Trade Measurement (Tasmania) Administration Act 1999
An Act to provide for the administration in Tasmania of a national scheme of trade measurement and to repeal the Weights and Measures Act 1934
[Royal Assent 15 December 1999]
Be it enacted by His 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:
This Act may be cited as the Trade Measurement (Tasmania) Administration Act 1999 .
(1) Section 18 commences on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent.(2) The remaining provisions of this Act commence on a day to be proclaimed.
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears –inspector means a person appointed or employed as such under section 6 of this Act or under section 5 of the repealed Act;repealed Act means the Weights and Measures Act 1934 ;Secretary means the Secretary of the Department.(2) Unless inconsistent with the context or subject matter, words and expressions defined in the Trade Measurement Act 1999 have the same meaning in this Act.(3) In this Act –(a) a reference to a function includes a reference to a power, authority or duty; and(b) a reference to the exercise of a function includes, where the function is a duty, a reference to the performance of the duty.
4. Declaration for purposes of Trade Measurement Act 1999
For the purposes of the Trade Measurement Act 1999 and this Act, the Secretary is –and the Secretary may exercise the powers of an inspector.(a) the administering authority; and(b) the licensing authority –
In the administration of this Act and the Trade Measurement Act 1999 , the Secretary is subject to the general direction and control of the Minister.
Without limiting any power conferred by or under the Trade Measurement Act 1999 , the Secretary may appoint a person to be an inspector for the purposes of this Act and the Trade Measurement Act 1999 .
The Secretary may, by an instrument in writing, delegate to any person any function or power of the Secretary other than this power of delegation.
(1) If an inspector has reason to believe that a person has committed an offence against any provision of the Trade Measurement Act 1999 or this Act which is prescribed for the purposes of this section, he or she may serve or cause to be served an infringement notice on that person.(2) An infringement notice may be served –(a) by giving the notice to the alleged offender in person; or(b) by sending the notice by post addressed to him or her at his or her last known place of residence or business.
An infringement notice –(a) is to be in the prescribed form; and(b) is to state the penalty fixed by the regulations for the offence; and(c) is to state that, if the amount of the penalty is tendered at the place referred to in the notice, the matter will not be brought before the Court unless the notice is withdrawn before the end of the period specified in the notice as the time for payment of the penalty.
(1) The inspector may withdraw an infringement notice at any time within 28 days after the notice is served by serving a withdrawal notice on the alleged offender.(2) An infringement notice may be withdrawn even if the appropriate penalty has been paid.(3) On service of a notice of withdrawal, the Secretary must refund the amount of any penalty paid on the infringement notice before its withdrawal.
11. Penalties for offences under infringement notices
The penalty for an offence for which an infringement notice has been issued is a penalty not exceeding 20 penalty units as is prescribed by the regulations and which must not exceed the penalty fixed by the Trade Measurement Act 1999 for that offence.
(1) If the person pays the penalty shown on the infringement notice within the time shown in the notice or, if the inspector allows, at any time before the service of the summons in respect of the offence –(a) further proceedings may not be taken in respect of the offence; and(b) no conviction is to be recorded against the person for the offence.(2) A penalty paid under this section must be applied as if the offender had been convicted of the offence in the Magistrates Court on a charge filed by the inspector who served the infringement notice.
13. Notice not to prejudice further proceedings
(1) If –proceedings may still be taken or continued for the alleged offence.(a) a person served with an infringement notice has not paid the penalty within the time specified in the notice; or(b) an infringement notice is withdrawn –(2) If proceedings have been taken or continued for an alleged offence because the person has not paid the penalty specified in the infringement notice and a conviction is imposed by the court, the conviction must not be taken to be a conviction for any purpose except in respect of –(a) the making of the conviction itself; and(b) subsequent proceedings which may be taken in respect of the conviction itself, including proceedings by way of appeal.
14. Time for instituting proceedings for offence
Proceedings for an offence under the Trade Measurement Act 1999 or this Act may be instituted at any time before the expiration of the period of one year that succeeds the discovery by an inspector of the commission of the offence.
(1) The Governor may make regulations for the purposes of this Act.(2) Without limiting subsection (1) , the regulations may include provisions with respect to –(a) the administration of the Trade Measurement Act 1999 ; and(b) the imposition, collection and recovery of fees and charges for the purposes of the Trade Measurement Act 1999 or this Act including –(i) charges for the examination, testing, certification, verification or re-verification of measuring instruments; and(ii) application fees; and(iii) licence fees; and(iv) charges for the examination of public weighbridges for suitability; and(v) fees payable for the issue of amended licences or certificates and for the issue of duplicate licences or certificates; and(vi) charges payable where an inspector keeps an appointment to examine or test a measuring instrument but is unable to carry out the examination or testing because the measuring instrument is unavailable or inaccessible or access to it is unreasonably refused; and(vii) charges to reimburse costs incurred in connection with the examination and testing of a measuring instrument under the Trade Measurement Act 1999 ; and(viii) charges payable by a person where the use of specified labour or equipment provided by the Secretary is necessary for the exercise of the functions of an inspector; and(ix) charges payable for the use by a person of specified equipment provided by the Secretary; and(x) charges payable for the assessment of accreditation for the granting of servicing licences; and(c) the payment of certification fees, including –(i) the time within which the fees must be paid; and(ii) requiring the submission by a licensee of returns as to the number and nature of measuring instruments certified by the licensee during the period to which the return relates; and(d) savings or transitional provisions consequent on the enactment of the Trade Measurement Act 1999 or the repeal of the Weights and Measures Act 1934 .(3) The regulations may provide for a fee or charge under subsection (2)(b) to be calculated by reference to time.(4) The regulations may provide for the fee payable under section 52 of the Trade Measurement Act 1999 for a licence to be a specified amount or an amount calculated in a specified manner.(5) A power conferred by this Act to make regulations may be exercised –(a) in respect of all cases to which the power extends, in respect of all those cases subject to specified exceptions or in respect of any specified case or class of case; and(b) so as to make, in the cases in respect of which it is exercised –(i) the same provision in all cases in respect of which the power is exercised, or different provision for different cases or classes of case, or different provisions for the same case or class of case for different purposes; or(ii) any such provision either unconditionally or subject to any specified condition.(6) Regulations made under this Act may be made –(a) so as to apply at all times or at a specified time; and(b) so as to require a matter affected by the regulations to be –(i) in accordance with a specified standard or specified requirement; or(ii) approved by or to the satisfaction of a specified person or body or a specified class of persons or bodies; and(c) so as to provide in a specified case or class of case for the exemption of persons or things or a class of persons or things from any of the provisions of the regulations, whether unconditionally or on specified conditions and either wholly or to such an extent as is specified; and(d) so as to impose a penalty not exceeding 20 penalty units or 6 months' imprisonment for a contravention of the regulations.(7) A power conferred by this Act to make regulations providing for the imposition of fees or charges may be exercised by providing for all or any of the following matters:(a) specific fees or charges;(b) maximum or minimum fees or charges;(c) maximum and minimum fees or charges;(d) scales of fees or charges according to the value of goods or services provided for the fees;(e) the payment of fees or charges either generally or under specified conditions or in specified circumstances;(f) the reduction, waiver or refund, in whole or in part, of the fees or charges;(g) payment of fees or charges by instalments, including the recovery of and payment of interest on arrears.(8) If, under subsection (7)(f) , regulations provide for a reduction, waiver or refund, in whole or in part, of a fee or charge, the reduction, waiver or refund may be expressed to apply either generally or specifically –and may be expressed to apply subject to specified conditions or at the discretion of any specified person or body.(a) in respect of certain matters or transactions or classes of matters or transactions; or(b) in respect of certain documents or classes of documents; or(c) when an event happens; or(d) in respect of certain persons or classes of persons; or(e) in respect of any combination of matters, transactions, documents, events or persons –
The amendments effected by this section have been incorporated into authorised versions of the following Acts:(a) Acts Interpretation Act 1931 ;(b) Weights and Measures Act 1934 .
Notwithstanding the repeal of the Weights and Measures Act 1934 effected by section 16(1) –(a) an inspector's stamp or mark on a measuring instrument under the repealed Act is taken to be an inspector's mark for the purposes of the Trade Measurement Act 1999 ; and(b) a certificate of registration of a public weighbridge issued under the repealed Act and in force immediately before the repeal of that Act is taken to be a public weighbridge licence issued under the Trade Measurement Act 1999 .
18. Postponement of repeal of Weights and Measures Regulations 1964
The repeal of the Weightsand Measures Regulations 1964 that was to have been effected on 1 January 2000 under the Weights and Measures (Repeal of Regulations Postponement) Act 1998 is postponed until 1 January 2001.
Until provision is made in respect of this Act by order under section 4 of the Administrative Arrangements Act 1990 –(a) the administration of this Act is assigned to the Attorney-General; and(b) the department responsible to the Attorney-General in respect of the administration of this Act is the Department of Justice and Industrial Relations.