[3] The latest elections in 2022 have resulted in 4 new councillors, including Alan Somerville (Affiliated with the Green Ōtepoti), Elliot Weir, Lloyd McCall and Tim Mepham.

[citation needed] Most Otago Regional Councillors are unaffiliated, with only one being listed as "Independent" and one affiliated with the Green Party's Dunedin branch.

This investigation took place after a council report was leaked to the media which detailed concerns about the council's lack of ability to deal with new water permit applications, which the Minister for the Environment David Parker summarised in a letter[6] to the then Chairperson Marian Hobbs which stated that Professor Peter Skelton concluded that "the Otago Region does not have a fit for purpose planning framework in place" to deal with incoming water permits.

[8][9] Hobbs attracted criticism from her fellow Councillors after she wrote to Minister for the Environment David Parker during the national COVID-19 lockdown asked him whether or not he would consider appointing a commissioner to the Council if she lost a vote on policy implementation.

[12] An extraordinary meeting of the council was subsequently called for on 8 July 2021,[13] where she made an opening statement including "I was too effective in pushing the water reforms" and that "she would not back away from arguing for the environment".

[16] In mid December 2023, the Otago Regional Council decided to continue work on its freshwater management policy despite a change in government following the 2023 New Zealand general election.

"[19] During the Easter Weekend in late March 2024, the ORC notified its regional policy statement in after voting on 32 recommendations from an independent hearings panel during a closed doors meeting.

The Council defended its decision to exclude the public from the meeting on the grounds that the hearing panel's report and recommendations were subject to appeals.

Labour Party Members of Parliament Ingrid Leary and Rachel Brooking and environmental groups praised the council for taking steps to protect Otago's waterways.

In response, Simmonds reiterated the government's commitment to reforming the national freshwater policy statement and the Resource Management Act system.

[27] On 25 October, Cr Bryan Scott resigned from the Council in protest of the Government's move to block the notification of their land and water management plan.

Council Chair Gretchen Robertson justified the decision, citing the real demand for public transport and the need to make them accessible to the youngest users.