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FACT SHEET
COMMUNITY HOUSING PROVIDERS NATIONAL LAW
(TASMANIA) BILL 2013
The Community Housing Providers National Law (Tasmania) Bill 2013 (the Bill)
adopts the Community Housing Providers (Adoption of National Law) Act 2012 (in the
Appendix) of New South Wales, as a law of Tasmania (the National Law). It enables
Tasmania to take part in the national system of registration, monitoring and
regulation of community housing providers.
The introduction of the Bill is a key reform under the National Affordable Housing
Agreement and the National Partnership Agreement for the Nation Building and Jobs
Plan.
The main purposes of the Bill are:
to enact legislation to regulate registered community housing providers in
Tasmania, as part of a National Law, along with all other participating States
and Territories and
to provide for a Registrar for Community Housing to be appointed who will
work with the Registrars of other participating jurisdictions; set out the
persons to whom regulatory functions may be delegated; and establish that the
Appeal Tribunal in Tasmania for community housing provider appeals will be
the Magistrate's Court (Appeals/Review Division).
The National Law, which this Bill adopts, provides for a single national Register of
Community Housing Providers, a National Regulatory Code applied uniformly across
Australia, and the appointment, roles, functions and responsibilities of registrars
including their enforcement powers.
The introduction of this new system will provide a consistent regulatory
environment to support the growth and development of the not-for-profit
community housing sector. There are now community housing organisations that
operate across jurisdictional borders. They are conducting large scale housing
developments and manage large property portfolios.
Tasmania does not currently have a community housing provider regulatory system
or existing legislation relating to community housing. By participating in the national
regulatory system, Tasmania's social housing assets will be better protected. It will
also contribute to the viability, good governance and continued growth of the sector
now and into the future.
The Bill is predominantly mechanical, in that it applies the national legislation,
prescribes the role of Registrar and establishes the Appeal Tribunal.
The National Law has been developed through collaboration with an
inter-jurisdictional working group and an extensive national consultation process.
Similar legislation to this Bill is being introduced in all states and territories.
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The National Law will come into effect when the majority of jurisdictions' adoption
Bills have been passed. Most are on schedule to be passed by April 2013 for a
National Regulatory System commencement date of 1 July 2013. There will be an
18 month period from the commencement date to transition to the new system.
Note: The Community Housing Providers (Adoption of National Law) Act 2012 second
reading speech, explanatory notes and Bill as passed in the New South Wales
parliament can be found at:
http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/nswbills.nsf/131a07fa4b8a041cca25
6e610012de17/ecdcdbf29647bd6cca257a1b0020acea?OpenDocument
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