Tasmanian Bills Clause Notes

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FLUORIDATION AMENDMENT BILL 26 OF 2009

                                          
                         Fluoridation Amendment Bill 2009 
                                          
                                CLAUSE NOTES 
                                          
 
Clause 1                  

Establishes the short title of the Act. 

 

Clause 2              

Establishes the day on which the Act will commence. 

 

Clause 3              

Clarifies the references to the Principal Act. 

 

Clause 4 

Amends the membership requirements of the Fluoridation Committee.  Paragraph 

(a) clarifies that the Director may appoint a delegate in his or her place as member 

and chairperson of the Fluoridation Committee, and extends the required 

qualifications of a person in respect to urban water supply schemes. 

 

Paragraph (b) modernises and extends the relevant qualifications of persons eligible 

for appointment on the Fluoridation Committee in respect to chemistry and 

medicine. 

 

Clause 5          

Alters the functions of the Fluoridation Committee (the Committee) under section 8 

of the Act.   

 

Under paragraph (a): 
 
 
    ·   Subsection (1)(c)(i) is amended to remove the function of the Committee to 

        advise the Minister of the estimated capital costs of fluoridation works and 

        the estimated cost of operating and maintaining those works.  

 

    Under paragraph (b), the powers and functions of the Fluoridation Committee 

    are extended and the existing provisions renumbered: 

    ·   New paragraphs (d), (da), (db) and (dc) extend the powers and functions of 

        the Committee.  Paragraph (d) provides that the Committee may approve a 

        Code of Practice for the fluoridation of public water supplies.  Paragraph (da) 

        enables the Committee to monitor and report to the Minister on the water 

        supply authority's performance and compliance with an approved Code of 

        Practice.  Paragraph (db) requires the Committee to monitor and report to the 

        Minister on the water supply authority's performance and compliance with 

        any direction given under the Act.  

 

    ·   New paragraph (dc) maintains the existing powers and functions of the 

        Committee to meet, determine analysis method, review fluoride levels in 

        water supplies, manage complaints and request reports.  An amendment is 

        made to provide that these powers are to be exercised only for the purposes 

        of monitoring and reporting powers under the new paragraphs (d), (da) and 

        (db). 

 

Paragraph (c) amends subsection 8(2)(b) to remove the reference to a fluoride 

concentration ratio and replaces it with reference to a "prescribed fluoride 

concentration range". 

 

Paragraph (d) omits subsection 8(6) which allowed the Minister to reimburse certain 

expenses incurred by a water supply authority. 

 

Clause 6 
 
 
Increases the penalty under section 9 the Act for obstructing or failing to comply 

with certain requests of the Committee or an authorised person. 

 

Clause 7 

Amends the existing requirement under Section 11 to maintain the content of 

fluoride in a public water supply in accordance with a direction, to maintaining the 

content in accordance with the prescribed concentration range. 

 

Clause 8 

Repeals the funding provisions under section 15 of the Act which provide that costs 

and expenses incurred shall be defrayed out of monies provided by Parliament.  The 

effect of this clause is to remove the obligation on the government under the Act to 

pay for fluoridation works, fluoridation expenses, and the administration of the Act 

generally. 

 

Clause 9 

Amends subsection 16(2) by removing the penalty for continuing offences, and 

increasing the penalty for an offence under the Act for which no specific penalty is 

prescribed, to 50 penalty units. 

 

Clause 10 

Amends the reporting requirements under section 17 of the Act.  Paragraph (a) omits 

subsection (1) which required the Committee to report to the Minister annually.  

Reporting to the Minister is now provided for under section 8(1)(da) and (db) (as 

amended under clause 5 above).  Paragraph (c) removes the obligation of the 

Minister to table a report before Parliament and instead requires the Director of 

Public Health to provide to the Regulator established under the Water and Sewerage 

Industry Act 2008 any reports generated under the new section 8(1)(da) and (db).  

 

Clause 11 
 
 
Extends the regulation making powers under section 18 of the Act.  Paragraph (c) 

corrects a cross reference to a renumbered subsection. Paragraph (d) increases the 

penalty for a breach of the regulations. 

 

 

 
 
 

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