Commonwealth Numbered Acts

PETROLEUM PRODUCTS PRICING ACT 1981 No. 117, 1981 - SECT 19

19. (1) If a declared company supplies petroleum products or services of a
particular description in a locality where the company has, during the
immediately preceding period of 90 days, supplied petroleum products or
services of that description on the same or substantially similar terms and
conditions, and the price at which the company supplies the petroleum products
or services is higher than the highest price at which during that preceding
period the company supplied petroleum products or services of that description
in that locality on the same or substantially similar terms and conditions,
the company is guilty of an offence unless-

   (a)  a notice in writing stating that the company proposes to supply
        petroleum products or services of that description in that locality
        and specifying the price at which, and the terms and conditions on
        which, the company proposes to supply the petroleum products or
        services has been given, as prescribed, to the Authority; and

   (b)  the event or events referred to in one of the following sub-paragraphs
        has or have occurred:

        (i)    the prescribed period has expired;

        (ii)   the Authority has served notice in writing on the company
               stating that the Authority does not intend to hold an inquiry
               as to whether the proposed price is justified; or

        (iii)  the Authority has served notice in writing on the company
               specifying a price for the supply of petroleum products or
               services of that description in that locality on those terms
               and conditions that the Authority considers to be justified,
               being a price that is lower than the price specified in the
               notice by the company, and the company has, not later than 7
               days after service on the company of the notice by the
               Authority, given, as prescribed, to the Authority a further
               notice stating that the price at which the company proposes to
               supply any petroleum products or services of that description
               in that locality on those terms and conditions will not be
               higher than the price specified in the notice by the Authority.

(2) If a declared company supplies petroleum products or services of a
particular description in a locality where the company has previously supplied
petroleum products or services of that description on the same or
substantially similar terms and conditions but has not, during the immediately
preceding period of 90 days, so supplied petroleum products or services of
that description, and the price at which the company supplies the petroleum
products or services is higher than the highest price at which the company has
previously supplied petroleum products or services of that description in that
locality on the same or substantially similar terms and conditions, the
company is guilty of an offence unless-

   (a)  a notice in writing stating that the company proposes to supply
        petroleum products or services of that description in that locality
        and specifying the price at which, and the terms and conditions on
        which, the company proposes to supply the petroleum products or
        services has been given, as prescribed, to the Authority; and

   (b)  the event or events referred to in one of the following sub-paragraphs
        has or have occurred:

        (i)    the prescribed period has expired;

        (ii)   the Authority has served notice in writing on the company
               stating that the Authority does not intend to hold an inquiry
               as to whether the proposed price is justified; or

        (iii)  the Authority has served notice in writing on the company
               specifying a price for the supply of petroleum products or
               services of that description in that locality on those terms
               and conditions that the Authority considers to be justified,
               being a price that is lower than the price specified in the
               notice by the company, and the company has, not later than 7
               days after service on the company of the notice by the
               Authority, given, as prescribed, to the Authority a further
               notice stating that the price at which the company proposes to
               supply any petroleum products or services of that description
               in that locality on those terms and conditions will not be
               higher than the price specified in the notice by the Authority.

(3) If a declared company supplies petroleum products or services of a
particular description in a locality where the company has not previously
supplied petroleum products or services of that description, or in a locality
where the company has not previously supplied petroleum products or services
of that description on the same or substantially similar terms and conditions,
and-

   (a)  the company has not previously supplied petroleum products or services
        of that description elsewhere in Australia, or has not previously
        supplied petroleum products or services of that description elsewhere
        in Australia on the same or substantially similar terms and
        conditions; or

   (b)  where the company has previously supplied petroleum products or
        services of that description elsewhere in Australia on the same or
        substantially similar terms and conditions-the price at which the
        company supplies the petroleum products or services is higher than the
        highest price at which the company has previously supplied
        petroleum products or services of that description in Australia on the
        same or substantially similar terms and conditions, the company is
        guilty of an offence unless-

   (c)  a notice in writing stating that the company proposes to supply
        petroleum products or services of that description in that locality
        and specifying the price at which, and the terms and conditions on
        which, the company proposes to supply the petroleum products or
        services has been given, as prescribed, to the Authority; and

   (d)  the event or events referred to in one of the following sub-paragraphs
        has or have occurred:

        (i)    the prescribed period has expired;

        (ii)   the Authority has served notice in writing on the company
               stating that the Authority does not intend to hold an inquiry
               as to whether the proposed price is justified; or

        (iii)  the Authority has served notice in writing on the company
               specifying a price for the supply of petroleum products or
               services of that description in that locality on those terms
               and conditions that the Authority considers to be justified,
               being a price that is lower than the price specified in the
               notice by the company, and the company has, not later than 7
               days after the service on the company of the notice by the
               Authority, given, as prescribed, to the Authority a further
               notice stating that the price at which the company proposes to
               supply any petroleum products or services of that description
               in that locality on those terms and conditions will not be
               higher than the price specified in the notice by the Authority.

(4) A company that commits an offence against sub-section (1), (2) or (3) is
punishable, on conviction, by a fine not exceeding $10,000.

(5) At any time after a company has given a notice to the Authority under this
section specifying a price at which the company proposes to supply
petroleum products or services and before the Authority commences to hold an
inquiry as to whether that price is justified-

   (a)  the company may give, as prescribed, to the Authority a further notice
        stating that the previous notice is to have effect as if there were
        substituted for the price specified in that notice such lower price as
        is specified in the further notice; and

   (b)  where a further notice is so given by the company, the previous notice
        by the company has effect in accordance with the further notice.

(6) Subject to sub-sections (7), (8) and (9), the prescribed period for the
purposes of this section is the period of 21 days that commenced on the day on
which the notice referred to in paragraph (1) (a), (2) (a) or (3) (c), as the
case may be, was given to the Authority.

(7) The Authority may, with the consent of a company, determine, before the
expiration of the period of 21 days referred to in sub-section (6), that the
prescribed period in relation to that company for the purposes of this section
shall be a specified longer period and, in that case, a reference to that
longer period shall, for the purposes of the application of sub-section (6) in
relation to that company, be deemed to be substituted in that sub-section for
the reference to that period of 21 days.

(8) Where the Authority has served a notice on a company under sub-paragraph
(1) (b) (iii), (2) (b) (iii) or (3) (d) (iii), then, for the purposes of the
application of sub-section (6) in relation to that company, the reference in
that sub-section to a period of 21 days, or, if a reference to a longer period
is deemed to be substituted in that sub-section by the application of
sub-section (7), the reference to that longer period, shall be construed as a
reference to the period of 21 days, or to that longer period, as the case may
be, increased by a further period of 14 days.

(9) If the Authority serves notice in writing on the company before the
expiration of the period that, but for this sub-section, would be the
prescribed period in relation to that company for the purposes of this section
stating that the Authority is to hold an inquiry as to whether the proposed
higher price or the proposed price, as the case may be, is justified, then,
notwithstanding sub-sections (6), (7) and (8), the prescribed period in
relation to the company for the purposes of this section is the period that
commenced on the day on which the notice referred to in paragraph (1) (a), (2)
(a) or (3) (c), as the case may be, was given to the Authority and ends on
whichever is the earlier of the following days:

   (a)  the day on which a copy of the report by the Authority in relation to
        the proposed higher price or the proposed price is received by the
        company; or

   (b)  the fourteenth day after the expiration of-

        (i)    the period of 3 months that commenced on the day on which the
               Authority served notice on the company that it intended to hold
               the inquiry; or

        (ii)   such further period as is, or such further periods as are,
               specified in a notice or notices served on the company under
               sub-section 22 (2).

(10) When a company receives a copy of a report by the Authority in relation
to the price at which the company proposes to supply petroleum products or
services of a particular description in a particular locality-

   (a)  the company shall, within 14 days after the report is so received,
        give notice in writing to the Authority specifying the price at which
        the company is supplying or proposes to supply petroleum products or
        services of that description in that locality; and

   (b)  the Authority shall, within 14 days after it receives the notice under
        paragraph (a), make available to the public particulars of the price
        specified in that notice.

(11) A company that contravenes paragraph (10) (a) is guilty of an offence and
is punishable, on conviction, by a fine not exceeding $1,000.

(12) This section applies subject to section 21.