EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued by the authority of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Regulator
Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Act 2012
Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Exemption) Instrument (No. 6) 2021
Purpose and operation
Section 37 of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (GEMS) Act 2012 (Act) enables the GEMS Regulator, by legislative instrument, to exempt models of GEMS products from one or more requirements of a GEMS determination in relation to all or specified supplies or uses of products of that model and enables the GEMS Regulator to specify conditions to which the exemption is subject. GEMS determinations are defined in section 11 of the Act.
Section 37 also provides that regulations may be made in order to provide a framework for administrative processes around the submission and assessment of applications for exemption. Division 4.1 of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Regulation 2012 (Regulation) sets out the circumstances in which the GEMS Regulator may exempt a model of a GEMS product from the requirements of a GEMS determination.
The purpose of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Exemption) Instrument (No.6) 2021 (Instrument) is to exempt supplies of McAlpine Hussmann Ltd, Skipio Australia Pty Ltd and Turbo Air Inc. products specified in Schedule 1, section 1 of the Instrument from the GEMS Level Requirements contained in section 23 of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Refrigerated Cabinets) Determination 2020 (Determination).
The above-mentioned companies sell Refrigerated Cabinets that contain Chiller compartments and Freezer compartments in one unit. The Determination captures these products but does not provide a suitable pathway to demonstrate compliance with the GEMS Level Requirements. As a result an unintentional barrier to supply in Australia has occurred. Due to this the GEMS Regulator has elected to use their initiative to provide an exemption for the specified models to remove this barrier to entry.
The GEMS Regulator considered the limitation in subsection 37(5) of the Act and all the matters set out in the Regulation and has decided to grant an exemption from the testing requirements of the Determination on the basis that these are niche products, there is no pathway currently available to demonstrate compliance with the Determination and the barrier will remain in place until such time as the Determination can be updated.
Models covered by exemptions must still be registered under the Act.
Authority
Section 37 of the Act enables the GEMS Regulator to exempt models of GEMS products from one or more requirements of a GEMS determination. An exemption can be made in relation to all supplies or uses of products of that model or limited to specified supplies and uses. The GEMS Regulator can specify conditions to which the exemption is subject.
Division 4.1 of the Regulation sets out the circumstances in which the GEMS Regulator may exempt a model of a GEMS product from the requirements of a GEMS determination.
Consultation
Targeted consultation with stakeholders, McAlpine Hussmann Ltd, Skipio Australia Pty Ltd and Turbo Air Inc., was undertaken to understand the impacts of the unintended barrier to entry and to determine the scope of products affected.
Regulatory Impact
There will be no regulatory burden arising from the Instrument. The Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) has advised that such proposals are not likely to have a regulatory impact on business, community organisations or organisations. OBPR has advised a Regulatory Impact Statement is not required for this proposal (OBPR Ref. 44576).
Detailed description of provisions in the Instrument
- Name
Section 1 sets out the name of the Instrument, the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Exemption) Instrument (No. 6) 2021.
2. Commencement
Section 2 sets out the commencement arrangements for the Instrument. The Instrument will commence the day after it is registered.
3. Authority
Section 3 sets out that the Instrument is made under subsection 37(1) of the Act.
4. Definitions
Section 4 sets out definitions of terms used in the Instrument to assist interpretation and implementation of the Instrument. The term ‘exempt model’ is defined in section 5 of the Instrument.
5. Exemption
Section 5 exempts the models specified in clause 1 of Schedule 1 to the Instrument (the exempt models) from the requirements specified in clause 2 of Schedule 1.
6. Conditions of exemption
Section 6 provides that there are no conditions made under subsection 37(2) of the Act.
Schedule 1 – Exemption
Schedule 1 to the Instrument sets out the following terms:
- the specified exempt models, including brand names, model numbers and product descriptions covered by the Instrument (clause 1);
- the models are exempt from the requirements in section 23 of the Determination (clause 2);
- the exemption only applies to the supply of the exempt models (clause 3); and
- there are no conditions specified for the exemption (clause 4).
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Exemption) Instrument (No. 6) 2021
This Legislative Instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.
Overview of the Legislative Instrument
The Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Exemption) Instrument (No. 6) 2021 specifies models of Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (GEMS) products that the GEMS Regulator has exempted from the requirements of section 23 of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Refrigerated Cabinets) Determination 2020.
Human rights implications
This Legislative Instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.
Conclusion
This Legislative Instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.
Penelope Sirault
GEMS Regulator