Australian Capital Territory

Energy Efficiency Ratings (Sale of Premises) Act 1997     No 121
Republication No 1A
As in force on 31 August 1999
Includes all amendments up to Act 1999 No 13

Prepared by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel’s Office
This republication is not an authorised republication for the Legislation (Republication) Act 1996.
As in force on
31 August 1999

Australian Capital Territory

Energy Efficiency Ratings (Sale of Premises) Act 1997
CONTENTS
	Page 
	1	Short title	1
	2	Commencement	1
	3	Interpretation	1
	4	Industry and environment impact statement	3
	5	Not applicable to certain premises	3
	6	Energy efficiency rating—advertising	4
	7	Energy efficiency rating statement	4
	A	Offences in the preparation of energy efficiency rating statements	5
	8	Regulations	6
ENDNOTES
	1	About this republication	7
	2	Abbreviation key	7
	3	Table of legislation	7
	4	Table of amendments	8
	5	Table of earlier republications	8

As in force on
31 August 1999

Australian Capital Territory

Energy Efficiency (Sale of Premises) Act 1997
An Act to facilitate the disclosure of energy efficiency ratings in relation to premises for sale
1 	Short title
	This Act may be cited as the Energy Efficiency Ratings (Sale of Premises) Act 1997.
2 	Commencement
(1)		Section 1 and this section commence on the day on which this Act is notified in the Gazette.
(2)		The remaining provisions commence on 31 March 1999.
3 	Interpretation
	In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears—
energy efficiency rating means the energy efficiency rating contained in an energy efficiency rating statement.
energy efficiency rating statement means—
	(a)	a statement prepared in accordance with the Energy Ratings System for Residential Buildings prescribed by the Australian Capital Territory Planning Authority for the purposes of the Territory Plan as in effect from time to time under the Land (Planning and Environment) Act 1991; or

	(b)	if the regulations make provision for energy efficiency rating statements—a statement prepared in accordance with the regulations.
premises means premises that may lawfully be used for residential purposes.
publish means communicate or disseminate information in such a way or to such an extent that it is available to, or likely to come to the notice of, the public or a section of the public.
4 	Industry and environment impact statement
(1)		When a regulation made for the purposes of the definition of energy efficiency rating statement in section 3 is laid before the Legislative Assembly pursuant to paragraph 6 (1) (c) of the Subordinate Laws Act 1989, the Minister shall cause to be laid before the Legislative Assembly an industry and environment impact statement.
(2)		For the purposes of subsection (1), an industry and environment impact statement is a statement prepared by the Minister describing the likely costs and benefits of the energy efficiency rating statement to the real estate and housing industries and consumers generally.
5 	Not applicable to certain premises
(1)		This Act does not apply to—
	(a)	a caravan or mobile home; or
	(b)	a hotel or motel; or
	(c)	premises used for the purposes of a club; or
	(d)	premises situated on the campus of an educational institution; or
	(e)	a retirement village; or
	(f)	a nursing home or hostel for aged or disabled persons conducted by an eligible organisation within the meaning of the Aged or Disabled Persons Care Act 1954 of the Commonwealth or an approved provider within the meaning of the Aged Care Act 1997 of the Commonwealth; or
	(fa)	premises in respect of which there has been given an approval within the meaning of Part 6 of the Land (Planning and Environment) Act 1991 for a development that involves the demoliton of the premises; or
	(fb)	premises in respect of which a notice directing that they be demolished has been served under section 46 of the Building Act 1972; or
	(g)	premises prescribed by the regulations.
(2)		In subsection (1)—
mobile home means a dwelling (whether on wheels or not) capable of being transferred from place to place and re-erected.
retirement village means a complex of residential premises (whether including hostel units or not) established primarily for occupation by persons who are at least 55 years of age under a scheme in which a person makes a payment (including a gift) to the authority administering the scheme in consideration for being admitted as a resident of the complex.
6 	Energy efficiency rating—advertising
(1)		A person shall not, without reasonable excuse, publish an advertisement for the sale of premises unless the advertisement contains a statement of the energy efficiency rating of the habitable part of the premises.
Penalty:
	(a)	if the offender is a natural person—5 penalty units;
	(b)	if the offender is a body corporate—25 penalty units.
(2)		A person shall not, without reasonable excuse, publish an advertisement for the sale of premises that includes a statement of the energy efficiency rating of the habitable part of the premises that is false or misleading in a material particular.
Penalty:
	(a)	if the offender is a natural person—5 penalty units;
	(b)	if the offender is a body corporate—25 penalty units.
7 	Energy efficiency rating statement
(1)		Before entering into a contract for the sale of premises, the vendor shall give a prospective purchaser—
	(a)	a copy of an energy efficiency rating statement in relation to the habitable part of the premises; or
	(b)	where—
	(i)	building work within the meaning of the Building Act 1972 has been carried out on the premises that affects the energy efficiency rating of the habitable part of the premises; and
	(ii)	before that building work was carried out, an energy efficiency rating statement had been prepared in relation to the habitable part of the premises;
a copy of a fresh energy efficiency rating statement in relation to the habitable part of the premises.
(2)		On receipt of an energy efficiency rating statement under paragraph (1) (a) or (b), a prospective purchaser shall certify in writing that he or she has received a copy of the statement.
(3)		If the vendor fails to comply with subsection (1), the vendor is liable to pay to the purchaser an amount equal to 0.5% of the purchase price of the premises.
(4)		The vendor shall be taken to have complied with subsection (1) if an energy efficiency rating statement under paragraph (1) (a) or (b) and the certificate under subsection (2) form part of the contract for sale.
(5)		In this section—
energy efficiency rating statement means an energy efficiency rating statement that is not false or misleading in a material particular.
7A 	Offences in the preparation of energy efficiency rating statements
(1)		A person shall not, knowingly or recklessly, prepare an energy efficiency  rating statement that—
	(a)	is false or misleading in a material particular; or
	(b)	omits anything without which the statement is misleading in a material  particular.
Penalty:
	(a)	if the offender is a natural person—5 penalty units;
	(b)	if the offender is a body corporate—25 penalty units.
(2)		A person shall not knowingly or recklessly give to another person, for the purpose of the preparation of an energy efficiency statement, information or a document that—
	(a)	 is false or misleading in a material particular; or
	(b)	omits anything without which the information or document is misleading in a material  particular.
Penalty:
	(a)	if the offender is a natural person—5 penalty units;
	(b)	if the offender is a body corporate—25 penalty units.
8 	Regulations
	The Executive may make regulations for the purposes of this Act.

ENDNOTES
1	About this republication
This is a republication of the Energy Efficiency Ratings (Sale of Premises) Act 1997 as in force on 31 August 1999.  It includes all amendments made to the Act up to Act 1999 
No 13.
Amending laws are annotated in the table of legislation and table of amendments.
The Parliamentary Counsel’s Office currently prepares 2 kinds of republications of ACT laws:  authorised printed republications to which the Legislation (Republication) Act 1996 applies and unauthorised electronic republications.  The status of this republication appears on the cover.
Section 13 of the Legislation (Republication) Act 1996 authorises the Parliamentary Counsel, in preparing a law for republication, to make textual amendments of a formal nature which the Parliamentary Counsel considers desirable in accordance with current legislative drafting practice.  The amendments do not effect a substantive change in the law.
In preparing this republication, amendments have not been made under section 13.
Not all amendments made under section 13 are annotated in the table of amendments.  Full details of any amendments can be obtained from the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office.
2	Abbreviation key
Key to abbreviations in tables

am = amended
amdt = amendment
ch = chapter
cl = clause
def = definition
div = division
exp = expires/expired
Gaz = Gazette
hdg = heading
ins = inserted/added
LR = Legislation (Republication) Act 1996
mod = modified
No = number
notfd = notified
o = order
om = omitted/repealed
orig = original
p = page
par = paragraph
pres = present
prev = previous
(prev...) = previously
prov = provision
pt = part
r = rule/subrule
reg = regulation/subregulation
renum = renumbered
reloc = relocated
R[X] = Republication No
s = section/subsection
sch = schedule
sdiv = subdivision
sub = substituted
SL  = Subordinate Law
sp = spent
*  = SL unless otherwise stated
† = Act or Ordinance unless otherwise stated

3	Table of legislation
Act†	Year and number†	Gazette
notification	Commencement	Transitional provisions	

Energy Efficiency Ratings (Sale of Premises) Act 1997	1997 No 121	24 Dec 1997	ss 1 and 2:  24 Dec 1997
remainder:  31 Mar 1999		
Energy Efficiency Ratings (Sale of Premises) (Amendment) Act 1998	1998 No 73	23 Dec 1998	23 Dec 1998	—	
Energy Efficiency Ratings (Sale of Premises) Act 1999
	1999 No 13	31 Mar 1999	31 Mar 1999	—	
4	Table of amendments

Provision	How affected†

s 2	am 1998 No 73
s 3	am 1999 No 13 s 4
s 5	am 1999 No 13 s 5
s 7	am 1999 No 13 s 6
s 7A	ins 1999 No 13 s 7

5	Table of earlier republications
Republication No	Amendments to	Republication date	
1	Act 1999 No 13	31 August 1999	

©  Australian Capital Territory 1999

The Copyright Act 1968 of the Commonwealth permits certain reproduction and publication of this legislation.  For reproduction or publication beyond that permitted by the Act, written permission must be sought from the Government Printer, c/o Information Management and Libraries, Department of Urban Services, ACT Government, GPO Box 158, Canberra City ACT 2601.