The ACT's proposed new planning act is expected to be revealed imminently, with a new bill being considered by the territory government's cabinet.
There will be a three-month consultation on the new "outcomes-focused" bill before it will be introduced to the ACT Legislative Assembly.
Planning Minister Mick Gentleman said the new bill was ready for a cabinet decision. An exposure draft of the bill could be released as soon as next month.
Developers would be given greater flexibility under the new act, which would have fewer rules governing elements such as building heights or the number of units in a development.
ACT chief planner Ben Ponton said officials had worked to achieve a balance between providing certainty to builders and developers while providing flexibility to allow for innovative developments.
"We are hearing from industry but also community that they are looking for certainty as to that process," Mr Ponton told a Planning, Transport and City Services hearing on Thursday.
"But the real challenge and the balance is making sure that in providing certainty that we don't restrict so much that we don't have that flexibility because we want to make sure that we encourage good, innovative projects."
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The new act came following an extensive review of the current planning system, which Mr Ponton has previously conceded was broken.
He said the rules-based system gave developers a "clear pathway" as they simply saw the development application process as a "box-ticking exercise".
"As a result of a very rules-based system, people are just going through and ticking off each of the rules," Mr Ponton said in February last year.
"What we then find is that as we are going through that process that the planning authority may be almost forced to approve a development that we know is not ideal and the community doesn't particularly want."
