{"id":"town-planning-and-development-bylaws-bylaw-3","name":"Town Planning and Development By-laws - By-law 3","slug":"town-planning-and-development-by-laws-by-law-3","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"wa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":182243,"registerId":"wa-town-planning-and-development-bylaws-bylaw-3-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Town Planning and Development By-laws - By-law 3","content":"![Crest]()Western Australia\n\nPlanning and Development Act 2005 2\n\nTown Planning and Development By-laws — By-law 3\n\nWestern Australia\n\nTown Planning and Development By-laws — By-law 3\n\nContents\n\n3. By‑laws for securing proper Sanitary and Hygienic conditions in connection with Buildings erected on lands liable to inundation. 1\n\nNotes\n\nCompilation table 2\n\n  \n\nWestern Australia\n\nPlanning and Development Act 2005 2\n\nTown Planning and Development By‑laws — By‑law 3\n\n##### 3. By‑laws for securing proper Sanitary and Hygienic conditions in connection with Buildings erected on lands liable to inundation.\n\n(1) From and after the commencement of this By‑law, no building intended for use as a dwelling‑house, or for occupation by persons for any purpose whatsoever, shall be constructed upon any land which adjoins or is adjacent to any river, lake, or watercourse, unless such building is so constructed that the level of the lowest floor in such building is at least four feet above the highest recorded flood level of the waters of such river, lake, or watercourse at or near the locality of such building, so far as the same can be ascertained from the records of the Meteorological Bureau at Perth or from any other official records.\n\n(2) This By-law shall apply and have effect throughout the State.\n\n(3) The authority responsible for the carrying out of the preceding By‑law shall be the Town Clerk or Secretary (as the case may be) to the local authority concerned, and also the Town Planning Commssioner.\n\n(4) Any person who by act or omission commits a breach of the preceding By‑law No. 3 commits an offence and shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding £20.\n\nNotes\n\n1 This is a compilation of the *Town Planning and Development By‑laws — By‑law 3*. The following table contains information about those by-laws.\n\nCompilation table\n\n| **Citation** | **Gazettal** | **Commencement** |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| *Town Planning and Development By‑laws — By‑law 3* | 14 Jun 1935 p.1201 | 14 Jun 1935 |\n\n\n2 Formerly made under s. 30(1) of the *Town Planning and Development Act 1928*, continued under s. 262 of the *Planning and Development Act 2005*.\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"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":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This by-law remains tightly focused on its original 1935 purpose: setting minimum floor heights for buildings on flood-prone land. It has not expanded beyond this specific sanitary/hygienic precaution. The only 'change' is statutory continuity—it now operates under the 2005 Act rather than the 1928 Act, but the substantive scope is unchanged."},"complexity_factors":["Extremely short: only 4 substantive subsections","No defined terms section","Minimal cross-referencing (only refers to 'preceding By-law No. 3' in the penalty clause)","Simple conditional structure: single requirement (4 feet above flood level) with straightforward exceptions (none)","Uses outdated imperial measurements (feet and pounds sterling) requiring conversion for modern understanding","Single enforcement mechanism with clear penalty cap"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this law does:**\n\nThis by-law sets a minimum floor height for buildings constructed on land near rivers, lakes, or watercourses that are prone to flooding. It requires that the lowest floor of any building used as a home or for any other purpose must be at least **four feet (roughly 1.2 metres) above the highest recorded flood level** for that area.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\n- **Property owners and developers** wanting to build on flood-prone land near water\n- **Local councils** (via their Town Clerk or Secretary) who must enforce the rules\n- **The Town Planning Commissioner** who also has enforcement responsibilities\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThis is a public health and safety measure. By raising buildings above known flood levels, it aims to:\n- Prevent homes and workplaces from flooding\n- Protect occupants from drowning and waterborne diseases\n- Reduce property damage during floods\n\n**Key details:**\n- The \"highest recorded flood level\" is determined using official records from the Bureau of Meteorology in Perth or other government sources\n- It applies **statewide** across Western Australia\n- Breaking this by-law is an offence carrying a fine of up to **£20** (the old British currency, indicating this is historical legislation still technically in force)\n\n**Historical note:** Originally made in 1935 under old planning laws, this by-law continues to operate today under the current *Planning and Development Act 2005*."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The by-law's substantive requirements — a 4‑foot minimum floor elevation for buildings adjacent to watercourses, statewide application, designated enforcement officers, and the specified penalty — are presented as originally made in 1935 and carried forward under the Planning and Development Act 2005 (Compilation notes). The compilation indicates continuation of scope rather than an amendment or narrowing of coverage."},"complexity_factors":["Single, numeric standard for minimum floor level (4 feet above highest recorded flood) reduces interpretive complexity (s.1).","Statewide application makes coverage simple but increases scope of enforcement (s.2).","Enforcement responsibility is split between local officers and the Town Planning Commissioner, requiring coordination (s.3).","Relies on historical records from the Meteorological Bureau or other official records to establish the 'highest recorded flood level', introducing evidentiary/measurement uncertainty (s.1).","Penalties are fixed and small (expressed in historical currency), which simplifies sanctioning but may be outdated in practical effect (s.4).","Terminology such as 'adjoins or is adjacent to' and 'so far as the same can be ascertained' creates modest legal vagueness about exact trigger points and proof (s.1).","Compiled in 1935 and continued under the Planning and Development Act 2005, indicating continuity rather than legislative modernization (Compilation notes)."],"plain_english_summary":"This by-law requires that any building for habitation or occupation located next to a river, lake or watercourse must have its lowest floor at least four feet above the highest recorded flood level for that locality, using Meteorological Bureau or other official records to determine the level (s.1). It applies across Western Australia (s.2). Local authorities (Town Clerk/Secretary) and the Town Planning Commissioner enforce the rule (s.3); non-compliance is an offence with a penalty up to £20 (s.4)."},"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"No scope can be assessed as no legislative text was provided. The document consists entirely of a broken link notification and an Acknowledgement of Country statement."},"complexity_factors":["No legislative content is present in the provided text","The document is a website error/redirect notice only","There is nothing to legally interpret or analyse"],"plain_english_summary":"**This page contains no usable legislation.**\n\nThe document provided is not actual legal text — it is a **website error page** from the Western Australian legislation website, indicating that the page previously hosting 'Town Planning and Development By-laws - By-law 3' is no longer available due to system upgrades.\n\n**What this means for you:** No legal content can be analysed, summarised, or assessed from this document. If you need to find By-law 3 of the Town Planning and Development By-laws (WA), you should:\n- Visit the Western Australian legislation website directly at legislation.wa.gov.au\n- Use the site's search or menu to locate the current version\n- Contact the Parliamentary Counsel's Office Helpdesk if you cannot locate it"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/town-planning-and-development-by-laws-by-law-3","history":"/api/acts/town-planning-and-development-by-laws-by-law-3/history","analysis":"/api/acts/town-planning-and-development-by-laws-by-law-3/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/town-planning-and-development-by-laws-by-law-3/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/town-planning-and-development-by-laws-by-law-3/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/town-planning-and-development-by-laws-by-law-3/documents"}}