Victorian Numbered Acts Victorian Numbered ActsAfter Part 15 of the Principal Act insert —
In this Division—
"amending Act" means the Water and Catchment Legislation Amendment Act 2019 ;
"serviced property commencement" means the day on which section 5(2) of the amending Act comes into operation.
On the serviced property commencement—
(a) any property that was, immediately before that commencement, serviced property because of paragraph (c), (d), (e), (f), (g) or (h) of the definition of serviced property in section 3(1) (as in force immediately before that commencement) is taken to be serviced property as if it had been declared to be serviced property under section 144(1); and
(b) any property that was, immediately before that commencement, deemed to be serviced property within the meaning of section 220(1) because of clause 12 of Schedule 15, is taken to be serviced property as if it had been declared to be serviced property under section 144(1)(c)(i).
(1) Within 12 months of the serviced property commencement—
(a) an Authority may—
(i) identify land as serviced property for the purposes of Part 8, 9, 10 or 11; and
(ii) lodge a plan in the Central Plan Office under this section showing the identified land; and
(b) as soon as practicable after the plan is lodged in the Central Plan Office under subsection (1), the Authority must publish notice of the plan in the Government Gazette.
(2) Any land identified in the plan notified in the Government Gazette under subsection (1)(b)—
(a) as serviced property for the purposes of Part 8 is taken to be land declared to be serviced property by the Authority under section 144(1)(a); or
(b) as serviced property for the purposes of Part 9 is taken to be land declared to be serviced property by the Authority under section 144(1)(b); or
(c) as serviced property for the purposes of—
(i) water delivery services to the land under Part 11 is taken to be land declared to be serviced property by the Authority under section 144(1)(c)(i); or
(ii) irrigation drainage or salinity mitigation services under Part 11 in relation to the land or that directly benefit the land, is taken to be serviced property by the Authority under section 144(1)(c)(ii); or
(d) as serviced property for the purposes of Part 10 is taken to be land declared to be serviced property by the Authority under section 144(1)(d).
(3) For the purposes of this section, land may be identified as serviced property in a plan lodged under subsection (1) by an Authority if—
(a) for Part 8, the land—
(i) is within the water supply district of the Authority; and
(ii) the Authority has made provision for water supply services to the land; and
(iii) the Authority identifies the land on the plan lodged under this section as land to which the services have been provided; and
(iv) the Authority has imposed or purported to impose fees under a tariff under section 259 for the provision of those services to that land for 2 years or more before the serviced property commencement; or
(b) for Part 9, the land—
(i) is within the sewerage district of the Authority; and
(ii) the Authority has made provision for sewerage services to the land; and
(iii) the Authority identifies the land on a plan prepared under this section as land to which the services have been provided; and
(iv) the Authority has imposed or purported to impose fees under a tariff under section 259 for the provision of those services to that land for 2 years or more before the serviced property commencement; or
(c) for Part 11, the land—
(i) is within the irrigation district of the Authority; and
(ii) the Authority has made provision for—
(A) water delivery services to the land; or
(B) irrigation drainage or salinity mitigation services in relation to the land or that directly benefit the land; and
(iii) the Authority identifies the land on a plan prepared under this section as land for which the Authority has made provision for those services; and
(iv) the Authority has imposed or purported to impose fees under a tariff under section 259 for the provision of those services to that land for 2 years or more before the serviced property commencement; or
(d) for Part 10, the land—
(i) is within the waterway management district of the Authority; and
(ii) the Authority has made provision for regional drainage or floodplain management services that are of direct benefit to the land; and
(iii) the Authority identifies the land on a plan prepared under this section as land for which the Authority has made provision for those services; and
(iv) the Authority has imposed or purported to impose fees under a tariff under section 259 for the provision of those services to that land for 2 years or more before the serviced property commencement.
This Act is taken to have applied to any fee to which section 337(3)(a)(iv), (b)(iv), (c)(iv) or (d)(iv) applies as if, at the time at which the fee was imposed or purported to be imposed and for the period to which the fee was related or purported to be related, the property was serviced property.
In this Division—
"validation date" means 19 March 2019.
(1) Subject to section 342—
(a) a requirement to make a payment or a number of payments, or a purported requirement to make a payment or a number of payments, under section 287A(1) as in force at any time before the validation date is to be taken to be, and always to have been, a valid requirement, despite a failure by any person to comply with that section; and
(b) any payment collected or received, or purportedly collected or received, under or for the purposes of section 287A(1) as in force at any time before the validation date is to be taken to be, and always to have been, validly collected or received, despite a failure by any person to comply with that section; and
(c) any action, matter or thing taken, arising or done as a result or consequence of, or in reliance upon, such a requirement, collection or receipt or purported requirement, collection or receipt, whether under this Act or otherwise, is taken to be, and to always have been, valid and effective.
(2) Without limiting subsection (1), that subsection applies with respect to the following—
(a) a failure to consider either of the following matters in making a decision under or for the purposes of section 287A(1) as in force at any time before the validation date—
(i) a change in use (however described) as specified in section 287A(1)(a) as in force at any time before the validation date;
(ii) whether particular works or measures carried out, or to be carried out, offset the impact of change in use on the environment;
(b) a failure to comply with section 287A as in force at any time before the validation date in respect of one or more of the following matters—
(i) the nature or location of particular works or measures carried out, or to be carried out, including but not limited to whether the particular works or measures are capital works or measures, or relate to operation and maintenance;
(ii) the person or body that carried out, or is to carry out, particular works or measures;
(iii) the giving of, or failure to give, notices;
(iv) the matters specified, or not specified, in notices;
(c) a failure to comply with section 287A as in force at any time before the validation date in respect of the property to which a requirement to make a particular payment or a number of particular payments purported to relate, including but not limited to the following—
(i) that the person imposing the requirement did so on the basis that the person was satisfied that particular environmental impacts were a result of a change in use in respect of that property and other properties, rather than a change in use in respect of that property only;
(ii) otherwise in relation to the ownership or location of the property;
(d) compliance, or lack of compliance, with a policy direction issued by the Minister.
(3) To avoid doubt, a reference in this section to particular works or measures to be carried out includes a reference to particular works or measures to be carried out after the commencement of this section.
(1) Subject to section 342—
(a) a fee relating to salinity mitigation or offsetting that is fixed, or purportedly fixed, under section 64R as in force at any time before the validation date is to be taken to be, and always to have been, validly fixed, despite a failure by any person to comply with that section; and
(b) a fee relating to salinity mitigation or offsetting that is collected or received, or purportedly collected or received, under or for the purposes of section 64R as in force at any time before the validation date is to be taken to be, and always to have been, validly collected or received, despite a failure by any person to comply with that section; and
(c) any action, matter or thing taken, arising or done as a result or consequence of, or in reliance upon, such a fixing, collection or receipt or purported fixing, collection or receipt, whether under this Act or otherwise, is taken to be, and to always have been, valid and effective.
(2) Without limiting subsection (1), that subsection applies with respect to a failure to provide services of a particular kind or to a particular person.
(1) Despite section 340 and 341, nothing in those sections is to be taken to affect the outcome of proceedings that had commenced in a court or tribunal before the validation date, but were not completed as at that date.
(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), proceedings are completed when any period for appeal or review in relation to matters arising in the proceedings has expired.
(1) Section 12E of the Subordinate Legislation Act 1994 does not apply to—
(a) the first determination made under section 232 immediately after the commencement of that section and any amendment of that determination; and
(b) the first determination made under section 232B immediately after the commencement of that section and any amendment of that determination.
(2) A determination referred to in subsection (1) expires 12 months from the day on which it is published in the Government Gazette.
(1) Subject to subsection (2), on and from the commencement day Division 1B of Part 3 as amended by the Water and Catchment Legislation Amendment Act 2019 applies in relation to an uncompleted Sustainable Water Strategy, to that part of the process that has not been completed.
(2) On and from the commencement day the following provisions as in force immediately before the commencement day apply to an uncompleted Sustainable Water Strategy—
(a) section 22D(2);
(b) section 22E(b).
(3) In this section—
"commencement day" means the day on which section 9 of the Water and Catchment Legislation Amendment Act 2019 comes into operation;
"uncompleted Sustainable Water Strategy" means a draft of a Sustainable Water Strategy that is being prepared under Division 1B of Part 3 but that has not been endorsed as a Sustainable Water Strategy under section 22G(1) before the commencement day.
(1) An infringement notice issued under section 295A of the old Act that is outstanding immediately before the commencement day is taken not to be affected by that commencement and the old Act continues to apply to that infringement notice as if section 94 of the Water and Catchment Legislation Amendment Act 2019 had not come into operation.
(2) In this section—
"commencement day" means the day on which section 94 of the Water and Catchment Legislation Amendment Act 2019 comes into operation;
"old Act" means this Act as in force immediately before the commencement day.
On the commencement of section 56 of the Water and Catchment Legislation Amendment Act 2019 , regulation 9 of the Water (Estimation, Supply and Sewerage) Regulations 2014 is taken to continue in force as if that regulation were made under section 142A(2)(b) of this Act (as in force on and from that commencement) and may be amended or revoked accordingly.".
Part 3—Repeal of spent and redundant provisions in the Water Act 1989