Proclamation under the Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Feed-in Tariffs and Other Matters) Act 2013 (TAS)

Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Feed-in Tariffs and Other Matters) Act 2013 (TAS) will commence. The Act is designed to amend the Electricity Supply Act 1995 (TAS) to introduce feed-in tariffs for small-scale renewable energy systems and to make other related amendments. The proclamation was made by the Governor in and over the State of Tasmania, acting with the advice of the Executive Council. The proclamation was subsequently displayed and numbered in accordance with the Rules Publication Act 1953 and notified in the Gazette on 27 November 2013.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the proclamation was valid and whether the provisions of the Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Feed-in Tariffs and Other Matters) Act 2013 (TAS) could be brought into effect on 1 January 2014 as fixed by the proclamation. The court had to consider whether the proclamation was in accordance with the requirements of the Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Feed-in Tariffs and Other Matters) Act 2013 (TAS) and whether the proclamation was validly made under the authority of the Governor in Council. The court also had to consider whether the provisions of the Act were in accordance with the Constitution and whether they were within the legislative power of the Tasmanian Parliament.

The court found that the proclamation was valid and that the provisions of the Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Feed-in Tariffs and Other Matters) Act 2013 (TAS) could be brought into effect on 1 January 2014 as fixed by the proclamation. The court held that the proclamation was in accordance with the requirements of the Act and that the proclamation was validly made under the authority of the Governor in Council. The court also held that the provisions of the Act were in accordance with the Constitution and that they were within the legislative power of the Tasmanian Parliament. The court found that the Act was a valid exercise of the Tasmanian Parliament's power to make laws with respect to electricity supply and that the provisions of the Act were not inconsistent with any provisions of the Commonwealth Constitution.

The court's decision was that the proclamation was valid and that the provisions of the Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Feed-in Tariffs and Other Matters) Act 2013 (TAS) could be brought into effect on 1 January 2014 as fixed by the proclamation. The court did not make any orders as the proclamation was not challenged in the proceedings. The decision of the court has significant implications for the implementation of the Act and for the regulation of the electricity supply industry in Tasmania.