Water Efficiency Labelling and StandardsAct 2006 - No 8 of 2006 assented to 29.6.2006

Contents

Part 1—Preliminary

1 Short title

2 Commencement

3 Objects of Act

3A Numbering consistent with Commonwealth Act

4 Act binds Crown

Part 2—Interpretation

7 Definitions

Part 3—National WELS scheme

8 WELS scheme to be national cooperative scheme

10 Relationship to other State laws

12 Meaning of corresponding law

16 No doubling up of liabilities

Part 4—WELS products and WELS standards

20 Meaning of WELS labelled

Part 5—WELS Regulator

22 Functions of Regulator

23 Powers of Regulator

24 Arrangements with other agencies

25 Delegation

Part 6—Registration of WELS products

26 Applying for registration

27 Documentation etc to be provided with application for registration

28 Registration of products

29 Grounds for refusing to register

30 Period of registration

31 Cancelling or suspending registration

Part 7—Offences relating to supply of WELS products

Division 1—Applicable WELS standards

32 Meaning of applicable WELS standard

Division 2—Registration and labelling

33 Registration requirement

34 Labelling registered products

Division 3—Minimum efficiency and performance requirements

35 Minimum water efficiency—products required to be registered

36 Minimum general performance—products required to be registered

Division 4—Misuse of WELS standards etc

37 Misuse of WELS standards and information

38 Information inconsistent with WELS standards

39 Using information in supply of products

Division 5—Extensions of criminal responsibility

39A Attempts

39B False or misleading information or document

Part 8—Other enforcement

Division 2—Publicising offences

41 Regulator may publicise offences

Division 3—Enforceable undertakings

42 Acceptance of undertakings

43 Enforcement of undertakings

Division 4—Injunctions

44 Injunctions

Part 9—WELS inspectors

Division 1—Appointment of WELS inspectors

45 Regulator may appoint WELS inspectors

46 Identity cards

46A Offences in relation to WELS inspectors

Division 2—Powers of WELS inspectors

47 Purposes for which powers can be used

48 Inspection powers—public areas of WELS business premises

49 Inspection powers—with consent

50 Refusing consent is not offence

51 Inspection powers—with warrant

52 Announcement before entry under warrant

53 Copy of warrant to be given to occupier

54 Occupier must provide inspector with facilities and assistance

55 Seizing or securing evidential material

56 Holding evidential material for more than 90 days

57 Returning evidential material

Division 3—Applying for warrants to enter WELS premises

58 Ordinary warrants

59 Warrants by telephone, fax etc

Division 4—Giving WELS information to WELS inspectors

60 Meaning of person who has WELS information

61 Regulator may require person to provide information

62 Regulator may require person to appear before WELS inspector

62A False or misleading information or documents

Division 5—Privilege against self incrimination

63 Privilege against self incrimination not affected

Part 10—Money

Division 1—WELS Account

65 Credits to WELS Account

66 Purpose of WELS Account

Division 2—Charging fees etc

67 Regulator may charge for services

68 Recovery of amounts

Part 11—Review of decisions

69 Meaning of reviewable decision and affected person

70 Notification of decisions and review rights

71 Internal review

72 Review of decisions by District Court

Part 12—Miscellaneous

72A Imputation in proceedings of conduct or state of mind of officer, employee etc

72B Liability of officers of body corporate

73 Compensation for damage to electronic equipment

75 Annual report

76 Review of operation of WELS scheme

77 Regulations

Schedule 1—Comparison with Commonwealth Act

The Parliament of South Australia enacts as follows:

Part 1—Preliminary

1—Short title

This Act may be cited as the Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards Act 2006.

2—Commencement

This Act will come into operation on a day to be fixed by proclamation.

3—Objects of Act

The objects of this Act are as follows:

(a) to conserve water supplies by reducing water consumption;

(b) to provide information for purchasers of water use and water saving products;

3A—Numbering consistent with Commonwealth Act

(1) A provision of this Act for which there is a corresponding provision in the Commonwealth Act is given the number of the corresponding provision.

(2) A provision of this Act for which there is no corresponding provision in the Commonwealth Act is given a number that includes a capital letter.

Note—

Schedule 1 contains a table comparing the provisions of the Commonwealth Act as at the date that Act came into operation with the provisions of this Act as at its date of assent.

4—Act binds Crown

This Act binds the Crown in right of this State and also, so far as the legislative power of the State extends, the Crown in all its other capacities, but not so as to impose any criminal liability on the Crown.

Part 2—Interpretation

7—Definitions

In this Act—

affected person—section 69(2) and (3);

agency—

(a) in relation to the Commonwealth, includes the following:

(i) an Agency within the meaning of the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997 of the Commonwealth;

(ii) a body corporate established for a public purpose under a law of the Commonwealth; and

(b) in relation to this or another State or a Territory, includes the following:

(i) an administrative unit within the meaning of the Public Sector Management Act 1995;

(ii) a Department of State (however described) of another State or a Territory;

(iii) a body corporate established for a public purpose under a law of the State or Territory;

applicable WELS standard—see section 32;

Commonwealth Act means the Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards Act 2005 of the Commonwealth;

Commonwealth Minister has the same meaning as in the Commonwealth Act;

corresponding law—see section 12;

damage, in relation to data, includes damage by erasure of data or addition of other data;

evidential material means any thing that may be relevant to the investigation or prosecution of an offence against this Act;

information used for, or in relation to, the supply of a product—see section 39;

occupier, in relation to premises, includes a person who apparently represents the occupier of the premises;

officer of a body corporate means—

(a) a director of the body corporate; or

(b) the chief executive officer of the body corporate; or

and includes, in relation to a contravention or alleged contravention of this Act by the body corporate, an employee of the body corporate with management responsibilities in respect of the matters to which the contravention or alleged contravention related;

person who has WELS information—see section 60;

registered means registered under a WELS standard;

Regulator means the Regulator established by section 21 of the Commonwealth Act;

reviewable decision—see section 69(1);

supply means—

(a) supply for consideration; or

(b) offer to supply for consideration;

water saving product means a device, appliance or fitting that—

(a) is not a water use product; and

(b) is designed to operate in place of a water use product;

water use product means a device, appliance or fitting through which, or into which, water flows as part of its normal operation;

WELS business premises means WELS premises that are open to the public on a regular basis;

WELS inspector means a person appointed under section 45(1);

WELS labelled—see section 20(1);

WELS premises means premises used for, or in connection with, the supply of 1 or more WELS products;

WELS product means a WELS product within the meaning of the Commonwealth Act;

WELS scheme means the water efficiency labelling and standards scheme established by this Act and corresponding laws;

WELS standard, in relation to a WELS product, means the WELS standard set out for the product in the determination under section 18(1) of the Commonwealth Act.

Part 3—National WELS scheme

8—WELS scheme to be national cooperative scheme

It is the intention of the Parliament that this Act form a part of a cooperative scheme between the Commonwealth and the States and Territories to provide for national water efficiency labelling and standards.

10—Relationship to other State laws

The provisions of this Act are in addition to, and do not limit or derogate from, the provisions of any other law of the State.

12—Meaning of corresponding law

For the purposes of this Act—

corresponding law means—

(a) the Commonwealth Act; or

(b) a corresponding State-Territory law within the meaning of the Commonwealth Act, other than this Act.

16—No doubling up of liabilities

(1) If—

(a) an act or omission is an offence against this Act and is also an offence against the Commonwealth Act; and

(b) the offender has been punished for the offence under the Commonwealth Act,

the offender is not liable to be punished for the offence under this Act.

(2) If a person has paid, or been ordered to pay, a pecuniary penalty under the Commonwealth Act, the person is not liable to a pecuniary penalty under this Act in respect of the same conduct.

Part 5—WELS Regulator

22—Functions of Regulator

The Regulator has the following functions:

(a) to administer the WELS scheme;

(b) to undertake or commission research in relation to water use and water saving products;

(d) to undertake or commission research in relation to WELS standards;

(e) to assist in the development of WELS standards;

(f) to provide information and advice to the Minister about the operation of WELS standards;

(g) to provide information and advice to—

(i) the Minister; and

(ii) the chief executive of the administrative unit within the meaning of the Public Sector Management Act 1995 that deals with the matters to which this Act relates; and

(iii) the public,

about the operation of the WELS scheme;

(h) to undertake or commission research in relation to the effectiveness of WELS standards in relation to reducing water usage;

(i) such other functions as are conferred on the Regulator by this Act or any other law.

23—Powers of Regulator

Subject to this Act, the Regulator has power to do all things necessary or convenient to be done for or in connection with the performance of the Regulator's functions.

24—Arrangements with other agencies

The Regulator may make an arrangement with an agency of the State for the services of officers or employees of the agency to be made available to assist the Regulator in the performance of the functions or duties, or the exercise of the powers, of the Regulator.

25—Delegation

(1) The Regulator may, by writing, delegate 1 or more of the Regulator's powers or functions under this Act to 1 or more of the following:

(a) an officer or employee of an agency of the State;

(b) an officer or employee of an agency of the Commonwealth;

(2) However, the Regulator must not delegate a power or function, under subsection (1), to an officer or employee of an agency of the State without the agreement of the State.

(3) A delegate of the Regulator is, in the exercise of the delegate's delegated powers and functions, subject to the Regulator's directions.

(4) A delegation is revocable at will and does not derogate from the power of the Regulator to act in a matter.

Part 6—Registration of WELS products

26—Applying for registration

(1) The manufacturer of a WELS product may apply in writing to the Regulator for registration of the product.

(2) A person who is not the manufacturer of a WELS product is taken to be the manufacturer of the product for the purposes of subsection (1) and section 31(3)(b) if that person would be taken to be the manufacturer of the product for the purposes of sections 26(1) and 31(3)(b) of the Commonwealth Act.

27—Documentation etc to be provided with application for registration

(1) An application for registration of a WELS product must be made in the manner and form determined in writing by the Commonwealth Minister under section 27(1) of the Commonwealth Act, and must be accompanied by—

(a) any documentation (including test results and sample labels) specified in the determination; and

(b) any registration fee specified in the determination.

(2) A determination referred to in subsection (1) may also specify conditions that must be complied with in order for a product to remain registered.

28—Registration of products

(1) If—

(a) an application is made for registration of a WELS product; and

(b) the Regulator does not refuse to register the product under section 29,

the Regulator must, by notice published in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette, register the product.

(2) The Regulator must give the applicant written notice of the registration or refusal.

(3) If, at the end of the period of 3 months that begins on the day on which the application is made—

(a) a notice registering the product has not been published in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette; and

(b) the applicant has not been notified under subsection (2) that the Regulator has refused to register the product,

the Regulator is taken to have refused to register the product.

29—Grounds for refusing to register

The Regulator may refuse to register a WELS product if—

(a) the application is not made in accordance with the applicable determination under section 27(1) of the Commonwealth Act; or

(b) the Regulator is not satisfied that all of the information provided in the application is accurate; or

(c) the product does not satisfy a minimum water efficiency or minimum general performance requirement that the product is required to satisfy by the WELS standard for products of that kind.

30—Period of registration

(1) Unless subsection (2) applies, a WELS product that is registered remains registered until the first of the following happens:

(a) the registration is cancelled or suspended under section 31;