A small Land Valuation Branch was established in the Lands and Surveys Department in 1948. Under the Land Valuation Act 1950 it took over all work previously performed by the municipalities. The Branch remained in the Lands and Surveys Department until 1957 when it was transferred to Treasury. The amending act of 1957 prescribed that the Under Treasurer would become ex-officio Chief Valuer in place of the Secretary for Lands, as per the 1950 act. This provoked criticism on the grounds that valuation was a quasi-judicial role and should thus be clearly separated from the government's financial policy and taxation administration.;;In 1970 the Branch was transferred back to the Lands and Surveys Department. In the late 1990s it was amalgamated with survey and mapping to create the Information and Land Services Division.