Wingecarribee councillor and LGA president Sara Murray said local councils had some significant reservations about the recommendations in the Bird Report, which included making two-storey homes on 400 square metre blocks complying developments.

Complying developments do not need to be approved by council, or require any sort of community consultation or neighbour notification.

Cr Murray said the Government's suggestion that different standards could be applied to metropolitan and regional councils showed a lack of understanding about the real issues.

"Mittagong is different to Bourke and each council has developed their own LEP (local environment plan) in consultation with their community," she said.

Cr Murray said thorough local government research last year uncovered several reasons for delayed development application assessment, which had nothing to do with council inefficiency.

She said 56 NSW councils had surveyed every development application they received over a month period and discovered 42 per cent were faulty when they were submitted and either did not contain the relevant information or contravened stated council or planning policy.

She said 10 per cent of applications went to State government bodies which doubled the length of time it took to make a decision, while four per cent went before council which slowed the process again.