Victorian Energy Efficiency Target Act 2007

The Act defines several key concepts that underpin the scheme. An accredited person is a person accredited under Division 1 of Part 3 to create certificates. Accreditation is granted by the ESC for a period of 12 months under section 13B and is subject to conditions under section 13C. A prescribed activity is an activity prescribed by regulation under section 15 that results in a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions that would not otherwise have occurred. Examples include modifying or replacing appliances, installing high-efficiency equipment, and generating information about energy consumption. A certificate is an electronic record created under Division 3 of Part 3 that represents a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. The Act specifies who may create a certificate: the consumer of electricity or gas in respect of whom the prescribed activity is undertaken, the seller of high-efficiency appliances, or a person holding an assignment of the right to create a certificate (section 16). A scheme participant is defined in section 3A as a person (other than an accredited person or a consumer) who undertakes a prescribed activity on behalf of an accredited person, including employees, contractors, and those undertaking regulated action. A relevant entity is a person who sells electricity or gas to customers in Victoria and meets certain thresholds (5000 or more customers, or scheme acquisitions of 30,000 MWh of electricity or 350,000 GJ of gas). The VEET scheme target is the annual target in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent set out in section 30. The energy efficiency certificate shortfall is calculated under section 29 as the difference between a relevant entity's liability and the certificates surrendered plus any carried forward surplus. A VEET scheme registry account is a mandatory account maintained by the ESC for holding, transferring, and surrendering certificates (section 26A). The ESC guidelines are issued under section 74 and cover matters such as accreditation, CPD obligations, prescribed activities, and audits. A code of conduct may be prescribed by regulation under section 14G for accredited persons and scheme participants. The Act also provides for improvement notices and prohibition notices (sections 40AB and 40AC) issued by the ESC when there is a contravention or risk of harm.

The Act primarily affects three categories of persons. First, accredited persons are individuals or bodies corporate who apply for and hold accreditation under Division 1 of Part 3. They must meet fit and proper person and competent and capable person tests (sections 10B and 10C), comply with continuing professional development obligations (section 14F), abide by the prescribed code of conduct (section 14G), and keep records for six years (section 72). They may create certificates for prescribed activities they undertake, but only if they are accredited for that activity and not suspended or disqualified (sections 15A and 20). Second, scheme participants include employees, contractors, and others who undertake prescribed activities or regulated actions on behalf of an accredited person (section 3A). They must comply with training and competency requirements specified in ESC guidelines (section 14FA), comply with the prescribed code of conduct (section 14H), and may face prohibitions or improvement notices if they cause harm (sections 40AB and 40AC). Section 15B makes it an offence to undertake a prescribed activity on behalf of a person who is not accredited or whose accreditation is suspended. Third, relevant entities are energy retailers that sell electricity or gas to Victorian customers and meet the thresholds in the definition in section 3. They must lodge annual energy acquisition statements by 30 April each year (or later approved day) under section 33, surrender certificates equal to their liability, and pay a shortfall penalty if they fail to do so (sections 28 and 29). They are also subject to record-keeping requirements under section 72. Other affected persons include consumers of electricity or gas, who may be the basis for creating certificates if they consent to prescribed activities; independent auditors who are listed on the ESC's list and conduct compliance or assurance audits under Part 7A; and the ESC itself, which administers the scheme, accredits persons, maintains registers, issues notices, and enforces compliance.

Accredited persons have a duty to disclose adverse matters to the ESC within 14 days under section 14D, failing which a penalty of 20 penalty units applies. They must comply with CPD obligations as specified in ESC guidelines (section 14F), comply with the prescribed code of conduct (section 14H), and keep records for six years (section 72). They must not create certificates before applying for accreditation, while suspended, or if the certificate contains incorrect information (section 20). They also have a duty to cooperate with compliance and assurance audits (sections 55F and 55J) and to not require or permit a person they know is prohibited from undertaking a prescribed activity (section 40AC(5)). Relevant entities have a duty not to have an energy efficiency certificate shortfall (section 27), to lodge an annual energy acquisition statement (section 33), and to pay any shortfall penalty (section 28). They must also keep records for six years (section 72). Scheme participants must comply with training and competency requirements and provide evidence to the accredited person (section 14FA). They must not provide false evidence of compliance (section 14FA(3) and (4)) and must comply with the code of conduct (section 14H). They also have duties to not withhold information from auditors (section 55O) and to not give false information (section 55N). Rights include the right to apply for accreditation or renewal (section 9), to apply for a VEET scheme registry account (section 26A), to seek internal review of reviewable decisions (section 56), and to apply to VCAT for review after exhausting internal review (section 56B). Persons have protection against self-incrimination when required to provide information to the ESC in several contexts, including under sections 14AE, 14E, 26I, 52, 55P, and 62. However, this protection does not apply to documents the person is required to keep under the Act (section 52(2)). Occupiers of premises have the right to be present during execution of a monitoring warrant (section 53).

The Act provides a wide range of penalties and enforcement mechanisms. Offences are set out in Part 3 Division 3 (creation of certificates), Division 6 (registry accounts), Part 6 (shortfall and surrender), Part 6A (civil penalty requirements), Part 7A (audits), and Part 8 Division 4 (general offences). Penalty amounts vary. For a natural person, many offences carry 60 penalty units; for a body corporate, 240 penalty units. Examples include undertaking a prescribed activity without accreditation (section 15A: 60/240), creating a certificate while suspended (section 20(4): 60/240), holding a certificate without a registry account (section 26O: 60/240), and failing to comply with an improvement notice (section 40AB(5): 60/240). Section 38(2) provides a penalty of 600 penalty units plus an additional penalty unit for each certificate not surrendered under a certificate surrender notice. Section 40(2) provides the same for failure to comply with an ESC order to surrender improperly created certificates. Civil penalty requirements are listed in Schedule 1, which cross-references provisions such as section 14FA (training), section 14H (code of conduct), sections 15A and 15B (unauthorised activity), sections 20(5)(a), 20(6), 20(8), 20A (certificate creation), sections 26O and 26P (registry account), section 37A (shortfall statement), sections 38(2) and 40(2) (surrender notices), sections 40AB(5) and 40AC(4) (improvement and prohibition notices), section 68(2) (false information), and section 72(7) (record keeping). Contravening a civil penalty provision is not an offence (section 40D). The ESC may apply to a court for declarations and orders requiring payment of shortfall penalties or surrender of certificates (sections 37 and 39). The ESC can also issue shortfall statements (section 36), certificate surrender notices (section 38), improvement notices (section 40AB), and prohibition notices (section 40AC). Non-compliance with a prohibition notice attracts a penalty of 60/240 penalty units. The ESC may suspend or cancel accreditation (section 14) or a registry account (section 26D) after notice and hearing. The ESC may also impose conditions or restrictions on accreditation at the end of suspension (section 14B). Proceedings for offences may be brought by the ESC, a police officer, or a person authorised by the ESC (section 70A). Officers of bodies corporate may be personally liable if they knowingly authorised or permitted the offence (section 70).

The Act is declared to be relevant legislation and the VEET scheme a regulated industry for the purposes of the Essential Services Commission Act 2001 (section 6A). This brings the ESC's enforcement powers under that Act, including civil penalty provisions, into play. The Act references the Essential Services Commission Enforcement Fund established under section 54ZP of the Essential Services Commission Act 2001; shortfall penalties are paid into that fund (section 28). The Act also binds the Crown (section 5) and has extra-territorial operation (section 6) to ensure it can apply to activities outside Victoria if they relate to the scheme. Section 8 allows the Minister to approve an interstate energy efficiency regime; certificates created under such an approved regime may be recognised under the VEET scheme. Section 10 requires applicants for accreditation to consent to disclosure of information held under a prescribed greenhouse gas scheme and to give an undertaking not to claim benefits under both schemes for the same activity. Section 15 allows regulations to prescribe activities in another State or Territory as prescribed activities if an approved interstate regime is in force. The Act interacts with the Subdivision Act 1988 for the definition of "owner" (section 16(5)), with the Gas Industry Act 2001 for the definition of "gas" (section 3), and with the National Electricity (Victoria) Act 2005 for the definition of "Distribution Network Service Provider" (section 66). The Act also confers power on the ESC to share information with various bodies under section 66, including AEMO, Sustainability Victoria, Clean Energy Regulator, and other government bodies. The regulations may apply codes, standards, and rules formulated by other bodies (section 75(2)(f)). The Act does not exclude or limit the operation of other laws; rather it creates additional obligations, particularly for relevant entities who must comply with both the VEET scheme and any other energy efficiency or greenhouse gas schemes. The interaction with the Commonwealth's Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Act 2012 is acknowledged through information sharing provisions. The review of decisions provisions (section 56 and 56B) engage the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 1998 for VCAT review.

The Victorian Energy Efficiency Target Act 2007 (No. 70 of 2007) received assent on 11 December 2007 and came into operation on 1 January 2009 under section 2(2). Since then it has been amended by numerous Acts. The Energy Legislation Amendment (Australian Energy Market Operator) Act 2009 (No. 23/2009) substituted references from NEMMCO and VENCorp to AEMO. The Energy and Resources Legislation Amendment Act 2010 (No. 55/2010) amended provisions about discount factors and calculation of greenhouse gas reduction rates (sections 32A, 18(1A)). The Mineral Resources Amendment (Sustainable Development) Act 2010 (No. 59/2010) amended assignment provisions (section 16(3)). The Energy Legislation Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation and Other Matters) Act 2011 (No. 59/2011) introduced significant enforcement provisions including suspension and cancellation of accreditation (section 14), the ESC's power to give warnings or impose conditions (section 40A), and proceedings for offences (section 70A). The Energy Legislation Amendment (Feed-in Tariffs and Other Matters) Act 2013 (No. 35/2013) amended the definition of relevant entity, certificate creation timing, and record-keeping for public lighting. The Victorian Energy Efficiency Target Amendment (Saving Energy, Growing Jobs) Act 2015 (No. 61/2015) substituted the VEET scheme target for 2016-2020 (section 30) and amended greenhouse gas reduction rates. The Essential Services Commission (Compliance and Enforcement Powers) Amendment Act 2021 (No. 41/2021) amended references to the Enforcement Fund (section 28) and fees sunsetting (section 73(9)). The Energy Legislation Amendment Act 2021 (No. 33/2021) amended the target for 2021-2025. The Victorian Energy Efficiency Target Amendment Act 2022 (No. 34/2022) made major changes: it introduced the fit and proper person and competent and capable person tests (sections 10B, 10C), CPD obligations (section 14F), the code of conduct (section 14G), scheme participant definition (section 3A), VEET scheme registry accounts (Division 6 of Part 3), prohibition on holding certificates without an account (section 26O), civil penalty requirements (Part 6A and Schedule 1), audit provisions (Part 7A), and new review processes (Division 1 of Part 8). The Energy Legislation Amendment (Electricity Outage Emergency Response and Other Matters) Act 2023 (No. 12/2023) amended fees for late applications (sections 9A, 9B, 13D, 26A, 76C). The Statute Law Revision Act 2024 (No. 13/2024) made machinery amendments to reviewable decisions tables. The Victorian Energy Efficiency Target Amendment (Energy Upgrades for the Future) Act 2025 (No. 15/2025) inserted improvement notices (section 40AB), prohibition notices (section 40AC), training requirements for scheme participants (section 14FA), and extended VEET scheme targets to 2045. It also amended the liability period for certificates (section 17) and made numerous other changes to definitions, record-keeping, and transitional provisions. The version as at 1 July 2025 incorporates all these amendments.

The Act itself does not contain any references to specific litigated cases. The litigation history under this Act is not addressed in the source text. The Act provides internal review by the ESC (section 56) and external review by VCAT (section 56B) for reviewable decisions. Section 56C requires a person to seek internal review before applying to VCAT. The decisions reviewable by VCAT include refusal or grant of accreditation, suspension or cancellation of accreditation, refusal of a VEET scheme registry account, issue of an improvement notice or prohibition notice, and refusal to revoke or vary a prohibition notice (tables in sections 56 and 56B). The ESC must give effect to VCAT decisions (section 56E). For enforcement of shortfall penalties and certificate surrender orders, the ESC may apply to a court (sections 37 and 39). The Act does not specify which court, but section 37(2)(b) refers to "the court" which is presumably a court of competent jurisdiction (e.g., Magistrates' Court or Supreme Court). Proceedings for offences may be brought by the ESC, a police officer, or an authorised person (section 70A). The Act also provides for monitoring warrants issued by a magistrate under section 55, with the rules of the Magistrates' Court Act 1989 applying. There are no references to any prior decisions, appeals, or case law within the Act itself.

Several provisions create pitfalls for unwary practitioners. Registry account requirement: Section 26O makes it an offence to hold a certificate without a VEET scheme registry account, with a penalty of 60/240 penalty units. This applies to any person, including accredited persons and third parties. Certificates transferred to a person without an account are invalid. Self-incrimination exceptions are limited: While the Act provides protection against self-incrimination for natural persons in several sections (e.g., 14AE, 14E, 26I, 52, 55P, 62), section 52(2) explicitly states that this is not a reasonable excuse for refusing to produce a document that the person is required to keep by the Act. So record-keeping obligations under section 72 cannot be avoided on self-incrimination grounds. Strict liability for shortfall: A relevant entity has a shortfall if the formula in section 29 produces a positive number. There is no defence of insufficient certificates available in the market. Section 38(8) and 40(6) state that it is no excuse for failing to comply with a certificate surrender notice or order that the person is not the registered owner of sufficient certificates. Duty to disclose adverse matters: Section 14D requires an accredited person to disclose any matter that would likely lead the ESC to determine the person is not fit and proper or competent and capable, within 14 days of becoming aware. Failure is an offence carrying 20 penalty units. The self-incrimination exception in section 14E applies, but this is narrow. Time limits for creating certificates: Certificates must be created within 6 months after the end of the year in which the reduction occurs (section 17(2)). Missing this deadline forfeits the right to create certificates for that activity. Condition of accreditation: Section 13C provides that an accredited person may only undertake prescribed activities for which accreditation is granted. Undertaking other activities is an offence under section 15A. Disqualification period: The ESC may disqualify a person from applying for renewal of accreditation for up to 5 years under section 14(2)(c), and this applies even if the person's accreditation has expired. Voluntary surrender restrictions: Under section 25(4), the owner must not voluntarily surrender a certificate if a Ministerial order has been made disallowing voluntary surrenders for a period. The Minister may make such an order to protect the integrity of the scheme after consultation. Assurance audits: Section 55K requires that each accredited person be audited at least once every two years under an assurance audit schedule. Failure to arrange an audit when required is a breach of conditions and may lead to suspension or cancellation. Training for scheme participants: Section 14FA imposes obligations on scheme participants to complete training and provide evidence to the accredited person. Accredited persons should verify this evidence; they cannot rely on a participant who has not complied. Provision of false evidence is an offence with a penalty of 30/120 penalty units.

For accredited persons: First, ensure that you apply for accreditation or renewal under section 9 at least 90 days before expiry (section 9A) and include declarations that you are fit and proper and competent and capable (sections 10B, 10C). Provide any evidence requested by the ESC under sections 10 and 10A. Once accredited, comply with all conditions of accreditation (section 13C), including only undertaking the prescribed activities for which you are accredited. Undertake CPD obligations as specified in ESC guidelines (section 14F). Keep records of all transactions, certificates created, and prescribed activities undertaken for at least six years (section 72). Disclose any adverse matter to the ESC within 14 days (section 14D). Ensure all scheme participants you engage have completed training and competency requirements and provide you with evidence (section 14FA). Comply with the prescribed code of conduct (section 14G). When creating certificates, ensure the prescribed activity has been undertaken, that the reduction has occurred, and that you create the certificate within six months after the end of the year (section 17). Use the correct form and content (section 21) and pay registration fees. Do not create duplicate certificates or claim benefits under another prescribed greenhouse gas scheme for the same activity (section 20). Open and maintain a VEET scheme registry account (section 26A) for holding and transferring certificates. Cooperate with compliance audits and assurance audits conducted by the ESC or independent auditors (sections 55F, 55J). If you receive an improvement notice (section 40AB) or prohibition notice (section 40AC), comply within the specified period. If you wish to vary conditions of accreditation, apply under section 13D. If you disagree with an ESC decision, seek internal review under section 56 within 30 business days, then apply to VCAT if necessary (section 56B). For relevant entities: Calculate your greenhouse gas emissions liability annually under section 31. Acquire and hold enough valid certificates in your VEET scheme registry account to cover your liability. Lodge an annual energy acquisition statement by 30 April (or later approved day) under section 33, including the certificates to be surrendered. Ensure the statement is audited by an independent third party (section 33(6)). Pay any surrender fees under section 35. If you have a carry-forward surplus from the previous year, include it in the statement (section 29(2)(c)). If you fail to surrender enough certificates, pay the shortfall penalty as directed in a shortfall statement (section 36). Keep records for six years (section 72). Ensure you comply with any ESC requests for information under section 60. For scheme participants: Complete any training and competency requirements specified in ESC guidelines and provide evidence of compliance to the accredited person you work with (section 14FA). Do not provide false evidence. Comply with the prescribed code of conduct (section 14H). If you undertake regulated actions such as marketing or lead generation, ensure you are acting on behalf of a properly accredited person. Do not undertake a prescribed activity if the accredited person's accreditation is suspended, expired, or cancelled (section 15B). If you receive an improvement or prohibition notice, comply immediately and, if appropriate, apply for revocation or variation (section 40AD). General: All persons should avoid giving false or misleading information to the ESC or an auditor (sections 68, 55N). Any person holding a certificate must have a VEET scheme registry account (section 26O). If your account is suspended or cancelled, do not transfer or surrender certificates without ESC permission (section 26N, 26P). Seek legal advice if you are uncertain about your obligations, particularly regarding the fit and proper person test or the application of self-incrimination protections.