Untitled document

Emergency Management (Amendment) Act 2000

Act No. 48/2000

TABLE OF PROVISIONS

Section	Page
PART 1—PRELIMINARY	1

1.	Purposes	1
2.	Commencement	2

PART 2—AMENDMENT OF THE EMERGENCY

MANAGEMENT ACT 1986 3

3.	Principal Act	3
4.	Definitions	3
5.	Chairperson of Council	4
6.	Insertion of new Part 4A	4
PART 4A—STANDARDS FOR THE PREVENTION AND
MANAGEMENT OF EMERGENCIES	4

21B.	Emergency Services Commissioner	4
21C.	Functions and powers of the Commissioner	4
21D.	Commissioner to prepare standards	5
21E.	Commissioner to monitor standards	5
21F.	Power to require information to be given	5
21G.	Constraints on access to information not to apply	6
21H.	Delegation by Commissioner	7
21I.	Annual report	7

PART 3—AMENDMENT OF OTHER ACTS 8

7. Amendment of the Country Fire Authority Act 1958 8

6B.	Compliance with standards of Commissioner	8
6C.	Report on compliance with standards	8

8.	Amendment of Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958	8
9.	Amendment of Victoria State Emergency Service Act 1987	9

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NOTES 10

i

Victoria

No. 48 of 2000

Emergency Management (Amendment)

Act 2000†

[Assented to 14 June 2000]

The Parliament of Victoria enacts as follows:

PART 1—PRELIMINARY

1. Purposes

The purposes of this Act are—

(a) to amend the Emergency Management Act 1986—

(i)  to establish the position of Emergency Services Commissioner; and

Emergency Management (Amendment) Act 2000

s. 2 Act No. 48/2000

(ii) Commissioner to be the person
responsible for the preparation and

to provide for the Emergency Services services organisations;

(b)	to make other minor amendments to the Emergency Management Act 1986;
(c)	to make consequential amendments to the Country Fire Authority Act 1958, the Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958 and the Victoria State Emergency Service Act 1987.

2. Commencement

This Act comes into operation on the day after the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent.

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Emergency Management (Amendment) Act 2000

Act No. 48/2000 s. 3

PART 2—AMENDMENT OF THE EMERGENCY

MANAGEMENT ACT 1986

3. Principal Act No. 30/1986. Reprint No. 2

In this Part, the Emergency Management Act	as at 4 March 1999. Further
1986 is called the Principal Act.	amended by Nos 86/1998,
3/1999 and 50/1999.

4. Definitions

In section 4 of the Principal Act, insert the
following definitions—

' "Commissioner" means the person who, for the

time being, is employed as Emergency
Services Commissioner under the Public
Sector Management and Employment Act

1998;

"emergency services agency" means any of the

following—

(a)	the Country Fire Authority established under the Country Fire Authority Act 1958;
(b)	the Metropolitan Fire and Emergency Services Board established under the Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958;
(c)

the Victoria State Emergency Service Emergency Service Act 1987;

(d) any other prescribed agency.'.

Emergency Management (Amendment) Act 2000

s. 5 Act No. 48/2000

5. Chairperson of Council

(1) In section 8(2) of the Principal Act, for

paragraph (a) substitute—

"(a) the Co-ordinator in Chief or a person

nominated by the Co-ordinator in Chief as

chairperson; and".

(2) After section 8(2) of the Principal Act insert—

"(3) The person appointed from time to time as

the Commissioner is to be the executive

officer of the Council.".

6. Insertion of new Part 4A

After Part 4 of the Principal Act insert—

"PART 4A—STANDARDS FOR THE

PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT OF

EMERGENCIES

21B. Emergency Services Commissioner

There is to be an Emergency Services
Commissioner employed under Part 3 of the
Public Sector Management and

Employment Act 1998.

21C. Functions and powers of the Commissioner

(1) The Commissioner has the following

functions—

(a) the prevention and management of

to establish and monitor standards for emergency services agencies;

(b) to advise, make recommendations and report to the Minister on any issue in relation to emergency management;

Emergency Management (Amendment) Act 2000

Act No. 48/2000	s. 6
(c)

to encourage and facilitate co-operation most effective utilisation of all services;

(d)	to act as the Executive Officer of the Council;
(e)	any other function conferred on the Commissioner by or under this or any other Act.

(2) The Commissioner has all the powers

necessary to perform his or her functions.

21D. Commissioner to prepare standards

(1) The Commissioner must arrange for the

preparation and review from time to time of
standards which are reasonably necessary for
the prevention and management of
emergencies and which all emergency
services agencies are to adopt and to use

their best endeavours to comply with.

(2) The Commissioner must consult with the

emergency services agencies before
arranging for the preparation or review of the

standards.

(3) The Commissioner must ensure that the

manner in which any standard is prepared or

reviewed is reasonable.

21E. Commissioner to monitor standards

The Commissioner must arrange for the monitoring from time to time of the adoption and compliance with the standards prepared under section 21D.

21F. Power to require information to be given

(1) For the purposes of carrying out functions or

powers under this Act, the Commissioner
may, in writing, require any agency to give

Emergency Management (Amendment) Act 2000

s. 6 Act No. 48/2000

to the Commissioner any information that the Commissioner reasonably believes is necessary—

(a)	to prepare or review a standard for the prevention or management of emergencies; or
(b)	to monitor compliance with a standard for the prevention or management of emergencies.

(2) Within 28 days of receiving a request under

sub-section (1), the agency to whom the
request has been given must give the
information to the Commissioner, unless—

(a)	the Commissioner has agreed to allow an extension of time for the giving of the information; or
(b)	the Commissioner has agreed that the agency is not able to give the information.

(3) If the Commissioner has agreed to allow an extension of time under sub-section (2), the agency must give the information to the

Commissioner within the time agreed on.

21G. Constraints on access to information not to

apply

(1) No obligation to maintain secrecy or other restriction on the disclosure of information obtained by or furnished to persons

employed in the public service or by an
agency, where imposed by an enactment or
rule of law, applies to the disclosure of
information required by the Commissioner
under section 21F.

(2) The Commissioner or any other person must not divulge or communicate, except in the

Emergency Management (Amendment) Act 2000

Act No. 48/2000 s. 6

course of duty to another person performing
duties under this Part, any information which
has come to his or her knowledge by reason,
directly or indirectly of sub-section (1), if the
person from whom that information was
obtained could not, but for that section,
lawfully have divulged that information to

the Commissioner or other person.

21H. Delegation by Commissioner

The Commissioner may, by instrument, delegate to any person or class of person employed or engaged in the administration

of this Act, all or any of the Commissioner's

powers and functions.

21I. Annual report

The Commissioner must submit, as part of operation of this Part.".

the annual report of the Department of
Justice made under Part 7 of the Financial

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Emergency Management (Amendment) Act 2000

s. 7 Act No. 48/2000

PART 3—AMENDMENT OF OTHER ACTS

No. 6228.	7. Amendment of the Country Fire Authority Act 1958
Reprint No. 9
as at
14 October	After section 6A of the Country Fire Authority
1999.	Act 1958 insert— "6B. Compliance with standards of

Commissioner

The Authority must use its best endeavours to carry out its functions in accordance with the standards prepared by the Emergency

Services Commissioner under Part 4A of the

Emergency Management Act 1986.

6C. Report on compliance with standards

The Authority must, at the expiration of each
period of three months, report on the action
it has taken during the preceding three
months to comply with the standards
prepared by the Emergency Services
Commissioner under Part 4A of the

Emergency Management Act 1986.".

No. 6315.	8. Amendment of Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958
Reprint No. 8
as at
25 March	In section 7 of the Metropolitan Fire Brigades
1999. Further	Act 1958, after sub-section (3) insert—
amended by
Nos 50/1989	"(4) The Board must use its best endeavours to
and 86/1998.	carry out its functions in accordance with the standards prepared by the Emergency Services Commissioner under Part 4A of the Emergency Management Act 1986.

(5) The Board must, at the expiration of each three month period, report on the action it has taken during the preceding three months

to comply with the standards prepared by the
Emergency Services Commissioner under

Emergency Management (Amendment) Act 2000

Act No. 48/2000 s. 9

Part 4A of the Emergency Management

Act 1986.".

9. Amendment of Victoria State Emergency Service Act No. 57/1987. Reprint No. 2

1987 as at 22 April
1999.

In section 5 of the Victoria State Emergency
Service Act 1987, after sub-section (3) insert—

"(4) The Service must use its best endeavours to

carry out its functions in accordance with the
standards prepared by the Emergency
Services Commissioner under Part 4A of the
Emergency Management Act 1986.

(5) The Service must, at the expiration of each

three month period, report on the action it
has taken during the preceding three months
to comply with the standards prepared by the
Emergency Services Commissioner under
Part 4A of the Emergency Management
Act 1986.".

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Emergency Management (Amendment) Act 2000

Notes Act No. 48/2000

NOTES

†

Minister's second reading speech—

Legislative Assembly: 4 May 2000

Legislative Council: 30 May 2000

The long title for the Bill for this Act was "to amend the Emergency
Management Act 1986 to establish the position of Emergency Services
Commissioner, to make consequential amendments to the Country Fire
Authority Act 1958, the Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958 and the
Victoria State Emergency Service Act 1987 and for other purposes."