Western Port (Steel Works Rating) Act 1972

The Act builds on three legal concepts and one institutional trigger.

1. Land defined by external schedule (s 2(1)). The Act defines "the land" not by a new statutory description but by importing the description in the First and Second Schedules to the agreement that is the Schedule to the Western Port (Steel Works) Act 1970. That means the operative geographic and parcel boundaries are taken from that earlier instrument rather than the 1972 Act.

2. Incorporation of general rating and valuation law, with localised exceptions (s 2(2); s 3(2)-(3)). The Act expressly imports words and expressions from the Local Government Act 1958 for meanings (s 2(2)), and prescribes that provisions of the Local Government Act 1958 and the Valuation of Land Act 1960 shall apply for valuation of the land (s 3(2)). However, the Act overrides the ordinary valuation rules for NAV by requiring that certain improvements be disregarded when estimating NAV (s 3(2)). The Act leaves the procedural machinery for making and levying rates to the Local Government Act (s 3(3)) while imposing substantive floors for amounts payable.

3. Fixed minimum annual payment schedule (s 3(3)(a) and (b)). If the council levies rates solely on NAV, the statutory minimums apply directly; if the council uses a mixed rating basis (NAV combined with unimproved capital value or site value), the payable amount is the same proportion of the table amount as the council’s NAV-derived rates bear to the council’s total rates levied on rateable property (s 3(3)(b)). The table prescribes year-specific nominal dollar amounts from $190,000 (1973 year) to $840,000 for 1983 and each year thereafter.

4. Contingent Ministerial review and committee appointment (s 3(4)). The Act establishes trigger dates for plant readiness and vests the Minister with discretion to declare that a failure to meet those dates is "for any reason which appears to the Minister to be beyond the control of the Company". Where the Minister so considers, and absent an agreement under s 811BA of the Local Government Act 1958 between the council and the company, the Minister must appoint a three-member committee to recommend what amendments, if any, should be made to this section.

Ancillary concepts include the council’s capacity to cause supplementary valuations at any time (s 3(5)) and the special treatment of certain physical items: plant, machinery or equipment that would ordinarily be improvements are to be ignored in estimating NAV, but cranes attached to or in buildings are excluded from the disregard (s 3(2)).

Mechanically, therefore, the Act alters valuation inputs, sets statutory floors for annual payments, provides a proportional calculation where needed, and creates a Ministerial pathway for post‑implementation review should construction/delivery milestones be missed.

The Act expressly and implicitly involves several decision-makers and economic actors.

• The landowner/operator (the Act uses "the Company"). While "Company" is not defined in the body text, the preamble identifies the company as John Lysaght (Australia) Limited in the context of the 1969 agreement that the Act implements. The Company is the entity whose land is subject to the special-rating rules and whose operational milestones (cold strip mill, hot strip mill, integrated plant) determine whether a Ministerial-initiated review committee may be appointed (s 3(4)).

• The Council of the Shire of Hastings. The council is the local authority required to make and levy rates in respect of the land, subject to the Act’s modifications (s 3(1)-(3)). The council also has the authority to cause a supplementary valuation of the land at any time (s 3(5)) and, under the contingency in s 3(4), is entitled to nominate one member of the three-person review committee if the Minister appoints one.

• The Minister (unnamed portfolio in the Act). The Minister has two discrete powers: a fact-finding discretion in relation to the reasons for delays in the commissioning of works (the Minister must be satisfied the reason is beyond the Company’s control), and the power to appoint a three-person review committee where the specified readiness dates are missed and no agreement under s 811BA of the Local Government Act 1958 is in place (s 3(4)).

• The Law Institute of Victoria (via the President). The Act requires the committee chair to be a barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court of Victoria nominated by the President of the Law Institute of Victoria; that person acts as chairman of the committee (s 3(4)).

• Ratepayers in the municipal district more broadly. The Act operates by reference to the council’s aggregate rating base when a mixed-basis rating system is used. Under s 3(3)(b), the payable amount is calculated with reference to the proportion that the council’s NAV-derived rates represent of all rates levied on rateable property, thus linking the special payment to the council’s overall rating decisions and the distribution of the municipal rate burden.

• Valuers and valuation authorities. The Valuation of Land Act 1960 and the Local Government Act 1958 are applied to valuation and rating (s 3(2)-(3)), but with an express rule to disregard plant, machinery, and equipment in estimating NAV. That modifies the inputs that valuers must apply when valuing the land for rating purposes.

• The public bodies and private parties invited to agree under s 811BA of the Local Government Act 1958. The Act makes a specific reference to an agreement that may be made under that provision; if such an agreement exists between the council and the company, the Minister’s committee power in s 3(4) will not be called into play.

Who pays: the statutory structure makes clear the payment obligation runs against "the land" and therefore the owner/occupier of that land (the Company), as rates are levied "in respect of the land" by the council (s 3(1)). Who decides: the council determines rates under the Local Government Act 1958 procedures but must apply the statutory floors and valuation exceptions in this Act (s 3(2)-(3)). Who reviews: the Minister can initiate a committee under prescribed conditions (s 3(4)), and the committee composition is partially determined by nominations from the council and the company alongside a legal practitioner nominated by the Law Institute (s 3(4)).

The Act allocates discrete duties and rights across the council, the company (landowner) and the Minister.

Council duties and powers

• Duty to levy rates in respect of the land in accordance with the Local Government Act 1958, subject to the Act’s special rules (s 3(1), s 3(3)). The Act does not displace the council’s general obligation to make and levy rates; it modifies how valuation inputs and minimums for this parcel are applied.
• Valuation application duty: apply the Local Government Act 1958 and Valuation of Land Act 1960 in relation to valuation, but with the statutory requirement to disregard plant, machinery or equipment improvements (other than cranes attached to or in buildings) when estimating NAV (s 3(2)).
• Power to cause a supplementary valuation of the land at any time (s 3(5)). That is an affirmative power which the council may exercise to update the valuation base underlying rates for the land.
• If the council adopts a mixed basis of rating (NAV plus unimproved capital value or site value), it must calculate the amount payable under the proportional mechanism in s 3(3)(b).

Company (landowner) rights and practical entitlements

• The Company benefits from the NAV rule: improvements classified as plant, machinery or equipment (subject to the crane exception) are to be disregarded in estimating NAV for rating purposes (s 3(2)). That reduces the NAV base on which NAV-only rates would be levied.
• The Company can nominate a member to the Minister-appointed review committee if the committee is convened under s 3(4).
• The preamble and structure indicate the Company had an agreement with the State (referenced in the Western Port (Steel Works) Act 1970), and the Act contemplates that the Company and the council may enter into an agreement under s 811BA of the Local Government Act 1958 to deal with rating matters; if such an agreement exists, it displaces the Minister’s committee appointment pathway in s 3(4).

Ministerial rights and duties

• Discretion to determine whether non‑readiness of particular plant elements is for reasons "which appear to the Minister to be beyond the control of the Company" (s 3(4)). That is a fact‑based discretionary determination.
• Duty to appoint a committee when the conditions in s 3(4) are satisfied (the Minister "shall appoint" the committee). The composition of that committee is prescribed: a legal practitioner nominated by the President of the Law Institute of Victoria to act as chair, plus one nominee of the council and one nominee of the company (s 3(4)). The committee's remit is to make recommendations as to what (if any) amendments to s 3 should be made.

Other statutory relationships and constraints

• The Act does not itself create special recovery procedures, penalties or enforcement provisions; instead it incorporates the Local Government Act 1958’s machinery for making and levying rates (s 3(3)). This means that rights to contest valuation, recovery of unpaid rates, and enforcement are governed by the procedures and remedies in the Local Government Act 1958 and Valuation of Land Act 1960 as applied (s 2(2); s 3(2)-(3)).

Practical computation duty

• Where NAV-only rating applies, the council must ensure the amount payable is not less than the statutory table amount for the relevant year (s 3(3)(a)). Where mixed rating applies, the council must compute the NAV-derived proportion and scale the table amount accordingly (s 3(3)(b)). The Act therefore imposes a ministerialised floor on the revenue collectible by the council from the land.

In sum, the Act imposes substantive valuation exclusions benefiting the landowner, imposes minimum payable amounts for rates on the land (with a calculation rule for mixed rating bases), assigns the power to require a review if construction milestones are missed, and leaves procedural recovery to the Local Government Act 1958.

The Act itself does not create new criminal offences, pecuniary penalties, or a bespoke enforcement regime. Its operative approach is to modify valuation inputs and to prescribe minimum annual amounts payable for the rates on the land; the levying, recovery and enforcement of those rates remain subject to the Local Government Act 1958.

Key source provisions and consequences

• The Act expressly states that "The rates shall be made and levied in accordance with the provisions of the Local Government Act 1958" (s 3(3)). That incorporation means any enforcement mechanisms, recovery procedures, lien rights, sale processes for unpaid rates, penalties, interest on arrears, objection and appeal procedures (if any), are those provided by the Local Government Act 1958 and related valuation law. The Western Port (Steel Works Rating) Act 1972 does not itself enumerate or alter collection remedies, nor does it add civil penalties or criminal sanctions in the 1972 text.

• Given the statutory floors in s 3(3)(a) and (b), failure to pay rates at or above the minimums, or disputes about the appropriate amount, will arise against the background of the Local Government Act 1958's enforcement apparatus. The Act therefore prescribes the substantive liability and delegates enforcement to the general municipal law.

• The Act establishes a non-enforcement, review mechanism for implementation delays: if the Minister forms the view that certain mills are not ready for operation by the trigger dates and the cause is beyond the Company’s control, the Minister "shall appoint" a committee to recommend whether amendments to the section should be made (s 3(4)). That mechanism is remedial and recommendatory; it is not framed as punitive and does not itself impose penalties on either party. The committee's role, as stated, is to make recommendations as to what, if any, amendments should be made to the section , it does not have power to impose rates or change payments directly.

Practical implication for enforcement

• Enforcement action for unpaid rates, recovery processes, and valuation objections or appeals must be taken under the Local Government Act 1958 and the Valuation of Land Act 1960, as those Acts are applied to the valuation and rating of the land (s 3(2)-(3)). This Act modifies the substantive basis for calculation and minimums but leaves enforcement mechanics to the referenced legislation.

• No express timeframe, interest rate, penalty scale or special lien regime is stated in this Act. Any person seeking to recover unpaid amounts or to resist recovery should therefore consult the Local Government Act 1958 and the Valuation of Land Act 1960 for procedural detail, and note that the Western Port (Steel Works Rating) Act 1972 sets substantive floors that will inform any recovery claim.

The Act is intentionally compact and relies heavily on other statutory instruments for definitions, procedural machinery and remedial mechanisms. The interaction is an incorporation-with-exceptions model.

Primary cross‑referred laws

• Local Government Act 1958. The Act imports meanings for words and expressions from the Local Government Act 1958 (s 2(2)) and expressly states that rates are to be made and levied in accordance with its provisions (s 3(3)). Additionally, the Act refers to s 811BA of the Local Government Act 1958 as a mechanism by which an agreement between the council and the company might be made; if such an agreement is in place, it precludes the Minister’s power to appoint the review committee under s 3(4). The precise contents of s 811BA, the scope of powers to reach agreements under it, and the enforcement/appeal machinery available under the Local Government Act 1958 are not reproduced in this Act; they remain in the Local Government Act 1958.

• Valuation of Land Act 1960. The Act states that the Valuation of Land Act 1960 applies in relation to the valuation of the land for rating purposes (s 3(2)). That means the Valuation of Land Act 1960 governs valuation practice, presumptions, authorities, appeals and technical valuation matters, except where the Wester Port Act expressly departs from ordinary valuation inputs by requiring the disregard of certain improvements when estimating NAV (s 3(2)).

Incorporation with express substantive override

• The Act’s s 3(2) is an express substantive override of ordinary valuation practice: while valuation law and municipal rating law remain operative, the Act requires that, "in estimating the net annual value of the land any improvements being plant machinery or equipment (other than cranes attached to or in buildings) whether affixed to the land or not shall be disregarded." This alters the valuation base used under the Valuation of Land Act 1960 for this parcel.

Referential dependence for land description

• The Act’s definition of "the land" is by reference to the First and Second Schedules to the agreement in the Schedule to the Western Port (Steel Works) Act 1970 (s 2(1)). Therefore, the geographic and cadastral particulars, and any limits on the area subject to the Act, are found in that prior Act’s schedules. Any legal challenge, boundary issue, or interpretation of which parcels were subject to the special rating would require consulting the 1970 Act’s schedules.

Interaction with agreements under s 811BA LGA 1958

• The Act contemplates that the council and the company could reach an agreement under s 811BA of the Local Government Act 1958 dealing with the land. If such an agreement exists, the Minister’s committee power under s 3(4) is not to be exercised (s 3(4) conditions presuppose no agreement under s 811BA). The Act therefore slots into an existing framework for bilateral agreement-making between council and ratepayer under s 811BA of the Local Government Act 1958.

Absence of other statutory modifications

• The Western Port (Steel Works Rating) Act 1972 does not amend or repeal other statutory provisions directly; instead it modifies the application of those Acts to the defined land. Endnotes confirm there are no amendments to the 1972 Act itself in the consolidated version provided.

Practical consequence

• Parties operating under this Act must consult the Local Government Act 1958 and Valuation of Land Act 1960 both for procedural steps (making, levying, notice, objection, recovery) and for any agreement-making power under s 811BA that might be available to supersede the Ministerial review route. The substantive floors and the valuation exception are statutory inputs that must be implemented within the framework of these other Acts.

The published endnotes to the Act state that there are no amendments made to the Western Port (Steel Works Rating) Act 1972 by Acts and subordinate instruments up to the version date (Version as at 24 February 2003). The Act was assented to and commenced on 13 May 1972 (Endnotes, item 1). Endnotes item 2 confirms the absence of amendments and item 3 indicates no explanatory details entries at date of publication.

Because the Act is short and specific in scope, its amendment history in the provided text is nil: there are no recorded legislative amendments, repeals, or substitutions in the endnotes supplied. Any variation to the operation of the Act would therefore arise either through supervening agreements under the Local Government Act 1958 (for example, an agreement under s 811BA) or by separate legislation that expressly amends the 1972 Act, neither of which is recorded in the material provided.

Users should note that the Act repeatedly refers to other Acts (Local Government Act 1958 and Valuation of Land Act 1960) that themselves may have been amended over time. This Act’s operation is tethered to those instruments for definitions, procedural steps and enforcement; therefore, while the Western Port (Steel Works Rating) Act 1972 shows no direct amendments in the supplied endnotes, its practical application could be affected by later amendments to the Local Government Act 1958 or Valuation of Land Act 1960. Such downstream changes are not recorded in the text provided and are outside the scope of the supplied source.

The supplied document contains no case citations, no entries describing litigation, and no record of judicial interpretation or appeals concerning the Western Port (Steel Works Rating) Act 1972. The endnotes include no litigation history and the Act itself does not name any cases.

Because the Act incorporates procedures and appeal mechanisms from the Local Government Act 1958 and the Valuation of Land Act 1960, litigation concerning valuation, the validity of the council’s rates levied under this Act, or recovery of unpaid amounts would likely proceed under the processes and jurisdictions specified in those Acts. However, the provided material contains no record of such litigation and does not identify any judicial determinations that interpret or apply the 1972 Act’s particular provisions (for example, the NAV disregard, the application of the minimum table amounts, the proportional calculation in s 3(3)(b), or the Minister’s discretion under s 3(4)).

Practitioners should therefore treat litigation history as absent from the supplied source. Any search for authoritative judicial interpretation must extend beyond this document to court reports, decisions applying the Local Government Act 1958 and Valuation of Land Act 1960, and any litigation that may have arisen under or about agreements referenced in the Western Port (Steel Works) Act 1970.

The Act’s short text contains several technical points that can produce practical surprise if they are overlooked.

1. The land is not described in this Act. The statutory definition of "the land" is by reference to schedules in an earlier Act (the Western Port (Steel Works) Act 1970) (s 2(1)). Practitioners must consult that Act’s Schedule to identify the exact parcels. An incorrect assumption about the parcel boundaries will misidentify who is subject to the statutory minimums and valuation rules.

2. Improvements to be disregarded are tightly specified and include an explicit exception for cranes attached to or in buildings (s 3(2)). The Act requires the disregarding of "any improvements being plant machinery or equipment (other than cranes attached to or in buildings) whether affixed to the land or not". That formulation has two key features: (a) it reaches items whether affixed or not; (b) it excludes cranes attached to or in buildings from the disregard. Valuers must apply that wording with precision; a mechanical rule that "all plant is disregarded" would be erroneous because cranes attached to buildings remain in the valuation.

3. Two different rating-basis scenarios create different computational outcomes (s 3(3)(a) and (b)). If the council levies rates solely on NAV, the payable amount is the table amount. If the council levies partly on NAV and partly on unimproved capital value or site value, the payable amount is a proportion of the table amount: the proportion that NAV-derived rates bear to the council’s total rates levied on rateable property. That proportional mechanism requires the council to compute its aggregate NAV-derived rates relative to total rates in that year; mistakes in the numerator or denominator will produce an incorrect payable amount for the land.

4. The table sets fixed dollar amounts with no indexing mechanism included (s 3(3)(a)). The Act prescribes specific nominal amounts for each year listed and $840,000 "and each year thereafter" from 1983. The Act does not provide for automatic adjustment, review triggers, or escalation in the text provided. The legal effect is that the statutory floor was intended to be a fixed nominal amount from 1983 forward unless amended in some subsequent statute or superseded by an agreement under s 811BA of the Local Government Act 1958.

5. Ministerial discretion is factually oriented and can be decisive (s 3(4)). The Minister must be satisfied that non-readiness is "for any reason which appears to the Minister to be beyond the control of the Company" to be able to appoint a review committee. That is an evaluative standard that draws the Minister into factual assessment. The Act does not set out procedural safeguards, notice requirements, or appeal rights against the Minister’s determination in the 1972 text. Parties therefore face an administrative decision with limited procedural detail contained in the Act.

6. The committee's function is recommendatory, not determinative (s 3(4)). The committee "shall" be appointed to make recommendations "as to what (if any) amendments should be made to this section". The Act does not give the committee power to amend the section directly or to bind the Minister, council or company. Its outputs are recommendations; any legislative amendment remains the province of Parliament.

7. The Act leaves enforcement and recovery to the Local Government Act 1958 (s 3(3)). There is no new penalty regime or collection mechanism created here. Practitioners must therefore map the Act’s substantive liabilities onto the procedural and remedial framework of the Local Government Act 1958 and the Valuation of Land Act 1960.

8. Absence of definition for "Company" in the body of the Act. The text of the Act uses "the Company" (s 3(4)) but does not define it in s 2; the preamble identifies John Lysaght (Australia) Limited in the context of the earlier agreement. Reliance on the preamble to identify the company is necessary in adjudicating references to "the Company" in s 3(4).

9. Supplementary valuations are permitted "at any time" (s 3(5)). That is a broad council power and can lead to revaluation episodes that alter the relationship between the statutory floor and the council’s NAV-derived rates, and thereby change whether the table minimum is binding.

10. The Act’s durability in practice depends on other legislation and on agreements under s 811BA LGA 1958. The Act contemplates and defers to bilateral agreements and to the Local Government Act’s machinery; it is not a complete standalone regime.

Careful drafting and procedural steps are needed when implementing the Act’s requirements to avoid calculation errors, to respect the crane exception, to monitor the Ministerial trigger dates, and to understand the interplay with any agreement under s 811BA of the Local Government Act 1958.

For councils, valuers and the company the Act prescribes a small number of concrete compliance tasks and options.

For the Council of the Shire of Hastings

• Apply the Local Government Act 1958 and the Valuation of Land Act 1960 to valuation and rating processes for the land, but implement the special NAV rule in s 3(2): when estimating NAV for the land, ensure all plant, machinery and equipment (other than cranes attached to or in buildings) are excluded from the valuation base. Document the valuation reasoning and the specific items disregarded to support future objections or audits (s 3(2)).

• Determine the basis the council will follow for rating that year. If the council will levy rates solely on NAV, calculate the rates payable and compare them to the statutory table in s 3(3)(a). If the council’s NAV-only calculation would produce less than the table amount, the council must ensure the amount payable for the land is the statutory table amount for that year (s 3(3)(a)).

• If the council’s rating system for the year is partly NAV and partly unimproved capital value or site value, calculate the proportion described in s 3(3)(b). The payable amount equals the amount that bears the same proportion to the statutory table amount as the council’s total NAV-derived rates bear to the council’s total rates on rateable property. To comply: (a) compute total NAV-derived rates levied by the council for the year; (b) compute total rates levied by the council on rateable property for the year; (c) calculate the ratio NAV-derived/total; (d) multiply the relevant table amount by that ratio to obtain the statutory payable amount for the land (s 3(3)(b)).

• Consider using the power to cause a supplementary valuation under s 3(5) where changes in land use, plant installation, or municipal valuation necessitate updating values. Keep records of the supplementary valuation's basis and timing, because valuation changes affect whether the statutory minimum is binding.

• If the council and the company wish to avoid the Minister-appointed committee route in the event of construction delay, negotiate and document an agreement under s 811BA of the Local Government Act 1958. If such an agreement is in place, the conditions in s 3(4) referencing the Minister and committee will not be triggered.

For the Company (owner/operator)

• Ascertain precisely which parcels are "the land" by consulting the First and Second Schedules to the agreement in the Schedule to the Western Port (Steel Works) Act 1970 (s 2(1)). Confirm the company’s legal identity in relation to the land since the Act references "the Company" in s 3(4) and the preamble names John Lysaght (Australia) Limited.

• Compile an inventory of plant, machinery and equipment, and identify items that are cranes attached to or in buildings. That inventory should be supplied to the valuer to ensure that items requiring disregard are excluded from NAV while cranes attached to buildings are not disregarded (s 3(2)). Maintain documentation proving classification, attachment, date of installation, and physical location to support valuation outcomes.

• Monitor the trigger dates in s 3(4): cold strip mill readiness by 1 January 1975; hot strip mill readiness by 1 January 1980; full integrated steel works readiness by 1 January 1985. If the Company anticipates delay for reasons beyond its control, prepare materials demonstrating causation and the factual basis to support a Ministerial decision should the Minister be asked to consider the delay. Additionally, if an agreement under s 811BA of the Local Government Act 1958 is attractive, engage with the council to negotiate such an agreement proactively.

• Be prepared to nominate a committee member if the Minister appoints the review committee under s 3(4). Maintain a point of contact for the council and the Minister, and keep contemporaneous records of construction progress and impediments.

For valuers and municipal officers

• On valuation files, ensure the rationale for disregard of plant, machinery and equipment is recorded in the valuation report, with clear reference to s 3(2) and supporting evidence for the classification of items. Distinguish between movable plant that is to be disregarded and cranes attached to buildings that are not.

• When performing the council-wide rate computation for any year the council uses mixed rating bases, provide the council finance officers with the NAV-derived and total rates figures necessary for the proportional calculation in s 3(3)(b). Maintain auditable working papers showing how the proportion was determined and applied.

General compliance notes

• The Act does not replace the Local Government Act 1958’s procedural requirements for notices, objections, appeals, or recovery of unpaid rates. Parties should ensure compliance with those procedural steps when making, serving, contesting or collecting rates (s 3(3); s 2(2)).

• If there is a dispute about whether an item is a "crane attached to or in buildings", whether a cause of delay is beyond the Company’s control, or whether a council’s computation of the NAV-derived proportion is correct, expect that resolution will occur through the mechanisms in the Local Government Act 1958 and the Valuation of Land Act 1960. Record-keeping and contemporaneous documentation will be crucial to defend positions in objections, negotiations under s 811BA, or any administrative review involving the Minister.

• Because the statutory table includes a permanent floor from 1983 onwards (s 3(3)(a)), the council and the company should consider whether a negotiated agreement under s 811BA is desirable to provide greater flexibility than the fixed statutory amounts permit.

In short, compliance requires precise valuation practice reflecting the statutory disregard, accurate computation in accordance with the single- or mixed-basis scenarios, active monitoring of the construction trigger dates, and attention to the procedural framework of the Local Government Act 1958 and Valuation of Land Act 1960.