196Public comment

#### 196 Public comment (1) Before making an airport capacity declaration for an airport, the Minister must: (a) cause to be published in a newspaper circulating generally in the State in which the airport is situated a notice: (i) stating that the Minister has prepared a draft version of the declaration; and (ii) stating that the draft version of the declaration was prepared on the basis of an assessment of the capacity of the airport; and (iii) stating that copies of the draft version and of the assessment will be available for inspection and purchase by members of the public during normal office hours throughout the period of 45 days after the publication of the notice; and (iv) specifying the place or places where the copies will be available for inspection and purchase; and (v) inviting members of the public to give written comments about the draft version and the assessment to the Minister within 45 days after publication of the notice; and (b) make copies of the draft version and the assessment available for inspection and purchase by members of the public in accordance with the notice. (2) If members of the public have given written comments about the draft version or the assessment in accordance with the notice, the Minister must have due regard to those comments in making the declaration. (3) Subsection (2) does not, by implication, limit the matters to which the Minister may have regard. > Note: If an airport capacity declaration is varied, the variation must be dealt with under this section in the same manner as an original declaration—see subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.