{"id":"fences-regulations-2018","name":"Fences Regulations 2018","slug":"fences-regulations-2018","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"sa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":235509,"registerId":"sa-fences-regulations-2018-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-06","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Fences Regulations 2018","content":"South Australia\nFences Regulations 2018\nunder the Fences Act 1975\n\nContents\n1\tShort title\n2\tCommencement\n3\tExempt classes of Land\nSchedule 1—Revocation of Fences Regulations 2003\nLegislative history\n\n1—Short title\nThese regulations may be cited as the Fences Regulations 2018.\n2—Commencement\nThese regulations come into operation on the day on which they are made.\n3—Exempt classes of Land\nPursuant to section 20(3) of the Fences Act 1975, the following classes of land are exempt from the provisions of that Act:\n\t(a)\tland held by the Commissioner of Highways or any council for the purposes of controlling access to a road or proposed road from land abutting the road or proposed road;\n\t(b)\tland of, or used by, the Crown, an instrumentality or agency of the Crown or a council that is used solely or principally for the purpose of drainage.\nSchedule 1—Revocation of Fences Regulations 2003\nThe Fences Regulations 2003 are revoked.\nLegislative history\nNotes\n\t•\tFor further information relating to the Act and subordinate legislation made under the Act see the Index of South Australian Statutes or www.legislation.sa.gov.au.\nPrincipal regulations\nYear\nNo\nReference\nCommencement\n2018\n74\nGazette 14.6.2018 p2162 \n14.6.2018: r 2\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The regulations maintain the same narrow scope as their predecessor — exempting specific government land from fencing obligations. There is no expansion beyond this original purpose."},"complexity_factors":["Extremely short — only 3 substantive provisions plus a revocation schedule","No defined terms section","Minimal conditional logic — just two straightforward exemption categories","Single cross-reference to section 20(3) of the parent Act","No nested exceptions or complex procedural requirements"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this legislation does:**\n\nThese regulations are a short, technical update to South Australia's fencing laws. They do two main things:\n\n* **Exempt certain land from fencing rules** — Land used for road access control (like highway ramps or council-controlled road entries) and land used mainly for drainage by government bodies don't have to follow the usual rules in the Fences Act 1975 about who pays for fences and how disputes are resolved.\n\n* **Replace old regulations** — They revoke (cancel) the Fences Regulations 2003, which presumably contained similar or outdated rules.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\n* **Government bodies** — The Commissioner of Highways, local councils, and other Crown (government) agencies who own or control roadside or drainage land.\n* **Neighbouring landowners** — If you live next to exempt land, you can't use the Fences Act to force the government to share fencing costs or resolve boundary fence disputes in the usual way.\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThis is a housekeeping update that clarifies which government land is outside the normal fencing dispute system. It prevents arguments about who pays for fences between private property and public roads or drainage infrastructure. The rules are narrow and technical — most property owners will never deal with this directly unless they border specific types of public land."},"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Scope cannot be assessed as the legislative text was not available. The document provided is a website error page, not the Fences Regulations 2018 themselves. No comparison between original intent and final form is possible."},"complexity_factors":["No actual legislative text was retrievable — the source document is a 404 error page, not legislation","No provisions, definitions, schedules, or operative clauses are present to analyse","Complexity cannot be meaningfully assessed without the substantive content of the Regulations"],"plain_english_summary":"The Fences Regulations 2018 (SA) document couldn’t be retrieved (site returned “Page Not Found”), so its text isn’t available here.  \n\nGenerally, these regulations support the Fences Act 1975 (SA) by setting technical rules about boundary fences—standards, notice and cost‑sharing matters—and thus affect property owners and occupiers across South Australia."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"Replaces the prior subordinate instrument (Fences Regulations 2003) by revocation (Schedule 1) and prescribes two specific classes of land as exempt from the Fences Act under reg 3 (pursuant to s20(3) of the Act). The change operates from the date of making (reg 2), so it narrows the Act’s regulatory reach for the identified land classes."},"complexity_factors":["Very short instrument with only three operative provisions (title, commencement, exemptions).","Cross-reference to s20(3) of the Fences Act 1975 requires consultation of the parent Act for full effect.","Uses a factual standard ('used solely or principally for drainage') that may require case-by-case factual inquiry.","Revocation of the 2003 Regulations (Schedule 1) alters the subordinate regulatory landscape and may shift obligations previously set out there.","Immediate commencement (reg 2) leaves no transition period for affected parties.","No definitional material or procedural detail in the instrument — relies on existing Act and administrative practice."],"plain_english_summary":"These Regulations take effect immediately, revoke the 2003 Fences Regulations, and specify two classes of land exempt from the Fences Act 1975 under section 20(3). The exemptions are: land held by the Commissioner of Highways or a council to control access to a road (or proposed road); and Crown, Crown agency/instrumentality or council land used solely or principally for drainage. Mechanically, the instrument narrows the Act’s coverage by removing these lands from the Act’s fence rules."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/fences-regulations-2018","history":"/api/acts/fences-regulations-2018/history","analysis":"/api/acts/fences-regulations-2018/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/fences-regulations-2018/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/fences-regulations-2018/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/fences-regulations-2018/documents"}}