Australian Capital Territory

fire brigade regulations
This consolidation has been prepared by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel’s Office
Updated as at 6 June 1996
TABLE OF PROVISIONS
Regulation
	1.	Citation
	2.	Interpretation
	3.	Minister or authorised person may direct installation of fire appliances
	5.	Attendance of firemen at public meetings etc.
	5A.	Chief Officer to fix fees for approved services rendered by Brigade
	5B.	Chief Officer may give directions in an emergency
	6.	Recovery of fees

Citation
1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Fire Brigade Regulations.1
Interpretation
2.  In these Regulations, unless the contrary intention appears—
“boarding-house” has the same meaning as in the Public Health (Boarding-houses) Regulations;
“commercial building” means a building which is used (or, being unoccupied, is normally used) for trade, business, commercial or industrial purposes, and includes a hospital, a school, a theatre, a 
public hall, a hotel, a hostel, a boarding-house and a residential flat building;
“public entertainment” means an exhibition, lecture, amusement, game or sport admission to which may be procured by payment of money, or by any other means, as the price or condition of admission;
“public hall” means a room or building of a permanent character where public entertainments or public meetings are or may be held, and includes any building or premises used in connexion with any such room or building;
“public meeting” means an assemblage of persons for a public purpose of a political, religious, charitable or intellectual nature, whether or not a charge is made for admission, but does not include an assemblage of persons for religious worship only;
“residential flat building” means a building containing one or more flats, but does not include a row of two or more dwellings attached to each other such as are commonly known as semi-detached or terrace buildings;
“theatre” means a theatre constructed or used for the presentation of any entertainment on the stage or for the showing of cinematograph pictures, and includes any building or premises used in connexion with such a theatre.
Minister or authorised person may direct installation of fire appliances
3.  (1)  The Minister may direct the owner of a commercial building to provide or install in the building such fire appliances as are specified in the direction.
(2)  A person authorized by the Minister to give directions for the provision or installation, in a commercial building included in a class of commercial buildings specified in the authority, of fire appliances of a type specified in the authority may direct the owner of such a commercial building to provide or install in the building such fire appliances of that type as are specified in the direction.
(3)  A direction under this regulation may be given by notice in writing served on the owner, or on his agent in connexion with the building, personally or by post, and, if served by post, may be addressed to the owner or agent at his last-known place of abode or business.
(4)  The Chief Officer of a person authorized in writing by the Chief Officer to make inspections under this regulation may enter a building for the purpose of ascertaining whether a direction under this regulation has been complied with or of inspecting fire appliances provided or installed in the building in pursuance of a direction under this regulation.
(5)  A person shall not hinder a person in the exercise of his powers under the last preceding subregulation.
Penalty:
	(a)	if the offender is a natural person—10 penalty units;
	(b)	if the offender is a body corporate—50 penalty units.
Attendance of firemen at public meetings etc.
5.  (1)  Where—
	(a)	scenery is used in a stage presentation at a public entertainment or public meeting; or
	(b)	the nature of, or the decorations, appliances or lighting used at, a public entertainment or public meeting are or is such as, in the opinion of the Chief Officer, to require the attendance at the entertainment or meeting, as the case may be, of members of the Brigade,
one or more members of the Brigade, as directed by the Chief Officer, shall be in attendance during the whole of the entertainment or meeting, as the case may be.
(2)  A fee at the rate of $4 per hour shall be charged for the attendance of each member.
(3)  A fee charged under the last preceding subregulation is payable—
	(a)	where the public entertainment is given, or the public meeting is held, in a theatre or public hall—by the owner of the theatre or public hall, as the case may be; or
	(b)	in any other case—by the organizer of the entertainment or meeting, as the case may be.
Chief Officer to fix fees for approved services rendered by Brigade
5A.  (1)  The members of the Brigade may, at the request of a person, render such services as the Chief Officer approves.
(2)  The Chief Officer may permit the use, in the rendering of a service referred to in the last preceding subregulation, of the equipment of the Brigade.
(3)  The Chief Officer shall not approve of the rendering of services or permit the use of equipment under this regulation unless the person who requests the provision of the services agrees to such terms and conditions (including the payment of fees) as the Chief Officer determines to be the terms and conditions upon which the services shall be provided and the use of the equipment shall be permitted.
Chief Officer may give directions in an emergency
5B.  Notwithstanding the provisions of subregulation 5A (3), the Chief Officer may, in order to carry out rescue operations or in an emergency, give directions to the members of the Brigade to do such things as are necessary to carry out the rescue operation or deal with the emergency.
Recovery of fees
6.  Fees payable under these Regulations are a debt due to the Territory and may be sued for and recovered in a court of competent jurisdiction.

NOTE
1.	The Fire Brigade Regulations (in force under the Fire Brigade Act 1957) as shown in this reprint comprise Regulations 1958 No. 1 amended as indicated in the Tables below.
	The Fire Brigade Regulations were amended by the Self-Government (Consequential Amendments) Ordinance 1989.  The amendment is incorporated in this reprint.
	Citation of Laws—The Self-Government (Citation of Laws) Act 1989  (No. 21, 1989) altered the citation of most Ordinances so that after Self-Government day they are to be cited as Acts.  That Act also affects references in ACT laws to Commonwealth Acts.
Table of Subordinate Laws
Regulation
No.	Date of making	Date of 
notification 
in Gazette	Date of 
commencement	Application, saving or transitional provisions	

1958 No. 1	2 Jan 1958	2 Jan 1958	2 Jan 1958		
1960 No. 5	29 July 1960	11 Aug 1960	11 Aug 1960	—	
1969 No. 2	6 June 1969	19 June 1969	19 June 1969	—	
1974 No. 31	14 Nov 1974	25 Nov 1974	25 Nov 1974	—	
1979 No. 26	26 Nov 1979	29 Nov 1979	29 Nov 1979	—	
No. 8, 1996	27 May 1996	6 June 1996	6 June 1996
	—	

Table of Amendments
ad. = added or inserted      am. = amended     rep. = repealed      rs. = repealed and substituted

Provision	How affected

Rr. 1, 2	am. 1974 No. 31
R. 3	am. 1969 No. 2; 1974 No. 31; 1979 No. 26;  No. 8, 1996 
R. 4	rep. 1960 No. 5
R. 5	am. 1969 No. 2; 1974 No. 31

R. 5A	ad. 1960 No. 5
	am. 1974 No. 31
R. 5B	ad. 1974 No. 31
R. 6	am. Ordinance No. 38, 1989