Gas Standards Act 1972 (Western Australia)

Mechanically, the Gas Standards Act 1972 (WA) creates a regulatory architecture governing the specification, testing, monitoring and safety of gas supplied for fuel or processes, the design and approval of gas appliances, and the supervision of persons who carry out gasfitting. Key structural features are:

A statutory requirement that an undertaker obtain Ministerial written approval for the minimum heating value of gas to be distributed (s 8(1)), and a process for approval of changes (s 8(2)-(4)). The Act prescribes the measurement method for 28‑day averaging (s 8(6)-(7)) and establishes criminal penalties for breaches (s 8(6), (8)).
A prohibition on altering specific gravity, flame speed or other prescribed characteristics of gas without Ministerial approval (s 9(1)), and a positive duty that any associated modifications to consumers’ installations be carried out at the undertaker’s expense where the Minister so requires (s 9(2)).
Operational testing, measurement and monitoring powers vested in the Director of Energy Safety (Director) including powers to test gas, require continuous recording equipment and admit such records as evidence (s 10(1)-(3)); and criminal offences for knowingly failing to comply with directions, falsifying records or tampering with equipment (s 10(4)).
Mandatory inspection rules for consumers’ installations tied to whether an undertaker or pipeline licensee has an Inspection Policy Statement and Plan (the Plan) approved by the Director (s 13, s 13J-K). Where a Plan is approved the Act sets out how inspections operate, auditing by the Director, and consequences for non‑conformity (s 13J(4)-(7), s 13K(4)-(6)).
Statutory control of the practice of gasfitting through regulations enabling certificates of competency, permits and authorisations (s 13A(2)-(4)), a register of holders (s 13A(4)), and disciplinary processes including summary action by the Director and referrals to the State Administrative Tribunal (s 13A(11)-(17)). There are specific provisions allowing post‑surrender disciplinary action against former registrants (s 13AA).

CrestWestern Australia

Gas Standards Act 1972

Western Australia

Gas Standards Act 1972

Contents

Short title 1
Commencement 1
Terms used in this Act 1
Exemptions 3
Act to prevail over other Acts 4
Heating standard of gas to be approved 4
Requirements as to change in gas 6
Testing of gas 7
Defences against certain proceedings 8
Consumers’ installations 8

13A. Gasfitting works and workers 10

13AA. Disciplinary action against former registered persons 18

13B. Application for review 19

13C. Surrender of licence 20

13CA. Annual reporting 20

13D. Approval of gas appliances 21

13E. Application for approval 22

13F. Approval by other bodies 23

13G. Notice of approved gas appliances 24

13H. Power to prohibit sale and use of gas appliances and components 24

13I. Guidelines for gasfitting work 25

13J. Inspection Policy Statement and Plan 26

13K. Inspections under the Plan 28

13L. Director’s guidelines 30

13M. Review of certain decisions of the Director 31

13N. Review of determinations of Director under section 13M 32

Offences 33
Regulations 33
Regulations for the commingling of gas in distribution systems 35

Notes

Compilation table 37

Uncommenced provisions table 39

Other notes 39

Defined terms

Western Australia

Gas Standards Act 1972

An Act to regulate the standards of quality, pressure, purity and safety of gas supplied and the standards and safety of gas installations and gas appliances; to provide for the supervision and control of persons concerned in, and to regulate the practice of, gasfitting; to repeal the Gas (Standards) Act 1947 1, and for incidental and other purposes.

[Long title amended: No. 87 of 1979 s. 3; No. 63 of 1985 s. 3.]

1. Short title

This Act may be cited as the Gas Standards Act 1972.

2. Commencement

This Act shall come into operation on a date to be fixed by proclamation.

[3. Omitted under the Reprints Act 1984 s. 7(4)(f).]

4. Terms used in this Act

In this Act unless the contrary intention appears —

commercial information means —

(a) any knowledge or information relating to technology, marketing or energy used in a person’s business and that might reasonably be expected adversely to affect the business or interests of that person if disclosed to another person; or

(b) other information that has commercial value;

consumer means any person (not being an undertaker) to whom gas is supplied by an undertaker or a pipeline licensee;

Director means the Director of Energy Safety referred to in section 5 of the Energy Coordination Act 1994;

gas means any gas or mixture of gases intended for use as fuel for gas appliances or for use in any chemical process;

gas appliance means any appliance that consumes gas as fuel;

gas installation means any appliance, pipes, fittings or other apparatus installed or to be installed for or for purposes incidental to the conveyance, control, supply or use of gas;

inspector means a person designated under section 12 of the Energy Coordination Act 1994;

pipeline licensee means the holder of a pipeline licence granted under the Petroleum Pipelines Act 1969;

supply, in relation to gas, includes to have in possession with intent to supply any consumer or consumers;

Type A gas appliance means a gas appliance of a prescribed class or type;

Type B gas appliance means a gas appliance that has a maximum hourly input rate exceeding 10 megajoules that is neither a Type A gas appliance nor a gas‑fuelled engine that —

(a) is mounted in or on any vehicle, craft or portable appliance; and

(b) is supplied by fuel from a cylinder or tank mounted on or in the vehicle, craft or portable appliance;

undertaker means any licensee within the meaning of the Energy Coordination Act 1994 and any local government, regional local government, body corporate, firm or person making or supplying gas other than solely for its or his own use.

[Section 4 amended: No. 87 of 1979 s. 4; No. 63 of 1985 s. 4; No. 89 of 1994 s. 86; No. 14 of 1996 s. 4; No. 58 of 1999 s. 84 and 98; No. 5 of 2007 s. 22.]

5. Exemptions

(1) Nothing in this Act applies to or in relation to —

[(a) deleted]

(b) the acts of transmitting gas through a pipeline where and to the extent that those acts are performed by a pipeline licensee under the authority of the pipeline licence granted to him;

(c) the acts of gathering gas through a pipeline within the land comprised in an exploration permit or a production licence granted under the Petroleum and Geothermal Energy Resources Act 1967, where and to the extent that those acts are performed under the authority of that exploration permit or production licence; or

(d) liquid petroleum gas storage facilities —

(i) in tanks having a water capacity exceeding 500 litres; or

(ii) in cylinders having an aggregate water capacity exceeding 1 000 litres.

(2) The provisions of sections 8, 9, 10 and 11 do not apply to or in relation to gas supplied directly by a pipeline licensee to a consumer for industrial purposes in any case where the gas is not supplied by means of a reticulation system generally serving consumers in the same locality.

(3) The Governor may from time to time, by proclamation, declare that all or any of the provisions of this Act do not apply to or in relation to the manufacture or supply of any gas which is not ordinarily used as a fuel by consumers generally and which is specified in the proclamation.

(4) A proclamation made under subsection (3) may —

(a) be expressed to apply generally to the manufacture or supply of the gas or gases therein specified; or

(b) be expressed to apply only to the manufacture or the supply of the gas in specified areas or when the gas is to be used for specified purposes.

(5) A proclamation made under subsection (3) may be varied or revoked by a subsequent proclamation.

[Section 5 amended: No. 87 of 1979 s. 5; No. 74 of 2003 s. 10(5); No. 35 of 2007 s. 95.]

[6. Deleted: No. 89 of 1994 s. 87.]

7. Act to prevail over other Acts

(1) Any provisions of this Act with respect to the heating value of gas or the testing of the heating value of gas shall have effect in lieu of any provisions relating to the calorific value or illuminating power of gas, or the testing of the calorific value of gas, whether to the same effect or inconsistent therewith, in any other Act relating or applying to any undertaker, and any such other Act shall, so far as applicable and with all necessary adaptations, be read and construed accordingly.

(2) Any provisions of this Act with respect to the purity, quality, composition or pressure of gas or the testing of gas or with respect to any other matter for which provision is made in this Act shall have effect in lieu of any provisions whether to the same effect or inconsistent therewith in any other Act relating or applying to any undertaker, and any such other Act shall, so far as applicable and with all necessary adaptations, be read and construed accordingly.

8. Heating standard of gas to be approved

(1) Subject to the provisions of subsection (5), an undertaker shall not, after the coming into operation of this Act, distribute gas unless he has first obtained the written approval of the Minister of the minimum standard of heating value of the gas to be distributed by that undertaker.

Penalty: $250 000.

(2) Subject to section 9, the Minister may upon application by an undertaker approve any alteration of the minimum standard of heating value of gas previously approved or deemed to have been approved pursuant to subsection (1).

(3) The Minister may approve different minimum standards of heating values in respect of the type of gas distributed by an undertaker in different areas.

(4) Any approval given by the Minister pursuant to this section may be given subject to such conditions as the Minister determines, and notice of any approval so given shall be published in the Government Gazette.

(5) Where on the day immediately preceding the date of the coming into operation of this Act, an undertaker was supplying gas, the declared standard under the Gas (Standards) Act 1947 1 of the undertaker on that day shall be deemed to be the minimum standard of heating value approved for that undertaker under subsection (1), until that standard is altered in accordance with subsection (2).

(6) An undertaker who has been directed under section 10 to keep a continuous record of the heating value of gas supplied by him, shall not supply gas of which the average heating value, measured in accordance with subsection (7) over any continuous period of 28 days, is less by more than 1% than the minimum standard of heating value for the time being approved under this section in respect of the gas.

Penalty: For a first offence, $40 000 and for a second or subsequent offence, $250 000.

(7) For the purposes of subsection (6), the average heating value of gas supplied by an undertaker over any period of 28 days shall be measured by obtaining the aggregate of the mean heating values of gas supplied in each period of one hour during that period of 28 days, and dividing the aggregate so obtained by 672.

(8) Where —

(a) an undertaker has not been directed under section 10 to keep a continuous record of the heating value of gas supplied by him; and

(b) the average heating value of gas supplied by that undertaker, as ascertained by the taking of 3 tests of that gas during any period of 2 hours, is less by more than 1% than the minimum standard of heating value for the time being approved under this section in respect of that gas,

the undertaker is guilty of an offence.

Penalty: For a first offence, $20 000 and for a second or subsequent offence, $250 000.

[Section 8 amended: No. 87 of 1979 s. 6; No. 63 of 1985 s. 5; No. 5 of 2007 s. 23.]

9. Requirements as to change in gas

(1) An undertaker shall not cause or permit any alteration to be made in the specific gravity, flame speed or other prescribed characteristic of gas supplied by him unless he has first applied for, and obtained, the written approval of the Minister to the alteration.

(2) Where the Minister —

(a) has received from an undertaker an application under section 8(2) or subsection (1) for his approval to the alteration of the heating value or other characteristic of the gas supplied by the undertaker; and

(b) is of opinion that if the alteration is effected, all or any of the consumers’ installations to which the gas is supplied will require modification or replacement by reason of the alteration,

the Minister shall not approve of the alteration until he is satisfied that the undertaker has satisfactorily undertaken, at his own expense, the, modification or replacement, as the case requires, of those consumers’ installations.

10. Testing of gas

(1) The Director may at any time test gas supplied by an undertaker to determine its heating value, pressure, purity and odour and for such other purposes as in the opinion of the Director are necessary or expedient for the proper administration and enforcement of this Act, and shall furnish the undertaker with the result of any test carried out under this subsection.

(2) The Director may from time to time by notice in writing served on an undertaker, direct the undertaker to keep a continuous record of the heating value of all or any of the gas supplied by that undertaker, and the Director may, for that purpose, from time to time require the undertaker to install, operate and maintain such measuring and recording devices or apparatus as are specified in a notice in writing served by the Director on the undertaker.

(3) The results of any tests carried out by the Director under subsection (1) and any records kept by an undertaker pursuant to subsection (2) are admissible in evidence in any proceedings instituted under this Act, as evidence of the matters therein stated.

(4) An undertaker shall not knowingly —

(a) fail to comply with any direction served on him pursuant to subsection (2);

(b) cause or permit any false entry to be made in any record kept pursuant to subsection (2);

(c) do, or cause or permit to be done, or fail to do, any act or thing with intent to cause any measuring or recording device or apparatus installed pursuant to subsection (2) to incorrectly record the heating value of the gas supplied by that undertaker; or

(d) fail to report forthwith to the Director any fault occurring in or any breakdown or failure of any apparatus or device installed pursuant to subsection (2).

Penalty: $250 000.

[Section 10 amended: No. 63 of 1985 s. 6; No. 89 of 1994 s. 93; No. 5 of 2007 s. 24.]

11. Defences against certain proceedings

In any proceedings instituted against an undertaker for an offence against section 8(6) or (8), it is a defence for the undertaker to prove that —

(a) the supplying of gas at less than the relevant approved minimum heating value which gave rise to the proceedings was caused by circumstances over which the undertaker had no control and could not reasonably have been expected to have exercised control; and

(b) he notified the Director forthwith upon his becoming aware of those circumstances.

[Section 11 amended: No. 89 of 1994 s. 93.]

[12. Deleted: No. 5 of 2007 s. 25.]

13. Consumers’ installations

(1) If an undertaker or a pipeline licensee does not have an Inspection Policy Statement and Plan approved by the Director under section 13J, the undertaker or pipeline licensee —

(a) may commence to supply gas to a newly installed consumer gas installation; or

(b) supply gas to a consumer gas installation that has been altered by the installation of a Type B gas appliance,

if, and only if, the installation has been inspected by an inspector and complies with the requirements, if any, prescribed in respect of that installation.

Penalty: $250 000.

(2) If an undertaker or a pipeline licensee has an Inspection Policy Statement and Plan approved by the Director under section 13J, the undertaker or pipeline licensee may commence to supply gas to a consumer gas installation if, and only if, the installation has been inspected in accordance with that plan and complies with the requirements, if any, prescribed in respect of that installation.

Penalty: $250 000.

(3) In proceedings for an offence against subsection (2) it is a defence for the accused to show that an inspection was carried out after the gas was supplied to the consumer’s gas installation under section 13K(2).

(4) If, on an inspection under subsection (1), the inspector makes an order under section 18(2)(a) of the Energy Coordination Act 1994 or issues a notice under this Act, the undertaker or pipeline licensee must send a copy of the order or notice to the Director within 28 days of the completion of the inspection.

Penalty: $100 000.

(5) If an accident involving gas occurs at an installation referred to in subsection (1), the undertaker or pipeline licensee who supplies gas to the installation must give the Director a report, in a form approved by the Director, on the accident within 3 days of the accident.

Penalty: $100 000.

[Section 13 inserted: No. 5 of 2007 s. 26.]

13A. Gasfitting works and workers

[(1) deleted]

(2) A person who, otherwise than in a prescribed capacity, engages in any operation or carries out any work or process of a kind that is prescribed pursuant to this Act as being an operation, or work or process, of the nature of gasfitting, to which the regulations apply commits an offence unless he holds a certificate of competency, permit or authorisation granted under this Act and relevant to that operation or such work or process authorising him so to do.

(3) Regulations made under this Act may make provision —

(a) for the administration of a scheme to control and supervise the practice of gasfitting;

(b) for the grant of certificates of competency, permits, or authorisations by or on behalf of the Director which, subject to any restriction, limitation, condition or extension endorsed thereon pursuant to the regulations, shall authorise the holder to engage in such operations, or carry out such work or processes, of the nature of gasfitting as are by those regulations specified as being matters that can be engaged in or carried out by the holder of a certificate, permit or authorisation of that grade or kind or as are specifically referred to therein;

(c) prescribing the kinds of operation, work or processes that shall be taken to be of the nature of gasfitting, specifying whether and to what extent and in what circumstances the regulations shall apply to and in relation to any such operation, work or process, classifying different grades of certificate and different kinds of permit or authorisation, prescribing that different classes of operations, work or processes may be engaged in or carried on only by the holder of an appropriate grade of certificate or kind of permit or authorisation, and that a permit or authorisation may have effect only in relation to a specified place, period, employer, or circumstance;

(d) as to the examinations and qualifications required of a person desiring to obtain a certificate, permit or authorisation, and for the conduct of examinations (including the practical testing of applicants) for, and the issue or surrender of, specified grades of certificates of competency or kinds of permit or authorisation, and for the duration and renewal of such permits or authorisations and the grounds upon which renewal may be refused;

(e) authorising the Director to delegate his or her powers to a person or body of persons appointed by the Director, and the exercise by that person or body of persons of such powers as are so delegated or as are prescribed including the issue of certificates, permits and authorisations, and the conduct of inquiries, in the name of the Director;

(f) for the establishment of systems of inspection, inquiry, and supervision, including the appointment of persons as inspectors and specifying their duties and powers;

(g) creating offences, and providing for the payment, enforcement and recovery of penalties, fees and charges;

(h) adopting, by reference to the text as from time to time amended and for the time being in force, unless a particular text is specified at the time of such adoption, —

(i) such rules, regulations, codes, instructions or other subordinate legislation made, determined or issued under any other Act, or under any Act of the Parliament of the Commonwealth or of the Parliament of the United Kingdom; or

(ii) such standards, rules, codes or specifications issued by Standards Australia, the Australian Gas Association, the British Standards Institution, or other specified body,

either wholly or in part or with modifications, as are specified;

(i) that where by reason of unavailability of materials or other reason that the Director considers valid any requirement imposed by the Director cannot be conformed to, the Director may dispense with that requirement and in lieu authorise in writing in any particular case the use of materials or any other matters which he or she considers to be appropriate;

(j) that, in a specified case or a specified class of case, whether on specified conditions or unconditionally, a person or thing or a class of persons or things, may be exempted from the provisions of those regulations either wholly or to such extent as is specified or that the regulations, or any of them, shall, by Order of the Minister published in the Government Gazette, not apply in or in relation to specified parts of the State or circumstances;

(k) requiring a matter affected by them to be in accordance with a specified standard, specification or requirement or to be as approved by, or to the satisfaction of, a specified person or body or a specified class of person or body, or so as to confer on a specified person or body or a specified class of person or body a discretionary authority; and

(l) as to any other matter that the Governor thinks necessary for safeguarding persons and the public interest in relation to gasfitting,

and in this subsection, specified means specified in the regulation in relation to which the term is used.

(4) The Director shall cause to be maintained a register of the persons who are for the time being the holder of a certificate, permit or authorisation under regulations made pursuant to this section, and the register shall contain such particulars as are prescribed.

(5) A certificate signed by the Director that any person is or is not, or on any particular date was or was not, the holder of a certificate, permit or authorisation pursuant to regulations made under this section for the class of operation, work or process therein specified shall be prima facie evidence of the facts therein contained.

(6) A person desiring to obtain a certificate of competency, permit or authorisation under regulations made pursuant to this section may make application therefor to the Director in the prescribed manner and shall pay the prescribed application fee.

(7) The Director has power, where the doing of any act would otherwise constitute a contravention of the regulations made under this section, to issue a permit or licence, which may be made subject to such limitations, restrictions or conditions as the Director endorses upon it, authorising the doing of that act in any case where for reasons of training, practice, unavoidable circumstances or public interest it appears to the Director to be necessary or desirable notwithstanding that a certificate of competency might otherwise have been required.

(8) Where any person being the holder of a certificate of competency granted within the Commonwealth, or of such other qualification as is in the opinion of the Director satisfactory evidence of competence, makes application to the Director for a certificate in respect of the same or a similar subject matter the Director may issue to him a temporary permit.

(9) A permit issued under subsection (8) —

(a) shall be returned to the Director at any time the Director, by notice in writing, so requires;

(b) authorises that person to do any act specified therein that would otherwise constitute a contravention of the regulations made under this section, for the period therein specified or until its return is sooner required under this subsection; and

(10) A person who, whether for himself or on behalf of another person, —

(a) makes, or causes to be made, any falsification in any matter relating to an application for, or the variation, grant or use of a certificate of competency, permit or authorisation or as to the renewal of a permit or authorisation;

(b) knowingly presents, or causes to be presented, to the Director any forged, false or fraudulent document, representation or other purported evidence as to his qualifications or experience;

(c) personates, or wrongfully represents himself as being, the person referred to in any document presented to the Director, or in any certificate, permit or other document granted under this Act;

(d) makes any false statement upon any inquiry or examination held or conducted under this Act;

(e) makes a false statement in any declaration required under this Act; or

(f) gives a false testimonial to any person for the purposes of, or in relation to, any application made or to be made under this Act,

commits an offence.

(11) Where it appears to the Director that a person who is the holder of a certificate of competency, permit or authorisation under this Act —

(a) obtained that status by fraud or misrepresentation;

(b) as the result of a finding of any other authority exercising outside the State powers similar to those conferred on the Director by this Act, has been at any time, and in the opinion of the Director should continue to be, disqualified from engaging in the operations, or carrying out the work or processes, authorised by a document of that kind;

(ca) is guilty of an offence committed in the course of carrying out the practice of gasfitting;

(cb) engaged in fraudulent conduct in connection with the practice of gasfitting;

(d) is guilty of misconduct in relation to the requirements of safety as regards gasfitting, by reason of negligence, incompetence or otherwise;

(e) is addicted to alcohol or any deleterious drug or suffers from any mental or physical disorder to a degree that renders him unfit to be trusted to perform his duties as such holder efficiently,

the Director may allege to the State Administrative Tribunal that there is proper cause for disciplinary action and, pending the holding of any proceedings commenced by the allegation, the Director may by order suspend any person, either generally or to a specified extent, for a period not exceeding 3 months, from acting under any authorisation or exercising any privilege conferred by any such document, but if the Director considers that the matter does not require that any disqualification or suspension be imposed on a person against whom an allegation could be made to the State Administrative Tribunal, the Director, after affording to that person an opportunity of giving an explanation either in person or in writing, may, if that person gives his consent in writing, deal with the matter summarily, without making an allegation to the State Administrative Tribunal under the provisions of this subsection.

(12) For the purposes of investigating or dealing with a person referred to in subsection (11) (the holder), the Director —

[(a), (b) deleted]

(c) may by a summons in the prescribed form require the attendance before the Director of the holder, and may also require the attendance of any other person that the Director considers is likely to be able to give evidence or produce documents touching the matter in question, or who the holder desires to call as a witness;

(d) may administer an oath or affirmation to a person attending to give evidence before him, whether the witness has been summoned or is voluntarily attending, and the witness may be examined accordingly (but a statement or disclosure made by a witness is not, except in proceedings before the State Administrative Tribunal commenced by an allegation under this Act or in proceedings for giving false testimony, admissible in evidence against him in any civil or criminal proceedings); and

(e) may inspect documents or other exhibits produced, may retain them for such reasonable period as appears to be necessary, and may make copies of so much of them as is relevant to the matter.

(13) A summons issued under subsection (12) —

(a) may require the production of any document or other thing in the custody or control of the person summoned;

(b) may be enforced by the Supreme Court or a judge, on application by the Director, in the same manner as a subpoena to the effect issued by the Supreme Court in a civil action.

(14) A witness in proceedings before the Director held pursuant to this section has the same protection as a witness in a matter before the Supreme Court, and a person who attends for the purpose of giving evidence is entitled to receive such fees and allowances as may be allowed in accordance with the prescribed scale.

(15) The Director may determine that it is in the public interest that proceedings before the Director under this section, or any part of them, should be heard in camera and the proceedings shall thereupon be conducted accordingly but any question as to whether any proceedings should or should not be heard in camera may be referred to the State Administrative Tribunal, and the State Administrative Tribunal may reverse the decision of the Director or may confirm it absolutely or upon conditions which may include conditions intended to protect the business or interest of any person, and may make such further or other order as the State Administrative Tribunal thinks fit.

(16) The State Administrative Tribunal dealing with an allegation against a person made under subsection (11) may by order —

(a) disqualify that person and order that the certificate of competency, permit or authorisation be returned to the Director for cancellation;

(b) suspend the operation of a certificate of competency, permit or authorisation in relation to that person, either generally or to a specified extent, for a period not exceeding 12 months;

(d) impose or vary any limitation, restriction or condition,

and the Director dealing with a matter under that subsection may do anything referred to in paragraph (c) or (d) and the Director is required to endorse the relevant document accordingly.

(17) The Director may, in dealing with a matter under subsection (11) instead of making an allegation to the State Administrative Tribunal, in addition to or in lieu of imposing any one or more of the penalties specified in subsection (16), order any person against whom an order is made to pay such costs and expenses of or incidental to the proceedings as the Director thinks fit, and where any costs or expenses are ordered to be paid by any person under this subsection the amount ordered to be paid shall be recoverable from him in any court of competent jurisdiction as a debt due to the Director.

(18) Where the operation of a certificate of competency, permit or authorisation is suspended generally during the period for which the suspension subsists the holder is not authorised to do any act that, if done by a person who was not such a holder, would constitute a contravention of the regulations made under this section, but if the operation of such a document is suspended only to a specified extent during the period for which the partial suspension subsists the holder is authorised to do any other act authorised by that document and in respect of which the document is not so suspended.

(19) The Director may, by notice in writing, revoke an order for suspension made by the Director, either generally or to a specified extent, and may direct in the notice that the revocation have effect from a date specified in the notice.

(20) A reference in this section to the Director may be construed as a reference to a person or body lawfully acting pursuant to a power delegated by the Director under the regulations.

[Section 13A inserted: No. 87 of 1979 s. 9; amended: No. 89 of 1994 s. 90 and 93; No. 74 of 2003 s. 60; No. 55 of 2004 s. 410; No. 7 of 2022 s. 30.]

13AA. Disciplinary action against former registered persons

(1) In this section —

former holder means a person who formerly held a registration;

interstate authority means a person in another State, the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory who has functions that correspond or substantially correspond to the functions of the Director under this Act;

registration means a certificate of competency, permit or authorisation granted under regulations made under section 13A(3)(b).

(2) The Director may apply to the State Administrative Tribunal for action to be taken by the Tribunal under this section against a former holder if the former holder —

(a) obtains their registration by fraud or misrepresentation; or

(b) is disqualified by an interstate authority from carrying out the practice of gasfitting; or

(d) is found guilty of an offence committed in the course of carrying out the practice of gasfitting; or

(e) engages in fraudulent conduct in connection with the practice of gasfitting; or

(f) engages in misconduct by failing to safely carry out the practice of gasfitting.

(3) For the purposes of investigating a former holder, section 13A(12) to (15) apply as if the definition of holder in section 13A(12) included the former holder.

(4) If the State Administrative Tribunal, on dealing with an application under subsection (2), is satisfied that a matter referred to in that subsection has been made out, the Tribunal may by order disqualify the former holder from holding a registration —

(a) permanently; or

(b) for a period specified by the Tribunal in the order.

[Section 13AA inserted: No. 7 of 2022 s. 31.]

13B. Application for review

(1) Any person aggrieved by a reviewable decision may apply to the State Administrative Tribunal for a review of the decision.

(2) In subsection (1) —

person aggrieved means —

(a) the holder of a certificate of competency, permit or authorisation; or

(b) a person who has applied for a certificate of competency, permit or authorisation;

reviewable decision means a decision made under this Act in relation to a certificate of competency, permit or authorisation, including a decision made in dealing with a person referred to in section 13A(11) but not including a decision to make an allegation to the State Administrative Tribunal.

[Section 13B inserted: No. 55 of 2004 s. 411.]

13C. Surrender of licence

Despite the surrender by a person of the person’s licence, this Act applies, for the purpose of enabling the person to be investigated or otherwise dealt with for a matter arising before the surrender, as if the licence had not been surrendered.

[Section 13C inserted: No. 55 of 2004 s. 412.]

13CA. Annual reporting

The annual report under Part 5 of the Financial Management Act 2006 of the department of the Public Service in which the Director is employed is to include details of —

(a) the number, nature, and outcome, of —

(i) investigations and inquiries undertaken under this Act by, or at the direction of, the Director; and

(ii) matters that have been brought before the State Administrative Tribunal under this Act by the Director;

(b) the number and nature of matters referred to in paragraph (a) that are outstanding;

(d) forecasts of the workload of the Director in performing functions under this Act in the year after the year to which the report relates; and

(e) any proposals for improving the performance of the Director’s functions under this Act.

[Section 13CA inserted: No. 55 of 2004 s. 412; amended: No. 77 of 2006 s. 17.]

13D. Approval of gas appliances

(1) A person shall not sell, hire, advertise for sale or install a Type A gas appliance unless the appliance —

(a) is a gas appliance that is approved by the Director or is of a class or type of gas appliance that is approved by the Director; and

(b) is marked, stamped or labelled in the manner approved by the Director.

Penalty: $250 000.

(2) A consumer shall not use a Type B gas appliance unless the appliance —

(a) has been approved by the Director; and

(b) is marked, stamped or labelled in the manner approved by the Director.

Penalty: $250 000.

(3) The Director may by instrument in writing delegate to an inspector the power to give approval for the purposes of subsection (1)(a) or (2)(a).

[Section 13D inserted: No. 5 of 2007 s. 27.]

13E. Application for approval

(1) A person who desires to submit a gas appliance or class or type of gas appliance for approval by the Director shall apply in writing in the form approved by the Director.

(2) The Director may require that a gas appliance, or a gas appliance of the kind to which the application relates, be tested or approved, or tested and approved, by a person recognised by the Director as a competent authority for that purpose and carry a mark recognised by the Director.

(2a) The Director may, by notice published in the Gazette, specify the persons and the marks which are recognised by the Director for the purposes of subsection (2).

(3) The Director may approve of an application made under this section or refuse to approve of the application or may defer approval.

(3a) The Director may refuse to approve of an application in respect of —

(a) a Type A gas appliance; or

(b) a class or type of Type A gas appliance; or

(d) a class or type of Type B gas appliance,

if the Director is satisfied that the appliance or class or type of appliance does not comply with —

(e) a standard or requirement specified by the Director by notice published in the Gazette; or

(f) a prescribed standard or requirement.

(4) A person who applies for the approval of a gas appliance under subsection (1) shall pay to the Director such fee or charge as is determined by the Director having regard to the cost of processing the application and determining the suitability of the gas appliance for approval.

(5) The Director may withhold approval of a gas appliance until the applicant for the approval pays to the Director the fee or charge fixed by the Director under subsection (4).

(6) The Director may impose conditions and restrictions in relation to any gas appliance or class or type of gas appliance in relation to which the Director has given approval.

(7) Where the Director imposes any conditions or restrictions in relation to any gas appliance or any class or type of gas appliance under subsection (6) a person shall not sell or hire any gas appliance or advertise any gas appliance for sale or hire unless the gas appliance conforms to the conditions and restrictions so imposed by the Director.

Penalty: $250 000.

[Section 13E inserted: No. 63 of 1985 s. 8; amended: No. 89 of 1994 s. 91 and 93; No. 5 of 2007 s. 28.]

13F. Approval by other bodies

(1) Where a gas appliance is approved or is of a class or type of gas appliance that is approved by a body or authority having among its objects or functions the duty of examining, testing or approving gas appliances the Director may by notice adopt the approval given with respect to the gas appliance or class or type of gas appliance by that body or authority either generally or subject to such conditions and restrictions as the Director may impose.

(2) Where the Director adopts an approval under subsection (1), the Director shall cause to be published in the Government Gazette a notice setting out the fact of the approval and the conditions and restrictions (if any) that apply in relation to the approval.

(3) Where the Director imposes any conditions or restrictions in relation to a gas appliance under subsection (1) a person who sells or hires any gas appliance or advertises for sale or hire any gas appliance that does not conform to the conditions or restrictions so imposed commits an offence.

Penalty: $50 000.

[Section 13F inserted: No. 63 of 1985 s. 8; amended: No. 89 of 1994 s. 93; No. 5 of 2007 s. 29.]

13G. Notice of approved gas appliances

(1) The Director may from time to time, and shall whenever directed by the Minister so to do, cause to be published in the Government Gazette a notice setting out the classes or types of gas appliances that are approved by the Director under this Act.

(2) A notice referred to in subsection (1) shall set out the conditions and restrictions (if any) that apply in relation to any class or type of gas appliance referred to in the notice.

[Section 13G inserted: No. 63 of 1985 s. 8; amended: No. 89 of 1994 s. 93; No. 5 of 2007 s. 30.]

13H. Power to prohibit sale and use of gas appliances and components

(1) Notwithstanding anything in sections 13D to 13G, where the Director is of the opinion that a gas appliance or a type or class of gas appliance or a component used or designed to be used in connection with a gas appliance or in connection with a gas installation is or is likely to become unsafe or dangerous in use the Director may by order —

(a) prohibit the sale, hire or use of the gas appliance or class or type of gas appliance or component or class or type of component referred to in the order;

(b) impose conditions and restrictions on the sale, hire or use of any gas appliance or class or type of gas appliance or component or class or type of component referred to in the order.

(2) An order made under subsection (1) shall be published in the Government Gazette and in such other media as the Director directs having regard to the gas appliance or class or type of gas appliance in question and the particular circumstances of the case.

(3) The Director may by order published in the Government Gazette amend or revoke an order made under subsection (1).

(4) A person who fails to comply with an order made under subsection (1) commits an offence.

Penalty: $250 000.

[Section 13H inserted: No. 63 of 1985 s. 8; amended: No. 89 of 1994 s. 93; No. 5 of 2007 s. 31.]

13I. Guidelines for gasfitting work

(1) In this section —

gasfitting work means an operation, or a work or a process on or in relation to a gas installation, whether of an undertaker, a pipeline licensee or a consumer.

(2) The Director may from time to time formulate and publish guidelines that are not mandatory for safe practices and technical standards in relation to gasfitting work.

(3) Before completing the formulation of guidelines the Director must consult interested groups and persons in relation to the proposed guidelines to such an extent as the Director considers appropriate.

(4) Guidelines under subsection (2) may specify —

(a) standards to be observed, practices and procedures to be followed, and measures to be taken with respect to gasfitting work; or

(b) practices and procedures to be followed, and measures to be taken, to promote the safety of the public and persons engaged in gasfitting work.

(5) Guidelines under subsection (2) may incorporate or adopt guidelines, standards, or codes of practice made, formulated, published or issued under any law of another State or the Commonwealth, or by Standards Australia, the Australian Gas Association or any other body with such variations and modifications, if any, as the Director specifies.

[Section 13I inserted: No. 5 of 2007 s. 32.]

13J. Inspection Policy Statement and Plan

(1) An undertaker or pipeline licensee may prepare and submit an Inspection Policy Statement and Plan (the Plan) to the Director for the purpose of —

(a) ensuring the safety of a consumer’s gas installations and gas appliances; and

(b) monitoring the work of those who carry out any operation, work or process of the nature of gasfitting on the gas installation of a consumer supplied with gas (gasfitters) from the undertaker or pipeline licensee’s distribution system, cylinders, tanks, gas plant or pipeline.

(2) The Plan is to —

(a) relate to work on all types of consumers’ gas installations supplied with gas, whether new or by way of alteration or addition; and

(b) provide for —

(i) measures to prevent or provide protection from fire, explosion, and asphyxiation; and

(ii) the investigation of incidents of fire, explosion, or asphyxiation, including incidents related to gas appliances connected (whether or not permanently) to consumers’ gas installations, which may have been associated with gas supplied by the undertaker or pipeline licensee;

and

(i) compliance by gasfitters with written laws applicable to gasfitting on a consumer’s gas installation; and

(ii) the safety of a consumer’s gas installation and gas appliances supplied with gas.

(3) A system of inspection referred to in subsection (2)(c) must comply with such guidelines as are issued by the Director from time to time setting out the technical, investigative, reporting, administrative, and other requirements with which the system is to comply.

(4) Within 20 working days after the submission of a Plan under subsection (1) or a revised Plan under section 13K(4)(b)(ii), the Director is to make a determination in respect of the Plan or revised Plan —

(a) requiring further particulars to be supplied in relation to any matter, or that other matters specified by the Director be addressed, in a further submission; or

(b) granting approval, or granting approval subject to any condition imposed relevant to the compliance by the undertaker or pipeline licensee with the matters referred to in subsection (1); or

(d) rejecting the submission,

and is to notify the undertaker or pipeline licensee in writing of the determination.

(5) If the Director does not make a determination under subsection (4) within 20 working days, the Director is to be taken to have approved the Plan or revised Plan.

(6) If a Plan is approved, the Director may specify a period not exceeding 2 years during which the system of inspection is to operate.

(7) An approved Plan, the approval of which has not been withdrawn by the Director, is to be made available for public inspection at the offices of the Director with any modifications that the Director considers necessary, after consultation with relevant persons, to protect commercial information.

[Section 13J inserted: No. 5 of 2007 s. 32.]

13K. Inspections under the Plan

(1) Whether or not any inspection required to be carried out under a Plan approved under section 13J(4)(b) (the approved plan) is carried out at particular premises, and if it is carried out the nature and extent of it, is a matter within the discretion of an inspector unless —

(a) the approved plan provides that an inspector is not to have a discretion as to whether or not an inspection is carried out or if it is carried out the nature and extent of the inspection; or

(b) a written law otherwise specifically requires; or

(c) the Director or a responsible officer of the undertaker or pipeline licensee otherwise directs, if the approved plan provides for such a direction to be given.

(2) Despite section 13 and subsection (1), an approved plan may provide for some or all inspections to be carried out —

(a) after the installation has, or appliances have, been permanently supplied with gas; or

(b) by way of the examination only of a sample of the work of gasfitters,

subject to the prior approval of the Director being obtained and to any condition, restriction or limitation imposed by the Director.

(3) If —

(a) in good faith, an inspector decides not to carry out an inspection; or

(b) in good faith, an inspector decides to carry out an inspection of a particular nature or to a particular extent; or

(c) the undertaker or pipeline licensee, or the system of inspection established in accordance with the approved plan by the undertaker or pipeline licensee, does not require that an inspection be carried out; or

(d) the approval of the Director has been given to an inspection not being carried out,

in any particular case or in relation to any class of case, the inspector, the undertaker or pipeline licensee, the Director or the State, as the case may be, is not liable, in civil or criminal proceedings, for any injury or damage arising from failure to carry out an inspection.

(4) The Director may at any time audit and assess the inspection practices of an undertaker or pipeline licensee for conformity with the approved plan and the adequacy of the system of inspection and may by order in writing —

(a) require the modification of any inspection practice of that undertaker or pipeline licensee if it is found by the Director not to conform with the approved plan; or

(b) require the gas undertaker or pipeline licensee —

(i) to review those practices, or such of those practices as are specified in the order; and

(ii) if in any respect the system of inspection set out in the approved plan is found to be inadequate to establish and maintain an effective system of inspection for the purposes referred to in section 13J(1), to submit a revised plan,

within such time as is specified in the order; or

and the undertaker or pipeline licensee must forthwith comply with requirements of the order.

(5) The Director may exercise the powers conferred by subsection (4)(a), (b) and (c) at any time so far as that may be necessary in relation to any particular accident, or to any incident or other matter affecting the safety of a consumer’s gas installation.

(6) An undertaker or pipeline licensee that has an approved plan and fails to comply with a requirement of —

(a) this section; or

(b) the plan including any condition to which the granting of the approved plan was subject,

commits an offence.

Penalty: $250 000.

[Section 13K inserted: No. 5 of 2007 s. 32.]

13L. Director’s guidelines

(1) Before completing the formulation of guidelines referred to in section 13J(3) the Director must consult relevant persons in relation to the proposed guidelines to such an extent as the Director considers appropriate.

(2) Guidelines may specify policies or standards to be observed, methods, practices and procedures to be followed, and measures to be taken with respect to inspections.

(3) Guidelines under section 13J(3) may incorporate or adopt guidelines, standards or codes of practice made, formulated, published or issued under any law of another State or the Commonwealth, or by Standards Australia, the Australian Gas Association or any other body with such variations and modifications, if any, as the Director specifies.

[Section 13L inserted: No. 5 of 2007 s. 32.]

13M. Review of certain decisions of the Director

(1) An undertaker or pipeline licensee aggrieved by a determination of the Director under section 13J(4) may apply in writing to the Director for a review of the determination.

(2) The application is to be made within 14 days after the applicant receives a notification of the determination or within such further period as the Director in a particular case allows.

(3) The Director must give the applicant a reasonable opportunity to make submissions in relation to the application.

(4) The Director, after considering submissions (if any) made under subsection (3), may determine the application by —

(a) confirming the determination; or

(b) varying the determination; or

(c) cancelling the determination and making a new determination under section 13J(4), which determination is not subject to review under this section.

(5) The Director must give the applicant written notice of his or her determination.

[Section 13M inserted: No. 5 of 2007 s. 32.]

13N. Review of determinations of Director under section 13M

(1) Any person aggrieved by a determination of the Director under section 13M(4) may —

(a) if a question of law is involved, apply to the State Administrative Tribunal for a review of the decision; or

(b) in any other case, appeal in the prescribed manner to a technical review panel appointed under the regulations.

(2) If a determination is sent back to the Director under section 29(3)(c)(ii) of the State Administrative Tribunal Act 2004 for reconsideration —

(a) the Director is to make a new determination under section 13J(4) in accordance with any directions or recommendations of the State Administrative Tribunal within 20 working days of the day on which the Director receives notice of the Tribunal’s decision; and

(b) the new determination is not subject to review under section 13M; and

(3) On an appeal made under subsection (1)(b) the technical review panel may confirm, cancel or vary the determination and the decision of the technical review panel is final.

(4) If the technical review panel cancels a determination, the Director may make a new determination in accordance with the panel’s decision under section 13J(4) within 20 working days of the day on which the Director receives notice of the panel’s decision, which determination is not subject to review under section 13M.

(5) If an application for review or an appeal has been made under subsection (1) in relation to a determination, the State Administrative Tribunal or the technical review panel, as the case may be, may suspend the operation or effect of the determination until the determination of the review or appeal.

(6) If the technical review panel confirms a determination under subsection (3), the appellant is liable to pay the reasonable costs of the review.

(7) Any costs payable by the appellant under subsection (6) are recoverable by the Director in a court of competent jurisdiction as a debt due to the State.

[Section 13N inserted: No. 5 of 2007 s. 32.]

14. Offences

(1) Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with any provision of this Act or the regulations or of any notice, direction or other requirement made or given by or under this Act or the regulations commits an offence and is liable on conviction, except where a greater penalty is provided in this Act in respect of the offence, to a penalty, in the case of an individual, of $50 000 and, in the case of a body corporate, of $250 000.

(2) A prosecution for an offence under this Act must be commenced within 2 years after the date on which the offence is alleged to have been committed.

[Section 14 amended: No. 87 of 1979 s. 10; No. 63 of 1985 s. 9; No. 59 of 2004 s. 141; No. 5 of 2007 s. 33.]

15. Regulations

(1) The Governor may make regulations prescribing all matters necessary or convenient to be prescribed for the purposes of the administration of this Act.

(2) Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), regulations may be made —

(a) generally as to the standards of gas to be supplied, and in particular authorising the Minister to require undertakers to supply gas having such characteristics as to odour, pressure, specific gravity, flame speed, purity and other matters, as he specifies in each particular case; and

(b) requiring undertakers to furnish the Director with particulars in writing of the quantities of gas supplied by them; and

(c) prescribing fees to be paid by undertakers for tests conducted by or on behalf of the Director or the Minister for the purposes of this Act; and

(d) prescribing the standards of construction, installation, maintenance, operation and testing of pipelines and other equipment and installations used by undertakers for the conveyance, control, or supply of gas; and

(e) prescribing the standards of construction, installation, maintenance, operation and testing of consumers’ gas installations; and

(f) securing the safety of the public from personal injury and the property of the public from damage by fire or otherwise; and

(g) as to gasfitters and gasfitting, and prohibiting interference with gas installations by unauthorised persons; and

(h) prohibiting the fraudulent or improper use of marks signifying the approval of the Director; and

(i) providing for —

(i) the convening of a technical review panel of independent professional engineers; and

(ii) the procedure to be followed on a review by a technical review panel and the period of time within which a review is to be completed; and

(iii) the payment of remuneration to members of a technical review panel.

(3) Any regulation under this Act may be made so as to require a matter affected by it to be in accordance with a specified standard or specified requirement; or as approved by, or to the satisfaction of, a specified person or body; or so as to delegate to or confer upon a specified person or body a discretionary authority.

[Section 15 amended: No. 87 of 1979 s. 11; No. 63 of 1985 s. 10; No. 89 of 1994 s. 92 and 93; No. 58 of 1999 s. 66 and 99; No. 5 of 2007 s. 34.]

16. Regulations for the commingling of gas in distribution systems

Regulations may be made under section 15 —

(a) providing for and in relation to the entry and commingling of gas of different qualities in a distribution system (as defined in section 3 of the Energy Coordination Act 1994), including —

(i) control of the entry;

(ii) the standard of the heating value of the gas;

(iii) the maintenance of the required standard;

(iv) the monitoring of compliance with the required standard, including requirements for reporting matters to the Director; and

(v) the determination of the heating value of the gas;

and

(b) without limiting paragraph (a), requiring an undertaker or a pipeline operator —

(i) to set up, install and operate any plan, system or equipment; or

(ii) to take any other steps,

for any purpose referred to in that paragraph.

[Section 16 inserted: No. 53 of 2003 s. 41.]

dline

Notes

This is a compilation of the Gas Standards Act 1972 and includes amendments made by other written laws. For provisions that have come into operation, and for information about any reprints, see the compilation table 2. For provisions that have not yet come into operation see the uncommenced provisions table.

Compilation table

Short title	Number and year	Assent	Commencement
Gas Standards Act 1972	15 of 1972	26 May 1972	21 Jul 1972 (see s. 2 and Gazette 21 Jul 1972 p. 2645)
Gas Standards Act Amendment Act 1979	87 of 1979	11 Dec 1979	1 Feb 1980 (see s. 2 and Gazette 1 Feb 1980 p. 284)
Gas Standards Amendment Act 1985	63 of 1985	5 Nov 1985	s. 1 and 2: 5 Nov 1985; Act other than s. 1 and 2: 1 Feb 1986 (see s. 2 and Gazette 3 Jan 1986 p. 9)
*Reprint of the Gas Standards Act 1972* as at 15 Feb 1989** (includes amendments listed above)
Energy Corporations (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Act 1994 Pt. 5	89 of 1994	15 Dec 1994	1 Jan 1995 (see s. 2(2) and Gazette 23 Dec 1994 p. 7069)
Local Government (Consequential Amendments) Act 1996 s. 4	14 of 1996	28 Jun 1996	1 Jul 1996 (see s. 2)
Gas Corporation (Business Disposal) Act 1999 s. 66, 84, 98 and 99	58 of 1999	24 Dec 1999	s 66: 24 Dec 1999 (see s. 2(1)); s. 84: 1 Jul 2000 (see s. 2(2) and Gazette 4 Jul 2000 p. 3545); s. 98 and 99: 16 Dec 2000 (see s. 2(5) and Gazette 15 Dec 2000 p. 7201)
*Reprint of the Gas Standards Act 1972* as at 7 Jul 2000** (includes amendments listed above except those in the Gas Corporation (Business Disposal) Act 1999 s. 98 and 99)
Energy Legislation Amendment Act 2003 Pt. 3 Div. 10	53 of 2003	8 Oct 2003	8 Oct 2003 (see s. 2(1))
Statutes (Repeals and Minor Amendments) Act 2003 s. 10(5) and 60	74 of 2003	15 Dec 2003	15 Dec 2003 (see s. 2)
Courts Legislation Amendment and Repeal Act 2004 s. 141 3	59 of 2004 (as amended by No. 2 of 2008 s. 77(13))	23 Nov 2004	1 May 2005 (see s. 2 and Gazette 31 Dec 2004 p. 7128)
State Administrative Tribunal (Conferral of Jurisdiction) Amendment and Repeal Act 2004 Pt. 2 Div. 54 4	55 of 2004	24 Nov 2004	1 Jan 2005 (see s. 2 and Gazette 31 Dec 2004 p. 7130)
*Reprint 3: The Gas Standards Act 1972* as at 7 Jul 2006** (includes amendments listed above)
Financial Legislation Amendment and Repeal Act 2006 s. 17	77 of 2006	21 Dec 2006	1 Feb 2007 (see s. 2(1) and Gazette 19 Jan 2007 p. 137)
Gas and Electricity Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2007 Pt. 4	5 of 2007	18 Apr 2007	1 Dec 2007 (see s. 2 and Gazette 30 Nov 2007 p. 5927)
Petroleum Amendment Act 2007 s. 95	35 of 2007	21 Dec 2007	19 Jan 2008 (see s. 2(b) and Gazette 18 Jan 2008 p. 147)
*Reprint 4: The Gas Standards Act 1972* as at 4 Jul 2008** (includes amendments listed above)
Mutual Recognition (Western Australia) Amendment Act 2022 Pt. 3 Div. 7	7 of 2022	29 Mar 2022	1 Jul 2022 (see s. 2(b) and SL 2022/80 cl. 2)

Uncommenced provisions table

To view the text of the uncommenced provisions see Acts as passed on the WA Legislation website.

Short title	Number and year	Assent	Commencement
Petroleum Legislation Amendment Act 2024 s. 433(2) and 434(2)	17 of 2024	14 May 2024	To be proclaimed (see s. 2(b))

Other notes

1 The provision in this Act repealing that Act has been omitted from this consolidation under the Reprints Act 1984 s. 7(4)(f).

2 The Criminal Procedure and Appeals (Consequential and Other Provisions) Act 2004 s. 82, to the extent that it amends this Act, was amended by the Criminal Law and Evidence Amendment Act 2008 s. 78(2)(a).

3 The Courts Legislation Amendment and Repeal Act 2004 Sch. 2 cl. 21 was repealed by the Criminal Law and Evidence Amendment Act 2008 s. 77(13).

4 The State Administrative Tribunal (Conferral of Jurisdiction) Amendment and Repeal Act 2004 Pt. 5, the State Administrative Tribunal Act 2004 s. 167 and 169, and the State Administrative Tribunal Regulations 2004 r. 28 and 42 deal with certain transitional issues some of which may be relevant for this Act.

Defined terms

[This is a list of terms defined and the provisions where they are defined. The list is not part of the law.]

Defined term Provision(s)

approved plan 13K(1)

commercial information 4

consumer 4

Director 4

former holder 13AA(1)

gas 4

gas appliance 4

gasfitters 13J(1)

gasfitting work 13I(1)

gas installation 4

holder 13A(12)

inspector 4

interstate authority 13AA(1)

person aggrieved 13B(2)

pipeline licensee 4

Plan 13J(1)

registration 13AA(1)

reviewable decision 13B(2)

specified 13A(3)

supply 4

Type A gas appliance 4

Type B gas appliance 4

undertaker 4

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence (CC BY 4.0). To view relevant information and for a link to a copy of the licence, visit www.legislation.wa.gov.au.

By Authority: GEOFF O. LAWN, Government Printer

Western Australia

Gas Standards Act 1972

Western Australia

Gas Standards Act 1972

Contents

Short title 1
Commencement 1
Terms used in this Act 1
Exemptions 3
Act to prevail over other Acts 4
Heating standard of gas to be approved 4
Requirements as to change in gas 6
Testing of gas 7
Defences against certain proceedings 8
Consumers’ installations 8

13A. Gasfitting works and workers 10

13AA. Disciplinary action against former registered persons 18

13B. Application for review 19

13C. Surrender of licence 20

13CA. Annual reporting 20

13D. Approval of gas appliances 21

13E. Application for approval 22

13F. Approval by other bodies 23

13G. Notice of approved gas appliances 24

13H. Power to prohibit sale and use of gas appliances and components 24

13I. Guidelines for gasfitting work 25

13J. Inspection Policy Statement and Plan 26

13K. Inspections under the Plan 28

13L. Director’s guidelines 30

13M. Review of certain decisions of the Director 31

13N. Review of determinations of Director under section 13M 32

Offences 33
Regulations 33
Regulations for the commingling of gas in distribution systems 35

Notes

Compilation table 37

Uncommenced provisions table 39

Other notes 39

Defined terms

Western Australia

Gas Standards Act 1972

The Act is built around a small set of repeatable regulatory concepts. Define each with the statutory anchor and the practical legal effect.

Undertaker (s 4): an entity that makes or supplies gas other than solely for its own use, including licensees under the Energy Coordination Act 1994, and local government or other bodies corporate. Obligations such as obtaining Ministerial approval for heating values (s 8), submitting inspection plans (s 13J) and complying with Director directions (s 10) fall principally on undertakers. Pipeline licensees are separately defined but share many obligations (s 4, s 13).
Director (s 4; see cross‑reference to Energy Coordination Act 1994): the Director of Energy Safety is the operational regulator. The Director may test gas (s 10(1)), direct continuous recording (s 10(2)), approve or refuse appliance approvals and recognise external approvals (s 13D-13F), publish notices of approved appliances (s 13G), issue prohibition orders (s 13H), issue and audit Inspection Policy Statements and Plans (s 13J-13K), maintain a register of certificate holders (s 13A(4)), and exercise summary disciplinary powers and make allegations to the State Administrative Tribunal (s 13A(11)). The Director may delegate certain approval powers to inspectors (s 13D(3)).
Consumer and consumer’s gas installation (s 4, s 13): consumers are persons (not undertakers) supplied gas by undertakers. The Act regulates when supply may commence to new or altered consumer installations,either after inspector inspection where no approved Plan exists (s 13(1)) or in accordance with an approved Plan (s 13(2)). The Act also requires accident reporting concerning consumers’ installations (s 13(5)).
Heating standard and change control (s 8-9): undertakers must obtain Ministerial written approval for minimum heating value(s) prior to distribution (s 8(1)). The Minister can approve variations by application (s 8(2)), can specify different standards across areas or types of gas (s 8(3)), and can impose conditions on approvals (s 8(4)). Undertakers must not alter other prescribed characteristics (for example specific gravity or flame speed) without Ministerial approval (s 9(1)). The Minister may require that, prior to approval of a change, the undertaker satisfactorily undertake at its own expense any necessary modification or replacement of consumers’ installations affected by the change (s 9(2)).
Testing, recording and admissibility (s 10): the Director may test gas for heating value, pressure, purity and odour and require continuous recording devices to be installed, operated and maintained (s 10(1)-(2)). Test results and records are admissible in proceedings (s 10(3)). Offences are created for failing to comply with directions, making false entries, interfering with devices or failing to report faults (s 10(4)).
Gasfitting regulation and registration (s 13A): the Act enables regulations to create a controlled scheme of certificates, permits and authorisations, prescribes examinations and qualifications, allows delegation of powers by the Director, and empowers the Director to suspend, deal summarily with or refer disciplinary matters to the State Administrative Tribunal. The scheme includes a register (s 13A(3)-(5), (11)-(19)). The Act allows the Director to permit contraventions in limited circumstances (training, unavoidable circumstances, public interest) by issuing permits (s 13A(7)).
Appliance approval and prohibition (s 13D-13H): Type A appliances (prescribed classes) cannot be sold, hired, advertised or installed unless approved and labelled (s 13D(1)). Type B appliances cannot be used unless approved and labelled (s 13D(2)). Approval applications are subject to fees (s 13E(1), (4)), may be deferred or refused if an appliance does not meet Director‑specified or prescribed standards (s 13E(3), (3a)), and the Director may adopt approvals by other competent authorities (s 13F). The Director may issue prohibition orders where an appliance or component is or may become unsafe (s 13H).
Inspection Policy Statement and Plan (s 13J-13K): undertakers and pipeline licensees may submit a Plan that sets out a system of inspection covering safety, monitoring gasfitter work, incident investigation and reporting, and conformity with Director guidance. The Director has 20 working days to determine a Plan; failure to decide is treated as approval (s 13J(4)-(5)). Approved Plans are subject to Director audit and may be varied, required to be revised, or have their approval withdrawn (s 13K(4)-(6)). Approved Plans must be publicly available at the Director’s offices with commercial information redacted (s 13J(7)).
Regulations and commingling rules (s 15-16): the Governor may make regulations across a broad range of technical and administrative matters (s 15). Specific regulation‑making power exists to govern the entry and commingling of gas of different qualities in distribution systems (s 16), including monitoring, reporting to the Director, and determining heating value.
Review and enforcement pathways (s 13B, s 13M-13N, s 14): administrative review by the Director of Plan determinations (s 13M), external review to the State Administrative Tribunal for questions of law or disciplinary matters (s 13N(1)(a), s 13A(16)), and appeal to a technical review panel for other cases (s 13N(1)(b); s 15(2)(i)). Offences attract specified penalties and s 14 sets general maximums and a two‑year prosecution time limit.

These core concepts structure who decides what, who pays for what, and what proof and procedural protections exist. The Act concentrates technical decision‑making in the Director while reserving certain broader approvals to the Minister.

The Act creates duties and rights for particular categories of persons and legal actors. Identify them and the principal statutory relationship.

Undertakers (s 4): undertakers bear many primary obligations. They must obtain written Ministerial approval for minimum heating values before distribution (s 8(1)), apply for approval before altering gas characteristics (s 9(1)), comply with Director directions to install continuous recording equipment and to keep records (s 10(2)), ensure consumer gas installations are inspected prior to supply if no approved Plan exists (s 13(1)), submit and operate an approved Inspection Policy Statement and Plan where appropriate (s 13J-K), report accidents relevant to consumer installations within three days (s 13(5)), and comply with Director audits and orders to modify inspection practices (s 13K(4)-(5)). Undertakers will therefore face capital and operating costs for monitoring equipment, inspection systems, reporting and, where required, modification of consumer installations following Ministerial change approvals (s 9(2), s 10(2), s 13J(2)(b)).
Pipeline licensees (s 4, s 13): pipeline licensees are excepted from some provisions (s 5(b)), but where they supply consumers they are treated similarly to undertakers with respect to inspections and Plans (s 13(1)-(2), s 13J). They may therefore be required to produce and operate Plans and be subject to Director audits.
Consumers (s 4, s 13): consumers are the recipients of gas supply and are the legal focus of safety obligations in relation to consumers’ installations. The Act restricts the time at which supply may begin to a newly installed or altered consumer installation unless inspection criteria are met (s 13(1)-(2)). Consumers who use Type B appliances are required to ensure those appliances have Director approval and marking (s 13D(2)).
Gasfitters and those carrying out gasfitting work (s 13A, s 13I): persons engaging in prescribed gasfitting operations commit an offence unless they hold appropriate certificates, permits or authorisations under the regulatory scheme (s 13A(2)). Regulations may define classes of operations, examinations, renewals and limits on permits (s 13A(3)-(4), (6)-(9)). The Director controls registration, suspension and disciplinary outcomes (s 13A(11)-(19)), and maintains a public register of certificate holders (s 13A(4)). Gasfitters therefore face compliance costs for certification, potential exposure to discipline and liabilities for offences such as falsification (s 13A(10)).
Manufacturers, sellers, hirers and advertisers of gas appliances (s 13D-13F): Type A appliances cannot be sold, hired, advertised or installed unless Director‑approved and labelled (s 13D(1)). Sellers must ensure appliances conform to any conditions imposed by the Director (s 13E(6)-(7)), and may face specific penalties where they sell appliances contrary to adopted conditions (s 13F(3)). The Director may adopt approvals issued by other recognised bodies (s 13F(1)-(2)).
The Director (s 4, s 10, s 13A, s 13D-13H, s 13J-13N): the Director is the central decision‑maker and regulator. The Director decides on testing, enforcement, appliance approvals, Plans, audits, and disciplinary steps. The Director also has publication and notice duties and powers (for example publication in the Government Gazette under s 8(4), s 13F(2), s 13G, s 13H(2)) and can delegate functions (s 13D(3), s 13A(20)).
The Minister (s 8-9): the Minister must approve minimum heating standards and alterations to heating standards and other characteristics, and may impose conditions on approvals (s 8(1)-(4), s 9(1)-(2)). This places control over substantive changes in the composition and performance of supplied gas with a political office, with the Director handling most operational matters.
State Administrative Tribunal and technical review panel (s 13A(16), s 13B, s 13M-13N, s 15(2)(i)): the Act contemplates adjudicative and review pathways. The State Administrative Tribunal may be asked to take disciplinary action, and a technical review panel of independent engineers is available for certain Plan determinations and appeals (s 15(2)(i), s 13N(1)(b)). The technical review panel is a regulatory design choice that provides a specialised appeal route (s 15(2)(i)).
Bodies issuing recognised approvals and standards (s 13A(3)(h), s 13E(2)-(2a), s 13I(5), s 13L(3)): Standards Australia, the Australian Gas Association, British Standards Institution and other named external bodies are available to be adopted by regulation or Director notice as recognised standards or approval authorities. Where the Director recognises external marks, applicants may rely on testing by those bodies (s 13E(2)-(2a)).
Persons formerly registered (s 13AA): the Director can apply to the State Administrative Tribunal to take action against a former holder where there are grounds such as fraud, disqualification in another jurisdiction, convictions or misconduct (s 13AA(2)-(4)). This extends potential regulatory consequence beyond the period of actual registration.

In practical terms, the Act places responsibility and direct financial risk primarily on undertakers for monitoring, compliance and remediation; on manufacturers and suppliers of appliances for ensuring approvals and labelling; and on gasfitters for maintaining certification and avoiding disciplinary sanctions. The Director and the Minister allocate standards and enforcement resources, and inspectors carry the on‑the‑ground compliance role.

Set out the primary legal duties that the Act imposes and the principal statutory rights and procedural protections.

Duties imposed on undertakers and pipeline licensees

Obtain Ministerial approval of minimum heating value before distribution (s 8(1)). The approval may be subject to conditions, and the Minister may approve different minimum standards by area or gas type (s 8(3)-(4)). The declared standard immediately prior to commencement is deemed approved until altered (s 8(5)).
Do not supply gas whose 28‑day average heating value is lower by more than 1 per cent of the approved minimum where the Director has directed continuous recording, with penalties specified (s 8(6)-(7)). If no continuous recording direction is in place, three tests over two hours showing the average is more than 1 per cent below the standard create an offence (s 8(8)).
Apply for, and obtain, Ministerial approval before altering specified characteristics such as specific gravity or flame speed (s 9(1)). Where the Minister considers consumer installations will require modification, the Minister will not approve the alteration until the undertaker has undertaken modification or replacement at its own expense (s 9(2)).
Comply with the Director’s tests and directions: the Director may test gas at any time (s 10(1)), require continuous recording devices and records (s 10(2)), and those tests and records are admissible evidence (s 10(3)). Knowingly failing to comply, falsifying entries, causing incorrect recordings, or failing to report breakdowns are offences attracting significant penalties (s 10(4)).
Ensure consumer gas installations are inspected before initial supply or after alteration by installation of a Type B appliance unless an approved Plan provides an alternative inspection regimen (s 13(1)-(2)). If the Director has approved a Plan, supply to consumer installations must comply with that Plan (s 13(2)). Undertakers/pipeline licensees must send a copy of any inspector order or notice to the Director within 28 days when inspection under s 13(1) generates such an order (s 13(4)) and must report gas‑related accidents in an approved form within 3 days (s 13(5)).
Submit, operate and maintain an approved Plan where applicable (s 13J). The Plan must set out inspection systems, measures to manage fire/explosion/asphyxiation risks and investigative/reporting arrangements (s 13J(2)). Approved Plans must comply with Director guidelines and are public at the Director’s offices, subject to redaction for commercial information (s 13J(3), (7)).

Duties relating to gasfitting and persons carrying out gasfitting work

Do not engage in prescribed gasfitting operations without a certificate, permit or authorisation under the regulatory scheme established by regulation (s 13A(2)). Regulations may define the operations that constitute gasfitting and set the classes of certificates, permits and conditions (s 13A(3)).
Holders must not falsify qualifications, documents or statements in applications or examinations (s 13A(10)). The Director maintains a register of holders (s 13A(4)).
Subject to Director discretion, certain permits may be issued in training or unavoidable circumstances (s 13A(7)-(9)).

Duties and rights on appliances and components

Type A appliances may not be sold, hired, advertised for sale or installed unless approved by the Director and marked in an approved manner (s 13D(1)). Type B appliances may not be used unless approved and labelled (s 13D(2)). Offences and high monetary penalties are attached (s 13D(1)-(2)).
Applicants for appliance approval must apply in the Director‑approved form and pay fees set by the Director (s 13E(1), (4)-(5)). The Director may require testing or approval by a recognised competent authority and may specify recognised persons and marks by Gazette notice (s 13E(2)-(2a)). The Director may refuse, defer or impose conditions and restrictions on approvals (s 13E(3), (6)). Selling or advertising appliances contrary to imposed conditions is an offence (s 13E(7)).

Powers of the Director and Minister

The Director may test gas, direct continuous recording, audit and assess inspection practices, require modification of those practices and withdraw Plan approval (s 10(1)-(2), s 13K(4)-(5)). The Director may publish notices of approved appliances and adopt approvals from other bodies (s 13F(1)-(2), s 13G).
The Minister approves minimum heating standards and alterations to heating value or other characteristics (s 8-9). The Minister’s approval is a gate for significant compositional changes to gas supplied to consumers.

Procedural rights, reviews and defences

Defence for an undertaker charged under s 8(6) or s 8(8): it is a defence to prove that the shortfall was caused by circumstances outside the undertaker’s control and that the Director was notified forthwith upon becoming aware (s 11).
Internal review: an undertaker or pipeline licensee aggrieved by a determination of the Director under s 13J(4) may apply to the Director for review within 14 days, with a right to make submissions (s 13M).
External review: persons aggrieved by reviewable decisions (certificate holders or applicants) may apply to the State Administrative Tribunal for review (s 13B(1)-(2)). For decisions under s 13M(4) a person may apply to SAT for questions of law or appeal in the prescribed manner to a technical review panel in other cases (s 13N(1)-(3)).
Disciplinary proceedings: the Director can summarily suspend pending SAT proceedings, deal with matters summarily with written consent, or allege matters to SAT for disciplinary orders, and SAT may disqualify, suspend, censure, or impose conditions (s 13A(11)-(17)).

Evidence and enforcement

Director test results and undertaker records are admissible in proceedings (s 10(3)). Failure to comply with directions, falsification, or tampering are specified offences with high penalties (s 10(4), s 13A(10), s 13D-13H).
General maximum penalties for contraventions are set in s 14, with a two‑year time limit for commencing prosecutions (s 14(1)-(2)).

Together, these duties allocate operational compliance tasks (measurement, inspection, certification) to undertakers and registrants, reserve standard‑setting and change approvals to the Minister, and centralise enforcement and technical control in the Director.

The Act prescribes both offence‑specific penalties and a general penalty framework, and establishes enforcement mechanisms including administrative discipline, criminal prosecution and audit powers. Present the statutory matrix of sanctions and the avenues for enforcement.

Specified penalties and monetary amounts

Ministerial approval failure for distribution (s 8(1)): penalty $250,000.
Failure to meet 28‑day heating value average where directed to keep continuous records (s 8(6)): first offence $40,000; second or subsequent offence $250,000. This is a tiered pecuniary scheme that escalates on repeat offending.
Failure to meet heating value standard based on three tests over two hours where no continuous record direction exists (s 8(8)): first offence $20,000; second or subsequent offence $250,000.
Testing/recording offences (s 10(4)): knowingly failing to comply with a Director’s direction, making false entries, causing devices to record incorrectly, or failing to report faults attract a penalty of $250,000.
Consumers’ installations (s 13): supplying gas to a new or altered consumer installation without the prescribed inspection when no approved Plan exists, or not following an approved Plan, attract penalties of $250,000 (s 13(1)-(2)). Failing to send a copy of an inspector’s order or notice to the Director within 28 days is $100,000 (s 13(4)). Failing to provide a Director‑approved accident report within 3 days is $100,000 (s 13(5)).
Appliance offences (s 13D): selling/hiring/advertising/installing a Type A gas appliance without approval and labelling, or using a Type B appliance without approval and labelling, each attract $250,000.
Failure to observe adopted approval conditions (s 13F(3)): penalty $50,000.
Prohibition order non‑compliance (s 13H(4)): penalty $250,000.
General offences (s 14(1)): where a greater penalty is not provided, an individual faces $50,000 and a body corporate $250,000.
Limitation period for commencing prosecution (s 14(2)): proceedings must commence within two years after the alleged offence date.

These figures show the statutory emphasis on high‑value pecuniary penalties and escalating exposure for repeat noncompliance.

Enforcement powers and mechanisms

Director’s testing and record powers: the Director may test gas at any time (s 10(1)), direct continuous recording and require installation and maintenance of devices (s 10(2)). The Director’s test results and undertaker records are admissible evidence in prosecutions and proceedings (s 10(3)), which lowers evidentiary friction for enforcement.
Inspector role and immunities: inspectors conduct on‑site inspections required by the Act. The approved Plan may set out inspection discretion, but where an inspector in good faith decides not to inspect or decides the nature and extent of inspection, the inspector, the undertaker and even the State are not civilly or criminally liable for injury or damage arising from that failure (s 13K(1), (3)). This limits tort exposure in certain inspection decision contexts.
Director audit and remedial orders: where the Director audits approved Plans and finds non‑conformity, the Director can require modification of inspection practices or request a revised plan, and can withdraw approval (s 13K(4)-(5)). The undertaker must comply with such orders.
Disciplinary action and administrative proceedings: the Director may investigate holders of certificates, permits or authorisations (s 13A(11)-(12)), suspend summarily for up to three months pending SAT proceedings, and make allegations to the State Administrative Tribunal (s 13A(11)). The Director may also summarily deal with matters with a registrant’s written consent (s 13A(11)). SAT may impose disqualification, suspension (up to 12 months), censure or varying conditions/restrictions (s 13A(16)).
Evidence and investigatory compulsions: for disciplinary investigations, the Director may summon attendance and documents, administer oaths, inspect and retain documents and make copies (s 13A(12)-(15)). Summonses may be enforced by the Supreme Court as subpoenas (s 13A(13)).
Publication and notice as enforcement complements: approvals, adopted approvals and prohibition orders must be published in the Government Gazette and, in the case of prohibition orders, in other media the Director directs (s 8(4), s 13F(2), s 13G(1), s 13H(2)). Publication serves as an enforcement and compliance signalling mechanism.

Procedural protections for regulated persons

Defence available for undertaker charged under s 8(6) or s 8(8) if the shortfall in heating value was caused by circumstances beyond control and the Director was notified forthwith (s 11). This is an explicit statutory defence that ties liability to controllability and prompt notice.
Review rights: Director provides internal review of Plan determinations (s 13M) with time limits (14 days) and procedural fairness (opportunity to make submissions) (s 13M(2)-(3)). External review to the State Administrative Tribunal or technical review panel is available for certain decisions (s 13N(1)-(4)), and on appeal to a technical review panel an appellant may be ordered to pay costs if the panel confirms the determination (s 13N(6)-(7)).
Limits on use of witness statements: statements made to the Director in disciplinary inquiries are not admissible in other civil or criminal proceedings except in SAT proceedings or proceedings for giving false testimony (s 13A(12)(d)).

Taken together, the Act combines high pecuniary penalties with direct regulatory controls, evidence‑based enforcement via Director testing and records, administrative disciplinary pathways, and defined review routes. The two‑year time limit for prosecution is an important procedural shield (s 14(2)).

The Act is constructed to operate alongside and in some instances override or adopt arrangements from other legislation and recognised standards. The text contains multiple cross‑references and delegation opportunities.

Supremacy and specific pre‑eminence

The Act provides that its provisions with respect to heating value, testing of heating value, purity, quality, composition, pressure and testing of gas have effect in lieu of any provisions in any other Act relating to undertakers. In other words, where another Act contains provisions on these matters, they must be read and construed in conformity with this Act (s 7(1)-(2)). This clause establishes statutory precedence for the Act’s technical regime over conflicting or overlapping legislative provisions applied to undertakers.

Cross‑references to energy and petroleum legislation

Director and inspectors: the Director is the Director of Energy Safety under s 5 of the Energy Coordination Act 1994 and inspector is a person designated under s 12 of that Act; the Act assumes those definitions and the institutional architecture under that Act (s 4). Several provisions reference the Energy Coordination Act 1994 for the Director’s authority to issue orders under that Act (for example s 13(4) references s 18(2)(a) of the Energy Coordination Act 1994).
Pipeline licences and petroleum production: specific exemptions apply to pipeline licensees acting under their pipeline licences (s 5(b)), and to gathering gas through pipelines within exploration or production licences under the Petroleum and Geothermal Energy Resources Act 1967 (s 5(c)). The Act also references the Petroleum Pipelines Act 1969 in the definition of pipeline licensee (s 4). Those cross‑references limit the Act’s reach where other permit‑based regimes cover pipeline transmission or gathering within specified licences.

Regulatory adoption and standards

The Act allows regulations to adopt by reference standards, codes or subordinate legislation of other Acts and jurisdictions and to rely on standards published by bodies such as Standards Australia, the Australian Gas Association and the British Standards Institution (s 13A(3)(h), s 13I(5), s 13L(3), s 15(3)). The Director may also recognise external competent authorities and marks in appliance approval processes and publish recognised persons and marks in the Gazette (s 13E(2)-(2a), s 13F(1)). This creates a statutory bridge between the Act and technical standards set by specialist bodies.

Interactions with administrative law and review

State Administrative Tribunal (SAT): the Act nests disciplinary and review pathways within the SAT framework. The Director may allege to SAT for disciplinary action and SAT may impose a range of orders (s 13A(11), (16)). Review of certain determinations is made available to SAT or, where a technical question is involved, to a technical review panel of independent engineers under regulations (s 13N(1)-(3), s 15(2)(i)). The Act explicitly references provisions of the State Administrative Tribunal Act 2004 when determinations are sent back for reconsideration (s 13N(2) referencing s 29(3)(c)(ii)). The compilation notes reference conferral of jurisdiction changes (Compilation table: 2004 amendments) that are relevant to administration of the Act.

Regulations for commingling of gas and distribution systems

The Act includes a specific regulation‑making power for commingling gas of different qualities in distribution systems (s 16), referencing the definition of distribution system in s 3 of the Energy Coordination Act 1994. Those regulations may require undertakers or pipeline operators to install equipment, monitor heating value, report to the Director and otherwise control entry and maintenance of standards (s 16(a)-(b)). This creates a statutory mechanism to reconcile multiple gas supplies and quality standards within a single distribution network.

Other legislative interaction points and transitional notes

The compilation table lists a number of amending Acts that have changed the interplay between this Act and other statutes: the Energy Corporations (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Act 1994, Gas Corporation (Business Disposal) Act 1999, Energy Legislation Amendment Act 2003, and reforms linked to the State Administrative Tribunal and financial reporting regimes (Compilation table). The uncommenced Petroleum Legislation Amendment Act 2024 provisions are noted as awaiting proclamation.

Practical effects of these interactions

Where there is overlapping subject matter the Act commands primacy (s 7). The Director’s operational tools and the Minister’s approval powers must be read with, and sometimes depend upon, structures and definitions supplied by the Energy Coordination Act 1994 and pipeline licence regimes. The Act expressly enables technical harmonisation by allowing adoption of external standards and recognitions. It also embeds administrative review in the SAT and provides for a specialised technical review route for engineering disputes, which shapes how contested decisions will be resolved in practice (s 13N, s 15(2)(i)).

The Act’s compilation table and notes record successive changes, many of which materially altered the Act’s institutional and technical architecture. Below is a chronological outline drawn from the compilation table and the inserted sections.

1972 , Gas Standards Act 1972 (No. 15 of 1972): original enactment, commencement 21 July 1972 (Compilation table).
1979 , Gas Standards Act Amendment Act 1979 (No. 87 of 1979): amended various definitions and provisions, commencement 1 February 1980 (Compilation table).
1985 , Gas Standards Amendment Act 1985 (No. 63 of 1985): further amendments, notably to definitions and approval mechanisms, with main provisions commencing 1 February 1986 (Compilation table).
1989 , Reprint as at 15 February 1989: consolidated prior amendments (Compilation table).
1994 , Energy Corporations (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Act 1994 (No. 89 of 1994): amendments taking effect 1 January 1995, tied to energy sector restructuring (Compilation table).
1996 , Local Government (Consequential Amendments) Act 1996 (No. 14 of 1996): changes effective 1 July 1996 (Compilation table).
1999-2000 , Gas Corporation (Business Disposal) Act 1999 (No. 58 of 1999): multiple amendments in stages during 1999-2000 (Compilation table).
2003 , Energy Legislation Amendment Act 2003 (No. 53 of 2003): amendments effective 8 October 2003 (Compilation table).
2003 , Statutes (Repeals and Minor Amendments) Act 2003 (No. 74 of 2003): amendments effective 15 December 2003 (Compilation table).
2004-2005 , State Administrative Tribunal conferral and related amendments (No. 55 of 2004; No. 59 of 2004): changes effective around 1 January 2005 and 1 May 2005 respectively, adjusting review and tribunal pathways (Compilation table and notes).
2006 , Reprint 3 as at 7 July 2006: included amendments up to that date (Compilation table).
2006-2007 , Financial Legislation Amendment and Repeal Act 2006 (No. 77 of 2006) and Gas and Electricity Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2007 (No. 5 of 2007): significant structural changes took effect, with the 2007 safety amendments bringing in provisions such as the current suite of s 13A onward (insertion noted at the heading of s 13A and subsequent sections), commencement 1 December 2007 (Compilation table).
2007-2008 , Petroleum Amendment Act 2007 s 95 (No. 35 of 2007) and related commencement 19 January 2008 (Compilation table).
2008 , Reprint 4 as at 4 July 2008: consolidated amendments to that date (Compilation table).
2022 , Mutual Recognition (Western Australia) Amendment Act 2022 (No. 7 of 2022): amendments in Pt. 3 Div. 7, commencement 1 July 2022 (Compilation table). Notably, s 13A shows an amendment history including No. 7 of 2022 s 30; s 13AA was inserted by No. 7 of 2022 s 31.
2024 , Petroleum Legislation Amendment Act 2024 (No. 17 of 2024): some provisions (s 433(2) and s 434(2)) are uncommenced and await proclamation (Uncommenced provisions table).

Other notes from the consolidation

Certain provisions were deleted or omitted under the Reprints Act 1984 (eg s 3 omitted) and other technical repeals are recorded in the compilation notes (Other notes). The compilation table identifies exact assent and commencement dates for each amending Act, which matters for interpretation and transitional arrangements.

Taken together, the amendments reflect an incremental move toward a regulatory model with centralised safety authority in the Director, an administrative disciplinary regime interfaced with the State Administrative Tribunal, the introduction of Plans and Plan audits for undertakers/pipeline licensees, and an appliance approval regime. The compilation table should be consulted to determine which amendments applied at a given historical date.

The text of the Act provided contains no case law, judicial decisions, or examples of litigation. It does embed mechanisms that create adjudicative pathways and potential litigation triggers; these are summarised below as statutory dispute and adjudication loci rather than as reported cases.

Statutory adjudication and review mechanisms

State Administrative Tribunal (SAT) is the primary external adjudicative forum envisaged for disciplinary and certain review matters. The Director may allege matters to SAT under s 13A(11), and SAT may impose sanctioning orders including disqualification, suspension, censure and conditions (s 13A(16)). Where a determination of the Director under s 13M(4) involves a question of law, the Act permits an application to SAT for review (s 13N(1)(a)).
Technical review panel: for certain non‑legal reviewable questions (s 13N(1)(b), s 15(2)(i)) the Act provides for an appeal to a technical review panel of independent professional engineers. The Act contemplates the panel’s procedures, remuneration and review period to be prescribed by regulation (s 15(2)(i)), and contemplates cost orders against the appellant if the panel confirms the determination (s 13N(6)-(7)).
Director internal reviews and finality: the Director has a statutory internal review process for Plan determinations (s 13M). A Director decision made after internal review and expressed as a new determination under s 13J(4) is not subject to review under s 13M (s 13M(4)-(5)). Where the matter is sent back to the Director by SAT under the State Administrative Tribunal Act 2004, the Director must make a fresh determination within 20 working days and that determination is not subject to review under s 13M (s 13N(2)).

Potential for litigation in other forums

Criminal prosecutions for statutory offences may be commenced (subject to the two‑year limit s 14(2)). Test results and undertaking records are admissible in evidence (s 10(3)), which could be consequential in prosecutions.
Enforcement by way of civil proceedings is limited in some respects: s 13K(3) specifies that an inspector, an undertaker or the State is not liable in civil or criminal proceedings for injury or damage arising from certain good‑faith failures or decisions not to inspect. This provision may affect civil claims tied to inspection conduct, though other avenues of civil liability remain outside the Act.

Because the supplied Act text does not include judicial decisions or summaries of litigation, this section can only report the Act’s procedural and adjudicative architecture. Practitioners wanting litigation history must consult case law databases and tribunal decisions to find reported SAT decisions, Supreme Court judicial review matters, or prosecutions arising under the Act.

Highlight statutory provisions that are easy to overlook or that create practical compliance traps.

Ministerial approval requirement before distribution (s 8(1)): an undertaker cannot distribute gas after the Act’s commencement unless it has first obtained written approval of the minimum heating value from the Minister. The prohibition operates independently of technical practice and is subject to a specific $250,000 penalty. Undertakers with previously declared standards are deemed approved only until altered (s 8(5)), so any operational change that alters composition or heating value risks requiring fresh approvals.
Technical measurement rule for 28‑day average (s 8(7)): where the Director directs continuous monitoring, the Act prescribes an aggregate method: aggregate the mean hourly heating values for each hour in the 28‑day period and divide by 672. This precise statutory averaging rule is the required compliance metric; it is not a matter for informal variation without Director consent.
Escalating penalties on repeat offending (s 8(6)-(8)): first offences attract lower amounts ($20,000 or $40,000), but second or subsequent offences escalate to $250,000. Repeated breaches therefore carry substantially higher exposure.
Continuous recording directions (s 10(2)) create equipment and operational obligations: the Director can require installation, operation and maintenance of specified measuring and recording devices. Offences for knowingly failing to comply, falsification, or tampering carry $250,000 penalties and records are admissible (s 10(3)-(4)).
The narrow statutory defence in s 11 requires both an external cause and prompt notification to the Director. Undertakers relying on the defence must document cause and the timing and content of notification to rely on this shield.
Inspection obligations linked to Plans present a trap for timing and delegation (s 13, s 13J-13K): if an undertaker does not have an approved Plan, it may only commence supply to a newly installed consumer installation after inspection; if it does have an approved Plan, the Plan governs inspection. The Act treats a Director’s failure to make a determination within 20 working days as deemed approval (s 13J(5)), which can be advantageous but also may lock in a Plan the Director later audits and requires to be revised or withdraws (s 13K(4)-(6)). The director’s audit powers include immediate remedial orders in relation to particular accidents (s 13K(5)).
Discretion and evidentiary power of the Director (s 13A, s 10): the Director can suspend registrations summarily pending SAT proceedings (s 13A(11)), and Director decisions are papered into administrative review and tribunal routes that can be time‑sensitive (s 13M(2) 14‑day limit; s 13N). Registrants must engage promptly with internal reviews or SAT to protect rights.
Appliance approval process: the Director may require testing/approval by a recognised authority and publish the list of recognised persons and marks in the Gazette (s 13E(2)-(2a)). Sellers and installers must ensure appliances bear approved marks and conform to any conditions imposed by the Director; otherwise high penalties apply (s 13D(1), s 13E(6)-(7)). The Director can also adopt external approvals (s 13F), but sellers must confirm any conditions attached to that adoption.
Prohibition orders and publication (s 13H): the Director may prohibit sale, hire or use of a gas appliance or component where it is or is likely to become unsafe. Orders must be published in the Government Gazette and in other media the Director directs (s 13H(2)). A prohibition order can create immediate commercial disruption and inventory write‑downs for suppliers.
Inspections immunities (s 13K(3)): the Act expressly protects inspectors, undertakers and the State from civil/criminal liability arising from certain good‑faith inspection decisions. This limits tort remedies where plaintiffs claim inspectors negligently failed to inspect, but does not remove all civil exposure (the immunity is limited to situations spelled out in s 13K(3)).
Registration and former holders (s 13AA): the Director can seek disciplinary action against former registrants for conduct while registered, and SAT can disqualify former holders permanently or for a specified period (s 13AA(2)-(4)). This extends regulatory risk beyond termination of registration.
Time limit for prosecution (s 14(2)): prosecutions must be commenced within two years, which may be shorter than other statutory limitations; regulated parties should preserve evidence and monitor Director investigations promptly.
Delegation and adoption options (s 13D(3), s 13A(20), s 13E(2)): the Director may delegate powers to inspectors and may adopt external approvals and standards. While this can accelerate approvals when using recognised bodies, it creates the need to monitor Director Gazette notices specifying recognised persons and marks (s 13E(2a)). Failure to track such notices creates compliance risk.

These “gotchas” are practical consequences of discrete statutory features. Practitioners should map statutory duties to corporate processes (measurement, recording, Plan submission and audit response, appliance approval procedures) and document notifications and communications with the Director and the Minister.

A practical, source‑grounded compliance checklist for the Act’s principal regulated parties: undertakers, pipeline licensees, appliance suppliers/manufacturers, gasfitters and inspectors. Each item cites the statutory provision(s) that create the obligation.

For undertakers and pipeline licensees

Establish Ministerial approvals for heating value:
- Before distributing gas, obtain written Ministerial approval of the minimum heating value(s) (s 8(1)). Where standards pre‑date the Act, identify deemed approvals and note any required changes (s 8(5)).
- Where a change to heating value or other prescribed characteristics is contemplated, apply to the Minister under s 8(2) and s 9(1). Anticipate the Minister’s power to require remediation of consumer installations at the undertaker’s expense (s 9(2)).
Implement continuous measurement capability if directed:
- Respond promptly to any Director’s written direction to install measuring and recording devices and keep continuous records (s 10(2)). Budget for capital, operation, calibration and maintenance costs.
- Ensure devices

Deep Dive

What it does

Current sections