Have Your Say: Urban Water Regulation in NSW – Position Paper
06 Mar 2014
The NSW Government has released a position paper presenting the preferred approach to reform key elements of urban water regulation in NSW. The proposed approach was informed by stakeholder feedback on the ‘Discussion Paper: Joint review of the Water Industry Competition Act 2006 (WIC Act) and regulatory arrangements for water recycling under the Local Government Act 1993 (LG Act)’.
This approach will continue to see regulatory responsibilities split between the WIC Act and the LG Act, and allow much needed amendments to the WIC Act to be prioritised, including the following key reforms:
- introducing entity-wide licensing
- narrowing the scope of licensing and scheme approval under the WIC Act
- removing barriers to new entrants
- strengthening customer protection through last resort arrangements
- bringing ‘utility like’ or high risk metropolitan council-led schemes under the WIC Act.
The Government invites stakeholders to review the position paper and provide a written response. Feedback will be used to inform the finalisation of amendments to the WIC Act. Based on the level of interest, an information session will be scheduled for mid-March 2014.
Submissions in response to the position paper are due by Friday 28 March 2014.
To view the position paper, register your interest to attend an information session or to find out more about the review, visit Have Your Say.