2007
2007
2007-07-04
act
government
publicspecial
act.reprint
allinforce
retroactivecommencements
2007-06-19
2007-06-19
1
2007-07-02
act-2007-035
2007
none
act-2007-035
52085913-5051-433e-b6f9-210f5b260202
1fbbec5e-321b-457c-92bd-16c69314c6fc
Note—
The Act was repealed by sec 5 (1) of this Act
with effect from 2.7.2007.
An Act to amend the Energy
and Utilities Administration Act 1987 to establish the
Climate Change Fund and to specify the purposes for which it may be applied;
and for other purposes.
1Name of
Act
This Act is the Energy and
Utilities Administration Amendment (Climate Change Fund) Act
2007.
2Commencement
This Act commences or is taken to have commenced
on 1 July 2007.
3Amendment of Energy and Utilities Administration Act 1987 No
103
The Energy and
Utilities Administration Act 1987 is amended as set out in
Schedule 1.
4Consequential amendment of
Electricity Supply Act 1995 No
94
The Electricity
Supply Act 1995 is amended as set out in Schedule
2.
5Repeal of
Act
(1)
This Act is repealed on the day following the day
on which this Act commences.
(2)
The repeal of this Act does not, because of the
operation of section 30 of the Interpretation
Act 1987, affect any amendment made by this
Act.
Schedule 1Amendment of Energy and Utilities Administration Act
1987
(Section 3)
[1]Section 3
Definitions
Insert the following definitions in alphabetical
order in section 3 (1):
Climate
Change Fund means the Climate Change Fund established under
section 34E.
contributions order means an order
under section 34J.
[2]Section 3 (1), definitions of
“Energy Savings Fund” and “Water Savings
Fund”
Omit the definitions.
[3]Part 6A, Divisions 2 and
3
Omit the Divisions. Insert instead:
Division 2Climate Change
Fund
34EEstablishment of Climate
Change Fund
There is to be established in the Special
Deposits Account a fund called the “Climate Change Fund” (referred
to in this Part as the
Fund).
34FPurposes of Climate Change
Fund
The purposes of the Fund are as follows:
(a)
to provide funding to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions and the impacts of climate change associated with water and energy
activities,
(b)
to provide funding to encourage water and energy
savings and the recycling of water,
(c)
to provide funding to reduce the demand for water
and energy, including addressing peak demand for energy,
(d)
to provide funding to stimulate investment in
innovative water and energy savings measures,
(e)
to provide funding to increase public awareness
and acceptance of the importance of climate change and water and energy
savings measures,
(f)
to provide funding for contributions made by the
State for the purposes of national energy
regulation.
34GPayments into Climate Change
Fund
(1)
There is payable into the Fund:
(a)
all money received from contributions required to
be made to the Fund under Division 3, and
(b)
all money advanced by the Treasurer for the Fund,
and
(c)
all money appropriated by Parliament for the
purposes of the Fund, and
(d)
the proceeds of the investment of money in the
Fund, and
(e)
all money directed or authorised to be paid into
the Fund by or under this or any other Act or law, and
(f)
all money received from voluntary contributions
to the Fund made by any other person or body.
(2)
Without limiting subsection (1) (f), State
agencies are authorised by this section to make voluntary contributions to the
Fund.
(3)
Subsection (2) does not authorise a State water
agency or a distribution network service provider to refuse to pay a
contribution to the Fund that is payable under Division
3.
34HPayments out of Climate Change
Fund
(1)
There is payable from the Fund:
(a)
any money approved by the Minister to fund all or
any part of the cost of any measure that the Minister is satisfied promotes a
purpose referred to in section 34F, and
(b)
any money approved by the Minister to fund all or
any part of the contributions that the State is required to make for the
purposes of national energy regulation, and
(c)
any money required to meet administrative
expenses related to the Fund, and
(d)
any money required to meet administrative
expenses of the Minister in connection with the Minister’s functions
under this Act in relation to savings action plans, and
(e)
any money directed or authorised to be paid from
the Fund by or under this or any other Act or law.
(2)
In exercising the Minister’s functions
under subsection (1) (a) (but without limiting the generality of that
paragraph), the Minister may:
(a)
approve selection criteria from time to time to
be applied to determine the kinds of water or energy savings measures that
will be eligible for funding, and
(b)
approve the funding of community grants from the
Fund, being grants awarded on the basis of their merit in advancing one or
more of the purposes referred to in section 34F, established through a
competitive selection process, and
(c)
require a person or body seeking funding for a
water or energy savings measure to do either or both of the following as a
precondition to applying for or obtaining funding:
(i)
to submit a water savings action plan or energy
savings action plan (as the case requires) that includes details about the
measure,
(ii)
to provide any other information requested by the
Minister about the measure, and
(d)
obtain and have regard to any advice,
recommendations or other information provided to the Minister by a committee
established by the Minister under Division 5, or by any other person or body,
that the Minister considers relevant.
(3)
The Minister is to produce an annual report
detailing fund allocations and programs and anticipated benefits, by reference
to key performance indicators, to be achieved in advancing any one or more of
the purposes referred to in section 34F.
(4)
The annual report is to include an evaluation of
the effectiveness of each program as it is completed under the
Fund.
(5)
The annual report is to be tabled in each House
of Parliament within 6 months after the end of the financial year to which it
relates.
(6)
The Minister is to publish each annual report so
as to promote, to the NSW public, schemes, technologies and processes that
address climate change and to inform the NSW public about consumer choices and
procurement decisions.
34IInvestment of money in Climate
Change Fund
The Minister may invest money in the Fund:
(a)
in such manner as may be authorised by the
Public Authorities (Financial Arrangements) Act
1987, or
(b)
if that Act does not confer power on the Minister
to invest the money, in any other manner approved by the
Treasurer.
Division 3Required contributions to
Climate Change Fund
34JMinister may require State
water agencies or distribution network service providers to make contributions
to Climate Change Fund
(1)
The Minister may, by order published in the
Gazette, require any one or more State water agencies or distribution network
service providers to make an annual contribution for a specified financial
year to the Fund.
Note—
The Minister may amend or repeal an order made
under this section. See section 43 of the Interpretation
Act 1987.
(2)
A contributions order:
(a)
must specify the annual contributions payable by
each State water agency or distribution network service provider to which the
order applies (being an amount that does not exceed the maximum amount, if
any, prescribed by the regulations), and
(b)
may specify that an annual contribution may be
paid by instalments during the financial year to which the order applies,
and
(c)
must specify the time or, in the case of an
annual contribution that is payable by instalments, the times at which any
contribution required under the order is to be made, and
(d)
may be made before or during the financial year
to which the order relates.
34KGeneral provisions relating to
contributions orders
(1)
The Minister is to cause a copy of a
contributions order to be served on the State water agencies or distribution
network service providers to which the order applies as soon as is reasonably
practicable after the order is published in the Gazette.
(2)
A failure to comply with subsection (1) does not
affect the validity of a contributions order.
(3)
Despite any other Act or law, a State water
agency or distribution network service provider to which a contributions order
applies must pay into the Fund such amounts at such times as may be required
by the order.
(4)
An amount that is payable by a State water agency
or distribution network service provider under a contributions order may be
recovered by the Minister as a debt in any court of competent jurisdiction for
payment into the Fund.
34LSpecial provisions relating to
contributions orders applying to State water agencies
(1)
If a State water agency to which a proposed
contributions order is to apply is constituted by or under an Act that is
administered by a Minister other than the Minister administering section 34J
of this Act, the order may be made only with the concurrence of the Minister
administering the Act by or under which the agency is
constituted.
(2)
If a State water agency to which a proposed
contributions order is to apply is a local water utility within the meaning of
the Water Management Act 2000 but not a
State owned corporation, the Minister must consult with each of the following
before making the order:
(a)
the State water agency,
(b)
the Local Government and Shires Associations of
New South Wales.
(3)
If the Independent Pricing and Regulatory
Tribunal is required by or under the Independent
Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal Act 1992 to determine a
maximum price for a water service provided by a State water agency, any
requirement imposed on the agency by a contributions order to pay an amount
into the Fund is to be treated for the purposes of section 16A of that Act as
a requirement with which the agency must comply in providing the
service.
Note—
Section 16A of the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal Act
1992 enables the Minister responsible for a government
agency to direct the Tribunal, when it makes a determination of the maximum
price for a government monopoly service provided by the agency, to include in
the maximum price an amount representing the efficient cost of complying with
a specified requirement imposed on the agency. It also enables the Minister to
direct the Tribunal, when it makes a determination of the methodology for
fixing the maximum price for the service, to include in the methodology a
factor representing such a cost.
34MSpecial provisions relating to
contributions orders applying to distribution network service
providers
A proposed contributions order that is to apply
to a distribution network service provider may be made only with:
(a)
the concurrence of the Treasurer,
and
(b)
if section 14 (Licences) of the Electricity Supply Act 1995 is
administered by a Minister other than the Minister administering section 34J
of this Act—the concurrence of the Minister administering section 14 of
that Act.
[4]Schedule 2 Savings,
transitional and other provisions
Insert at the end of clause 1 (1):
Energy and
Utilities Administration Amendment (Climate Change Fund) Act
2007
[5]Schedule 2, Part
5
Insert after Part 4:
Part 5Provisions consequent on
enactment of Energy and Utilities Administration
Amendment (Climate Change Fund) Act
2007
12Continuity of
Fund
The Climate Change Fund is a continuation of the
Water Savings Fund and the Energy Savings Fund operating under this Act
immediately before the commencement of the Energy and
Utilities Administration Amendment (Climate Change Fund) Act
2007.
13Existing contributions
orders
Any order in force under section 34J or 34P of
this Act as in force immediately before the commencement of the Energy and Utilities Administration Amendment (Climate
Change Fund) Act 2007 is taken to be a contributions order
in force under section 34J (as substituted by that
Act).
Schedule 2Consequential amendment of
Electricity Supply Act
1995
(Section 4)
[1]Part 4, Division 3A,
heading
Omit “Energy Savings Fund”.
Insert instead “Climate Change
Fund”.
[2]Section 42A
Definitions
Omit the definition of Energy Savings Fund. Insert
instead:
Climate
Change Fund means the Climate Change Fund established under
section 34E of the Energy and Utilities Administration
Act 1987.
[3]Section 42A, definition of
“Fund contribution”
Omit “Energy Savings Fund by an order made
under section 34P”.
Insert instead “Climate Change Fund by an
order made under section 34J”.
Historical
notes
Table of amending
instruments
Energy and
Utilities Administration Amendment (Climate Change Fund) Act 2007
No 35. Assented to 4.7.2007. Date of commencement, 1.7.2007, sec
2.