Of course we're not talking only one bylaw. All 67 territorial authorities in the country could be forced to spend time and money introducing separate bylaws. At ratepayers' expense.
The Auckland Council estimates the cost of passing a new bylaw at between $50,000 and $130,000, depending on its complexity.
Multiplying even the low figure by the number of local councils shows the cost to ratepayers nationwide will be into the millions. That's not counting the thousands of hours of consultation and debate that citizens will have to undertake.
And for what? To do what the parliamentarians should have done long ago, and remove the law banning Easter Sunday trading. I'd throw in Good Friday trading as well, but the politicians are too timorous to even contemplate that move.
Workplace Relations Minister Michael Woodhouse is presenting his surprise move as "enabling" local communities to deal with existing rules on shop trading which "are complex and relatively arbitrary".
He cites historical anomalies that allow shopping in Taupo on Easter Sunday, for example, but not in Rotorua.
This echoes Prime Minister John Key, who in Blenheim at Easter this year signalled a review, saying the laws were not working well and "tremendous inconsistency" was occurring.
He referred to Parnell traders, within 100m of his own electorate, being free to trade at Easter because of an old exemption, but shops in his bailiwick not being allowed to. "It doesn't make sense," he said.
It doesn't, but neither does hiving the decision off to local councils. With 67 sets of decision-makers, there's every chance the country will end up as now, pockmarked by "dry" and "wet" shopping areas.
Chances are that in Auckland, home to a third of New Zealanders, the 12 local wards will demand - and be permitted - to decide for their areas. In which case, the "tremendous inconsistency" which the Prime Minister wants to remove could not only survive, but multiply.
Mr Woodhouse has been mocked for rushing his bill forward to try to divert attention from the faux pas in his much watered-down workers health and safety legislation.
With that bill, he's accused of removing safeguards for farm workers under pressure from the strong National Party-supporting farming lobby.
With the shop trading legislation, he seems to be running scared of Christians and trade unionists fighting to maintain the status quo.
Mr Key was right last Easter when he said "there's enough people around the country saying that they think the law doesn't work".
But trying to chicken out of the hard decision by forcing the responsibility - and any backlash - on to local councils is an abdication of responsibility.
Parliament reintroduced Saturday trading in 1980, after a 35-year ban. In 1990, Parliament gave us seven-day trading, except on Anzac Day and the three main Christian holy days. It was Parliament that exempted assorted tourist towns, and in 2001, allowed garden centres to open on Easter Sunday.
Since 1990, 11 private members' bills have failed to get a majority for change, and successive governments have sat on the fence, refusing to take the lead and clean up the mess. The result is growing disdain for and defiance of the law.
Even Mr Woodhouse's bureaucrats have given up the fight - presumably after a nod and a wink from the Government. For the past two years, the Ministry of Business Innovation and Enterprise hasn't bothered to prosecute anyone, despite the two-fingered salute from many traders.
It's bad law, openly defied. It needs to be cleaned up by those who created it - the parliamentarians.
