | P O Box 1473 Wellington 6140
References
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SPENCER JONES left an annotation ()
Public Annotation – Structural Significance of Transfer to Ministry of Health
The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) has transferred this request to the Ministry of Health under section 14(b)(ii) of the Official Information Act .
The request does not seek scientific assessment material. It seeks confirmation of whether any formal executive instrument — such as a Cabinet minute, Cabinet paper, machinery-of-government decision, or Ministerial allocation — assigns responsibility for oversight of radiofrequency (RF) exposure from smart meters, including:
• Oversight of RF exposure standards as they relate to smart meters;
• Cross-agency coordination regarding smart meter RF concerns;
• Periodic reassessment responsibility for NZS 2772.1:1999 in light of advanced metering deployment.
DPMC’s transfer indicates that any relevant Cabinet material is considered more closely connected with the Ministry of Health portfolio.
This is procedurally standard. However, the structural importance of this transfer is as follows:
1️⃣ Machinery-of-Government Clarity
The request concerns formal allocation of responsibility at the executive level. If Cabinet material exists assigning responsibility, that will clarify which agency holds oversight accountability.
2️⃣ Portfolio Attribution
By transferring to the Ministry of Health, DPMC implicitly signals that RF exposure oversight may sit within the health portfolio. Whether that reflects a formal allocation instrument, or simply conventional portfolio practice, remains to be clarified by the Ministry’s response.
3️⃣ Cross-Agency Oversight Architecture
Smart meter deployment intersects with multiple agencies (health, energy, standards, safety, market regulation). This request seeks to determine whether oversight responsibility has been explicitly assigned, or whether it operates through distributed convention.
4️⃣ Reassessment Responsibility
If no Cabinet minute or executive instrument assigns responsibility for periodic reassessment of NZS 2772.1 in the context of AMI deployment, that fact would also be informative from a governance perspective.
This annotation records the transfer as a structural governance step. The substantive question — whether an explicit allocation instrument exists — remains to be answered by the Ministry of Health within the statutory timeframe.
I will update this thread once the Ministry has responded.
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