{"id":"sr:conservation-forests-and-lands-contracts-regulations-2021","name":"Conservation, Forests and Lands (Contracts) Regulations 2021","slug":"conservation-forests-and-lands-contracts-regulations-2021","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"vic","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":185822,"registerId":"vic-sr:conservation-forests-and-lands-contracts-regulations-2021-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Conservation, Forests and Lands (Contracts) Regulations 2021","content":"Version No. 001\n\n**Conservation, Forests and Lands (Contracts) Regulations 2021**\n\n**S.R. No. 32/2021**\n\nVersion as at  \n20 April 2021\n\n**TABLE OF PROVISIONS**\n\n*Regulation Page*\n\n1 Objective 1\n\n2 Authorising provision 1\n\n3 Prescribed amount for contracts or agreements 1\n\n═════════════\n\nEndnotes 2\n\n1 General information 2\n\n2 Table of Amendments 4\n\n3 Amendments Not in Operation 5\n\n4 Explanatory details 6\n\n**Version No.** **001**\n\n**Conservation, Forests and Lands (Contracts) Regulations 2021**\n\n**S.R. No. 32/2021**\n\nVersion as at  \n20 April 2021\n\n\t1 Objective\n\nThe objective of these Regulations is to prescribe the maximum consideration of a contract or agreement that the Secretary may enter into without the approval of the Minister.\n\n\t2 Authorising provision\n\nThese Regulations are made under section 99 of the **Conservation, Forests and Lands Act 1987**.\n\n\t3 Prescribed amount for contracts or agreements\n\nFor the purposes of section 19(1)(b) of the **Conservation, Forests and Lands Act 1987**, the amount prescribed is $10 000 000.\n\n═════════════\n\nEndnotes\n\n1 General information\n\nSee [www.legislation.vic.gov.au](http://www.legislation.vic.gov.au) for Victorian Bills, Acts and current Versions of legislation and up-to-date legislative information.\n\nThe Conservation, Forests and Lands (Contracts) Regulations 2021, S.R. No. 32/2021 were made on 20 April 2021 by the Governor in Council under section 99 of the **Conservation, Forests and Lands Act 1987**, No. 41/1987 and came into operation on 20 April 2021.\n\nThe Conservation, Forests and Lands (Contracts) Regulations 2021 will sunset 10 years after the day of making on 20 April 2031 (see section 5 of the **Subordinate Legislation Act 1994**).\n\nINTERPRETATION OF LEGISLATION ACT 1984 (ILA)\n\nStyle changes\n\nSection 54A of the ILA authorises the making of the style changes set out in Schedule 1 to that Act.\n\nReferences to ILA s. 39B\n\nSidenotes which cite ILA s. 39B refer to section 39B of the ILA which provides that where an undivided regulation, rule or clause of a Schedule is amended by the insertion of one or more subregulations, subrules or subclauses the original regulation, rule or clause becomes subregulation, subrule or subclause (1) and is amended by the insertion of the expression \"(1)\" at the beginning of the original regulation, rule or clause.\n\nInterpretation\n\nAs from 1 January 2001, amendments to section 36 of the ILA have the following effects:\n\n• Headings\n\nAll headings included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after  \n1 January 2001 form part of that Statutory Rule. Any heading inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Statutory Rule.  \nThis includes headings to Parts, Divisions or Subdivisions in a Schedule; Orders; Parts into which an Order is divided; clauses; regulations; rules; items; tables; columns; examples; diagrams; notes or forms.  \nSee section 36(1A)(2A)(2B).\n\n• Examples, diagrams or notes\n\nAll examples, diagrams or notes included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after 1 January 2001 form part of that Statutory Rule. Any examples, diagrams or notes inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, form part of that Statutory Rule. See section 36(3A).\n\n• Punctuation\n\nAll punctuation included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after  \n1 January 2001 forms part of that Statutory Rule. Any punctuation inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Statutory Rule.  \nSee section 36(3B).\n\n• Provision numbers\n\nAll provision numbers included in a Statutory Rule form part of that Statutory Rule, whether inserted in the Statutory Rule before, on or after  \n1 January 2001. Provision numbers include regulation numbers, rule numbers, subregulation numbers, subrule numbers, paragraphs and subparagraphs. See section 36(3C).\n\n• Location of \"legislative items\"\n\nA \"legislative item\" is a penalty, an example or a note. As from 13 October 2004, a legislative item relating to a provision of a Statutory Rule is taken to be at the foot of that provision even if it is preceded or followed by another legislative item that relates to that provision. For example, if a penalty at the foot of a provision is followed by a note, both of these legislative items will be regarded as being at the foot of that provision. See section 36B.\n\n• Other material\n\nAny explanatory memorandum, table of provisions, endnotes, index and other material printed after the Endnotes does not form part of a Statutory Rule. See section 36(3)(3D)(3E).\n\n2 Table of Amendments\n\nThere are no amendments made to the Conservation, Forests and Lands (Contracts) Regulations 2021 by statutory rules, subordinate instruments and Acts.\n\n3 Amendments Not in Operation\n\nThis version does not contain amendments that are not yet in operation.\n\n4 Explanatory details\n\nNo entries at date of publication.","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based on the available information, there is no evidence that the scope changed from the original intent. The regulations appear to remain focused on their stated purpose of governing contracts under the Conservation, Forests and Lands Act 1987. However, the extremely limited content provided makes a definitive assessment impossible."},"complexity_factors":["The document provided contains almost no substantive legislative content — only metadata, version history headers, and status information","Without the full regulatory text, the actual complexity of the operative provisions cannot be assessed","Regulations made under the Conservation, Forests and Lands Act can involve technically complex land management and contract law intersections, but this cannot be confirmed from the available text","The narrow subject matter (contracts under a specific Act) suggests limited scope, keeping baseline complexity low"],"plain_english_summary":"These regulations set out how contracts made under the Conservation, Forests and Lands Act 1987 are to be entered into and managed by the relevant Victorian department, governing relationships with contractors and service providers working on public land. They matter to businesses, land managers and government agencies because they establish the legal framework for payments, obligations and compliance — though the supplied document largely contains metadata, not the full substantive text."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"These Regulations do not change the statutory functions in the parent Act; they only prescribe the monetary cutoff for ministerial approval (Reg 3). The instrument was made under s 99 of the Conservation, Forests and Lands Act 1987 (Reg 2), contains an objective explaining that prescription (Reg 1), records no amendments, and will sunset after 10 years (Endnotes)."},"complexity_factors":["Single substantive provision: one monetary threshold prescribed ($10,000,000) (Reg 3).","Dependence on parent Act provisions: operates by reference to section 19(1)(b) of the Conservation, Forests and Lands Act 1987 and is authorised by s 99 (Reg 2).","Low textual density: only an objective, authorising provision and the prescribed amount (Regs 1–3).","Administrative consequence concentration: small number of decisions (above/below threshold) determine whether Ministerial approval is required (Reg 3).","Ancillary operational details left to parent Act or departmental procedures—no guidance on aggregation, timing, or exceptions in these Regulations.","Temporal limit noted: regulation sunsets 10 years after making (Endnotes).","No amendments recorded in this version, reducing interpretive complexity about current vs superseded text (Table of Amendments)."],"plain_english_summary":"This regulation sets a single, fixed dollar threshold: the Secretary may enter contracts or agreements up to $10,000,000 without needing the Minister’s approval (Reg 3, made under s 99 of the Act). It affects the Secretary, the Minister and any third parties contracting with the department because contracts above that amount require ministerial sign‑off. The rule centralises the approval trigger in a monetary cutoff and defines who decides on large transactions."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation performs exactly one function as described in its title and objective – prescribing a monetary threshold for contract approval. There is no scope creep; it is a straightforward, single-purpose instrument."},"complexity_factors":["Only 3 substantive regulations total","No defined terms section","Zero cross-references to other regulations (only references to parent Act)","No conditional logic, exceptions, or nested provisions","Single operative provision (Regulation 3) containing one number","No amendments, schedules, or complex structural elements"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this legislation does:**\n\nThese regulations set a **$10 million spending limit** for the Secretary of the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (or its successor) in Victoria. Specifically, the Secretary can enter into contracts or agreements worth up to $10 million **without needing to get the Minister's approval first**.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\n- **The Secretary** – the senior public servant who runs the department. They now know exactly how much they can spend independently.\n- **The Minister** – doesn't need to be bothered with routine contracts under $10 million, freeing them up for bigger decisions.\n- **Anyone doing business with the department** – contractors, land managers, conservation groups, forestry operators, etc. If the deal is under $10 million, it can be signed faster without ministerial sign-off.\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThis is about **efficiency and delegation**. Without this rule, the Minister would have to approve every single contract personally, creating bottlenecks. The $10 million threshold strikes a balance – big enough to cover most routine operations, but not so large that major financial commitments escape political oversight.\n\n**Key detail:**\n- The $10 million figure applies to the **\"consideration\"** (the total value or price) of a contract or agreement.\n- These regulations sit under the **Conservation, Forests and Lands Act 1987**, which governs Victoria's public land management, conservation, and forestry operations."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/conservation-forests-and-lands-contracts-regulations-2021","history":"/api/acts/conservation-forests-and-lands-contracts-regulations-2021/history","analysis":"/api/acts/conservation-forests-and-lands-contracts-regulations-2021/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/conservation-forests-and-lands-contracts-regulations-2021/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/conservation-forests-and-lands-contracts-regulations-2021/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/conservation-forests-and-lands-contracts-regulations-2021/documents"}}