Defacement of Property Act 1898
An Act to prohibit the defacement of property
[Royal Assent 8 July 1898]
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 Defacement of Property Act 1898 .
2. Defacement of property prohibited
[Section 2 Amended by 26 Geo. V No. 39, s. 2 ][Section 2 Amended by No. 55 of 1965, s. 5 ][Section 2 Amended by No. 67 of 1994, s. 3 and Sched. 1 ][Section 2 Amended by No. 30 of 1995, s. 3 and Sched. 1 ]No person shall affix, inscribe, print, paint, carve, engrave, or otherwise delineate, so as to be visible to any person passing along any highway, road, footpath, bridle-path, railroad, river, or other place open to the public, or authorize or allow to be so affixed, inscribed, printed, painted, carved, engraved, or otherwise delineated to or on any rock, wall, pillar, post, gate, fence, fence-wall, hoarding-board, tree, or any other thing whatsoever, being property vested in the Crown or any council or other public body, or, being private property, without the consent of the owner or occupier thereof, any picture or printed or written matter, or any advertisements or signs of any sort whatever.Penalty: Fine not exceeding 0·2 penalty unit and a daily fine not exceeding 0·04 penalty unit.
3. Use of person's name prima facie evidence
The insertion of the name of any person in any picture, sign, advertisement, or other written or printed matter which is affixed, inscribed, printed, painted, carved, engraved, or otherwise delineated in contravention of this Act, shall be prima facie evidence that such person has authorized or allowed such picture, sign, advertisement, or other written or printed matter to be affixed, or inscribed, or printed, painted, or carved, or engraved, or otherwise delineated in contravention of this Act; and the onus of proof shall be on every such person that he did not authorize or allow such picture, sign, advertisement, or other written or printed matter to be affixed, or inscribed, or printed, or painted, carved, or engraved, or otherwise delineated as aforesaid.
[Section 4 Subsection (1) amended by No. 56 of 1957, s. 2 ][Section 4 Subsection (1) amended by No. 23 of 1971, s. 2 ][Section 4 Subsection (1) amended by No. 15 of 1977, s. 25 and Sched. 1 ][Section 4 Subsection (1) amended by No. 57 of 1996, s. 55 and Sched. 5 ](1) [Section 4 Subsection (1) amended by 26 Geo. V No. 39, s. 2 ]In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears –pleasure resort means any park, recreation ground, or reserve which is open to the public for the purposes of recreation; and any tract of land proclaimed under this Act as a pleasure resort;Secretary means the Secretary of the Department;tourist road means any State highway and any road giving access to a pleasure resort, and which may be made subject, as hereinafter provided, to the provisions of this Act.(2) [Section 4 Subsection (2) omitted by No. 19 of 1975, s. 2 ]. . . . . . . .
[Section 4A Substituted by No. 57 of 1996, s. 55 and Sched. 5 ][Section 4A Amended by No. 86 of 2000, Sched. 1, Applied:01 May 2001] For the purposes of this Act, the Secretary may employ the services of State Service officers and State Service employees.
5. Power to proclaim pleasure resorts and tourist roads
[Section 5 Amended by 25 Geo. V No. 78 ][Section 5 Amended by 26 Geo. V No. 39, s. 2 ](1) The Governor may, by proclamation, define any road, or any portion thereof, as a tourist road, or define the boundaries of any tract of land as a pleasure resort.(2) [Section 5 Subsection (2) amended by No. 30 of 1995, s. 3 and Sched. 1 ]No proclamation shall be issued in respect to any alienated land except upon the written request of the owner thereof, or in respect of any recreation ground, except at the request of a majority of the trustees thereof, or in respect of any road under the care, control, and management of the council without the consent of such council.
[Section 6 Amended by 26 Geo. V No. 39, s. 2 ][Section 6 Amended by No. 55 of 1965, s. 5 ][Section 6 Amended by No. 67 of 1994, s. 3 and Sched. 1 ]No person shall –except with the consent of the Minister if Crown land or of the owner if otherwise.(a) paint or mark with paint or any other substance in any manner whatsoever any tree, fence, rock, or stone in any pleasure resort, or on any tourist road;(b) disfigure, cut down, pull up, remove, set fire to, or destroy in any manner, any grass, tree, or fern, shrub or plant in any pleasure resort or immediately adjacent to any tourist road –Penalty: Fine not exceeding 0·2 penalty unit.
[Section 7 Amended by 26 Geo. V No. 39, s. 2 ][Section 7 Amended by No. 56 of 1957, s. 3 ][Section 7 Amended by No. 99 of 1982, s. 3 and Sched. 2 ](1) The Governor is hereby empowered to make regulations for –(a) the care, protection, and management of all pleasure resorts and tourist roads, and for the preservation of good order therein;(b) the control of fires, and the collection of litter and rubbish at pleasure resorts, and for the restriction of the use of tourist roads to certain vehicles, except as may be provided; and(c) the purposes of this Act.(2) A copy of every such regulation shall be posted in every pleasure resort to which it relates.
8. Hoardings not to be erected, &c., nor advertisements exhibited without the permission of the Secretary
[Section 8 Substituted by No. 56 of 1957, s. 4 ][Section 8 Subsection (1) amended by No. 15 of 1977, s. 25 and Sched. 1 ][Section 8 Subsection (1) amended by No. 57 of 1996, s. 55 and Sched. 5 ][Section 8 Subsection (2) amended by No. 15 of 1977, s. 25 and Sched. 1 ][Section 8 Subsection (2) amended by No. 57 of 1996, s. 55 and Sched. 5 ][Section 8 Subsection (3) amended by No. 15 of 1977, s. 25 and Sched. 1 ][Section 8 Subsection (3) amended by No. 57 of 1996, s. 55 and Sched. 5 ][Section 8 Subsection (4) amended by No. 15 of 1977, s. 25 and Sched. 1 ][Section 8 Subsection (4) amended by No. 57 of 1996, s. 55 and Sched. 5 ][Section 8 Subsection (5) amended by No. 19 of 1975, s. 4 ][Section 8 Subsection (5) amended by No. 15 of 1977, s. 25 and Sched. 1 ][Section 8 Subsection (5) amended by No. 57 of 1996, s. 55 and Sched. 5 ][Section 8 Subsection (6) amended by No. 67 of 1994, s. 3 and Sched. 1 ](1) [Section 8 Subsection (1) amended by No. 23 of 1971, s. 3 ]Notwithstanding any provision in any other Act to the contrary, no person shall, except as otherwise expressly provided in this Act –without the permission, in writing, of the Secretary.(a) erect or use, or cause or permit to be erected or used, any hoarding or similar structure for the exhibition of advertisements; or(b) exhibit, or cause or permit to be exhibited, an advertisement, whether on a hoarding or similar structure or not –(2) [Section 8 Subsection (2) amended by No. 23 of 1971, s. 3 ]A person who wishes to erect or use a hoarding or similar structure or exhibit an advertisement shall apply, in writing, to the Secretary for permission so to do.(3) [Section 8 Subsection (3) amended by No. 23 of 1971, s. 3 ]If the Secretary is satisfied that any hoarding or other structure or any advertisement in respect of which an application is made under this section will not be objectionable or unsightly or constitute an obstruction to persons using a highway, street, or road, or disfigure the landscape, the Secretary may permit the hoarding or other structure to be erected or used, or the advertisement to be exhibited, as the case may be, subject to such conditions (if any) as the Secretary may impose.(4) [Section 8 Subsection (4) amended by No. 23 of 1971, s. 3 ]If the Secretary is satisfied that any hoarding or other structure or any advertisement, whether erected, used, or exhibited before or after the commencement of this section, is objectionable or unsightly, or constitutes an obstruction to persons using a highway, street, or road, or is in a dangerous state of disrepair, or disfigures the landscape, or, in the case of a hoarding or similar structure erected or used for the first time, or an advertisement exhibited for the first time, after the commencement of this section, is erected, used, or exhibited in contravention of this section, the Secretary may, without prejudice to any other penalty that may be imposed on the owner of the hoarding or other structure or advertisement –(a) by notice in writing to the owner of the hoarding or other structure or advertisement order the owner to remove, alter, or repair the hoarding or other structure, or the advertisement, within the time prescribed; or(b) cause the hoarding or other structure to be removed, or the advertisement to be removed or obliterated, within the prescribed time after giving notice, in writing, to the owner thereof.(5) [Section 8 Subsection (5) amended by No. 23 of 1971, s. 3 ]Any removal or obliteration by the Secretary under subsection (4) shall be at the expense of the owner of the hoarding or other structure or of the advertisement.(6) [Section 8 Subsection (6) amended by No. 55 of 1965, s. 5 ]A person who contravenes a provision of this section is liable to a fine not exceeding 0·5 penalty unit.(7) The foregoing provisions of this section do not apply, until the expiration of 3 years after the commencement of this section, to or in relation to a hoarding or similar structure that is erected or used, or an advertisement that is exhibited, under the terms of an agreement entered into before the commencement of this section.(8) In this section –erect includes place and construct;exhibit includes affix, inscribe, print, paint, carve, engrave, and otherwise delineate.
8AA. Appeal against notice of order or intention of Authority
[Section 8AA Inserted by No. 19 of 1975, s. 5 ][Section 8AA Subsection (1) amended by No. 57 of 1996, s. 55 and Sched. 5 ][Section 8AA Subsection (2) amended by No. 57 of 1996, s. 55 and Sched. 5 ][Section 8AA Subsection (3) amended by No. 68 of 1993, s. 5 ](1) [Section 8AA Subsection (1) amended by No. 15 of 1977, s. 15 and Sched. 1 ]Where, on an application being made under section 8 (2) , the Secretary refuses the permission sought or grants the permission sought but attaches conditions as provided by section 8 (3) , the applicant may appeal against the refusal of permission or the attaching of any conditions to a permission so given, as the case may be.(2) [Section 8AA Subsection (2) amended by No. 15 of 1977, s. 15 and Sched. 1 ]Where the Secretary gives notice of an order as provided by section 8 (4) (a) or of his intention as provided by section 8 (4) (b) to the owner of a hoarding or other structure or advertisement on the ground that the Secretary is satisfied that the hoarding or other structure or the advertisement is objectionable or unsightly, or constitutes an obstruction to persons using a highway, street or road, or is in a dangerous state of disrepair, or disfigures the landscape, the owner of the hoarding or the structure or the advertisement receiving the notice may appeal against it.(3) [Section 8AA Subsection (3) amended by No. 46 of 1991, s. 4 and Sched. 2 ]An appeal under this section shall be instituted in the prescribed manner, within the prescribed time, setting out the grounds on which it is brought, and shall be heard and determined by the Resource Management and Planning Appeal Tribunal established under the Resource Management and Planning Appeal Tribunal Act 1993 .(4) At an appeal under this section –(a) the Board may inform itself on the matter in dispute in such manner as it thinks fit; and(b) the procedure shall be as prescribed or, in the absence of regulations for the purpose, as the Board may direct.(5) The decision of the Board on the hearing and determination of an appeal under this section is final.
[Section 8A Inserted by No. 56 of 1957, s. 4 ][Section 8A Amended by No. 86 of 1963, s. 2 ][Section 8A Amended by No. 19 of 1975, s. 6 ][Section 8A Amended by No. 51 of 1985, s. 4 and Sched. 2, Part 1 ][Section 8A Amended by No. 46 of 1991, s. 4 and Sched. 3 ]Nothing in section 8 applies to an advertisement –(a) that conforms to the prescribed requirements;(b) that is in the form of a notice or sign indicating the name of the proprietor of any business, or the nature of the business, conducted on premises on which the notice or sign is exhibited;(c) notifying that the premises on which the advertisement is exhibited are for sale or to let;(d) that relates solely to any meeting or entertainment to be held or carried on on the premises;(e) that is exhibited –(i) within the boundaries of the cities of Hobart, Launceston, Glenorchy, Devonport or Burnie;(ii) within the proclaimed boundaries of any town containing not less than 400 occupied dwellings; or(f) that is of a kind or class of advertisement declared by the regulations to be exempted from the provisions of that section.
[Section 8B Inserted by No. 56 of 1957, s. 4 ][Section 8B Amended by No. 19 of 1975, s. 7 ]The provisions of sections 8 and 8A apply to hoardings and other structures erected or used, and to advertisements exhibited, on land of the Crown to such extent and subject to such modifications and conditions (if any) as may be prescribed.
9. Continuance of offence after warning
[Section 9 Renumbered by 26 Geo. V No. 39, s. 2 ][Section 9 Amended by No. 55 of 1965, s. 5 ][Section 9 Amended by No. 67 of 1994, s. 3 and Sched. 1 ]Any person who shall continue to offend against this Act after he shall have been warned by any bailiff of Crown lands or any constable, may be forthwith apprehended by such bailiff or constable and taken before some justice, and shall be liable to a fine not exceeding 0·4 penalty unit.[Section 10 Repealed by 26 Geo. V No. 39, s. 2 ]