Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Price Cap) Act 2018

Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Price Cap) Act 2018

An Act to amend the Electricity Supply Industry Act 1995 and the Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Pricing) Act 2017

Be it enacted by Her Excellency the Governor of Tasmania, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and House of Assembly, in Parliament assembled, as follows:

PART 1 - Preliminary

1.   Short title

This Act may be cited as the Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Price Cap) Act 2018 .

2.   Commencement

This Act commences on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent.

PART 2 - Electricity Supply Industry Act 1995 Amended

3.   Principal Act

In this Part, the Electricity Supply Industry Act 1995 is referred to as the Principal Act.

4.    Section 40AA amended (Determination of certain maximum prices)

Section 40AA of the Principal Act is amended by inserting after subsection (7) the following subsection:

(8)  The determination made under this section and in force on 1 May 2018 remains, despite any provision of the regulations, in force until immediately before 1 July 2021.

5.    Section 41 amended (Approval of standing offer prices)

Section 41 of the Principal Act is amended as follows:

(a) by inserting the following subsection before subsection (1) :

(1AA)  In this section –

applicable financial year means –

(a) the 2018-2019 financial year; or

(b) the 2019-2020 financial year; or

(c) the 2020-2021 financial year;

CPI figure for Hobart means the Consumer Price Index (All Groups) Number for Hobart published by the Australian Statistician under the authority of the Census and Statistics Act 1905 of the Commonwealth;

CPI percentage change, for an applicable financial year, means the percentage change between –

(a) the CPI figure for Hobart for the December quarter of the previous financial year; and

(b) the CPI figure for Hobart for the December quarter of the financial year before the previous financial year.

(b) by inserting the following subsection after subsection (4) :

(5)  The Regulator must not, under subsection (3), approve a standing offer price for an applicable financial year if the price so approved would be higher than the standing offer price, in relation to the same tariff, for the previous year, as increased by the CPI percentage change for the applicable financial year.

PART 3 - Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Pricing) Act 2017 Amended

6.   Principal Act

In this Part, the Electricity Supply Industry Amendment (Pricing) Act 2017 is referred to as the Principal Act.

7.    Section 7 amended (Review of operation of certain provisions and repeal)

Section 7 of the Principal Act is amended as follows:

(a) by omitting from subsection (2) "18-month period" and substituting "42-month period";

(b) by omitting from subsection (4)(b) "2 years" and substituting "4 years";

(c) by omitting from subsection (5) "2 years" and substituting "4 years".

8.    Section 8 amended (Repeal of Act)

Section 8 of the Principal Act is amended by omitting "3 years" and substituting "5 years".

PART 4 - Concluding Provision

9.   Repeal of Act

This Act is repealed on the three hundred and sixty fifth day from the day on which it commences.

[Second reading presentation speech made in:

House of Assembly on 16 OCTOBER 2018

Legislative Council on 31 OCTOBER 2018]