Privacy Amendment (Energy and Water Utilities) Regulations 2017 [F2017L00170]-Response required [2017] AUSStaCSDLM 128 (29 March 2017)

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Instrument	Privacy Amendment (Energy and Water Utilities) Regulations 2017 [F2017L00170]
Purpose	Amends the Privacy Regulation 2013 to extend permission for energy and water utilities in the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory to disclose credit information
Last day to disallow	20 June 2017
Authorising legislation	Privacy Act 1988
Department	Attorney-General's
Scrutiny principle	Standing Order 23(3)(a)

Background

Privacy Amendment (Australian Government Solicitor and Energy and Water Utilities) Regulation 2016 [F2016L01913] (the 2016 regulations) intended to amend the Privacy Regulation 2013 (the privacy regulation) to extend permission for energy and water utilities in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and the Northern Territory (NT) to disclose credit information until 1 January 2018. This permission would enable those utilities to continue to access the credit reporting system. However, as a result of a drafting error in the commencement provision in the 2016 regulations, the relevant provision in the privacy regulation was repealed on 1 January 2017.

Drafting

Privacy Amendment (Energy and Water Utilities) Regulations 2017 [F2017L00170] (the 2017 regulations) amend the privacy regulation to permit energy and water utilities in the ACT and the NT to disclose credit information until 1 January 2018.

However, the committee notes that as the 2017 regulations commenced on 29 February 2017 it appears that there was no law in operation to support any disclosures of credit information by utilities in the ACT and the NT during the period between the repeal of the 2016 regulations and the commencement of the 2017 regulations.

The committee is concerned about the effect, if any, on the legality of any disclosures that may have occurred during the period between the repeal of the 2016 regulations on 1 January 2017 and the commencement of the 2017 regulations on 29 February 2017. The ES does not provide any information about the effect, if any, of the drafting error in the commencement provision of the 2016 regulations.

The committee requests the advice of the minister in relation to the above.