Victorian Bills

[Index] [Search] [Download] [Related Items] [Help]


This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.


ELECTRICITY SAFETY AMENDMENT (BUSHFIRE MITIGATION) BILL 2013

                 PARLIAMENT OF VICTORIA

Electricity Safety Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation)
                     Bill 2013



                       TABLE OF PROVISIONS
Clause                                                                      Page
  1      Purposes                                                              1
  2      Commencement                                                          2
  3      Principal Act                                                         2
  4      Definitions                                                           2
  5      Regulation of installation                                            3
  6      Insertion of headings                                                 3
  7      Section 84 substituted and new sections 84A to 84D inserted           3
         84       Requirement to keep trees clear of electric lines--
                  distribution companies                                       3
         84A      Requirement to maintain line--occupiers of land
                  with private or low voltage electric lines                   4
         84B      Requirement to keep trees clear of private electric
                  lines--occupiers of contiguous land                          4
         84C      Requirement to keep trees clear of electric lines--
                  Councils                                                     5
         84D      Requirement to keep trees clear of electric lines--
                  other persons                                                5
  8      Amendments to change references to section 84                         5
  9      Municipal fire prevention plans must specify procedures for
         the identification of trees that are hazardous to electric lines      6
  10     Repeal of section 105A                                                6
  11     New section 112 inserted                                              6
         112      Revisions that do not relate to bushfire mitigation          6
  12     Submission of bushfire mitigation plans for acceptance                7
  13     Accepted bushfire mitigation plan forms part of accepted
         ESMS                                                                  8
  14     Section 113E substituted                                              8
         113E Revisions that only relate to bushfire mitigation                8
  15     Repeal of amending Act                                                8
                             

ENDNOTES                                                                       9




571363B.I-12/11/2013                    i      BILL LA INTRODUCTION 12/11/2013

 


 

PARLIAMENT OF VICTORIA Introduced in the Assembly Electricity Safety Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation) Bill 2013 A Bill for an Act to amend the Electricity Safety Act 1998 in relation to the mitigation of bushfire risks arising from electric lines and electricity networks and for other purposes. The Parliament of Victoria enacts: 1 Purposes The main purposes of this Act are to amend the Electricity Safety Act 1998-- (a) to provide that Councils which are managers 5 of public land are responsible for keeping trees clear of electric lines in declared areas; and (b) to remove the requirement for the Roads Corporation to keep trees clear of electric 10 lines; and 571363B.I-12/11/2013 1 BILL LA INTRODUCTION 12/11/2013

 


 

Electricity Safety Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation) Bill 2013 s. 2 (c) to modernise the provisions relating to requirements to keep trees clear of electric lines; and (d) to reduce the frequency with which major 5 electricity companies are required to submit bushfire mitigation plans. 2 Commencement (1) Subject to subsection (2), this Act comes into operation on a day or days to be proclaimed. 10 (2) If a provision of this Act does not come into operation before 29 June 2015 it comes into operation on that day. 3 Principal Act See: In this Act, the Electricity Safety Act 1998 is Act No. 15 25/1998. called the Principal Act. Reprint No. 6 as at 3 November 2011 and amending Act Nos 59/2011, 43/2012, 22/2013 and 35/2013. LawToday: www. legislation. vic.gov.au 4 Definitions In section 3 of the Principal Act-- (a) insert the following definition-- "Council has the same meaning as in the 20 Local Government Act 1989;"; (b) in the definition of public land, for "municipal council" substitute "Council"; 571363B.I-12/11/2013 2 BILL LA INTRODUCTION 12/11/2013

 


 

Electricity Safety Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation) Bill 2013 s. 5 (c) in the definition of responsible person, for "section 84" substitute "Subdivision 1 of Division 2 of Part 8"; (d) in the definition of urban area, in 5 paragraph (a), for "0·4 hectares" substitute "0·1 hectares". 5 Regulation of installation In section 46(1)(a)(vi) of the Principal Act, for "municipal council" substitute "Council". 10 6 Insertion of headings (1) Before section 84 of the Principal Act insert-- "Subdivision 1--Persons responsible for maintaining lines". (2) Before section 85 of the Principal Act insert-- 15 "Subdivision 2--Other matters". 7 Section 84 substituted and new sections 84A to 84D inserted For section 84 of the Principal Act substitute-- "84 Requirement to keep trees clear of electric 20 lines--distribution companies A distribution company is responsible for the keeping of the whole or any part of a tree clear of an electric line within its distribution area unless under this Subdivision another 25 person is responsible for-- (a) the maintenance of the line; or (b) the keeping of the whole or any part of a tree clear of the line. 571363B.I-12/11/2013 3 BILL LA INTRODUCTION 12/11/2013

 


 

Electricity Safety Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation) Bill 2013 s. 7 Note Section 3 defines maintenance in relation to an electric line or a private electric line as including the keeping of the whole or any part of a tree clear of the 5 line. 84A Requirement to maintain line--occupiers of land with private or low voltage electric lines (1) An occupier of land above or below the 10 surface of which there is a private electric line is responsible for the maintenance of that line. Note Section 3 defines maintenance in relation to a private 15 electric line as including the keeping of the whole or any part of a tree clear of the line. (2) An occupier of land on which there is a low voltage electric line which solely services that land is responsible for the keeping of the 20 whole or any part of a tree situated on the land clear of that line. 84B Requirement to keep trees clear of private electric lines--occupiers of contiguous land 25 (1) An occupier of land that is contiguous to land on which there is a private electric line is responsible for the keeping of the whole or any part of a tree situated on the occupier's land clear of the line. 30 (2) For the purposes of this section, the occupier may enter onto the land on which there is a private electric line and perform any acts necessary to keep a tree clear of the line. 571363B.I-12/11/2013 4 BILL LA INTRODUCTION 12/11/2013

 


 

Electricity Safety Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation) Bill 2013 s. 8 84C Requirement to keep trees clear of electric lines--Councils A Council responsible for the management of public land in an area of land declared 5 under section 81 is responsible for the keeping of the whole or any part of a tree situated on that land clear of an electric line that is not a private electric line. 84D Requirement to keep trees clear of electric 10 lines--other persons A person (other than a distribution company) who owns or operates an electric line, or installs or uses an electric line under an Act of the Commonwealth, is responsible for the 15 keeping of the whole or any part of a tree clear of the electric line.". 8 Amendments to change references to section 84 (1) In section 85(c) of the Principal Act, for "section 84(5) or (7)" substitute "section 84 or 84D". 20 (2) In section 86 of the Principal Act-- (a) in subsection (8), for "section 84(7)" substitute "section 84"; (b) in subsection (8A), for "section 84(5)" substitute "section 84D"; 25 (c) in subsection (9)-- (i) for "section 84(4), (5) or (7)" substitute "section 84, 84C or 84D"; (ii) for "section 84" substitute "Subdivision 1"; 30 (d) in subsection (9A)-- (i) for "section 84(4), 84(5) or 84(7)" substitute "section 84, 84C or 84D"; 571363B.I-12/11/2013 5 BILL LA INTRODUCTION 12/11/2013

 


 

Electricity Safety Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation) Bill 2013 s. 9 (ii) for "section 84" substitute "Subdivision 1". (3) Section 90A(2) of the Principal Act is repealed. (4) In sections 90B(5) and 90C(2) of the Principal 5 Act, for "section 84(4), (5), (6) or (7)" substitute "section 84, 84C or 84D". 9 Municipal fire prevention plans must specify procedures for the identification of trees that are hazardous to electric lines 10 In section 86B of the Principal Act, for "municipal council" substitute "Council". 10 Repeal of section 105A Section 105A of the Principal Act is repealed. 11 New section 112 inserted 15 After section 111 of the Principal Act insert-- "112 Revisions that do not relate to bushfire mitigation (1) This section applies if-- (a) a major electricity company is required, 20 or has been requested, to submit a revised electricity safety management scheme to Energy Safe Victoria under section 107 or 109; and (b) the matter giving rise to that 25 requirement or forming the basis of the request does not relate to that part of the scheme that is an accepted bushfire mitigation plan. Note 30 See also section 113D(1). 571363B.I-12/11/2013 6 BILL LA INTRODUCTION 12/11/2013

 


 

Electricity Safety Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation) Bill 2013 s. 12 (2) Despite anything to the contrary in this Division or Division 2A, the company is not required to submit to Energy Safe Victoria a revised bushfire mitigation plan as part of the 5 revised electricity safety management scheme.". 12 Submission of bushfire mitigation plans for acceptance (1) For section 113A(1) of the Principal Act 10 substitute-- "(1) A major electricity company must prepare and submit to Energy Safe Victoria, for acceptance under this Division, a plan for the company's proposals for mitigation of 15 bushfire in relation to the company's supply network at the end of each period of 5 years commencing on the later of-- (a) the date when the accepted bushfire mitigation plan is first accepted under 20 this Division; or (b) the date of the most recent acceptance of a revision of the accepted bushfire mitigation plan submitted under this Division. 25 Penalty: In the case of a natural person, 300 penalty units; In the case of a body corporate, 1500 penalty units.". (2) In section 113A(3) of the Principal Act, for 30 "a copy of" substitute "the prescribed information about". 571363B.I-12/11/2013 7 BILL LA INTRODUCTION 12/11/2013

 


 

Electricity Safety Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation) Bill 2013 s. 13 13 Accepted bushfire mitigation plan forms part of accepted ESMS In section 113D(2) of the Principal Act, for "sections 106, 107, 109 and 110" substitute 5 "sections 106 and 108". 14 Section 113E substituted For section 113E of the Principal Act substitute-- "113E Revisions that only relate to bushfire 10 mitigation (1) This section applies if a major electricity company is required, or has been requested, to submit a revised bushfire mitigation plan to Energy Safe Victoria under section 107 15 or 109. Note See also section 113D(1) and (2). (2) Despite anything to the contrary in Division 2 or this Division, the company is 20 only required to submit that revised plan.". 15 Repeal of amending Act This Act is repealed on 29 June 2016. Note The repeal of this Act does not affect the continuing operation of 25 the amendments made by it (see section 15(1) of the Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984). 571363B.I-12/11/2013 8 BILL LA INTRODUCTION 12/11/2013

 


 

Electricity Safety Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation) Bill 2013 Endnotes ENDNOTES By Authority. Government Printer for the State of Victoria. 571363B.I-12/11/2013 9 BILL LA INTRODUCTION 12/11/2013

 


 

 


[Index] [Search] [Download] [Related Items] [Help]