This proposed guideline aims to assist water businesses in meeting their obligation to report non-compliance with our Water Industry Standards.
Proposed guideline on self-reporting non-compliance with the Water Industry Standards
- Draft decision13 August 2024
- Submissions close10 September 2024
- Final decisionOctober 2024
Overview
Proposed guideline on self-reporting non-compliance with the Water Industry Standards
On 1 April 2024, the Water Industry Standards introduced new obligations on water businesses relating to self-reporting of non-compliance with the Water Industry Standards. Under the self-reporting obligation a water business must report to the commission potential or actual non-compliances that may have a material adverse impact.
To assist water businesses in meeting their reporting obligation, we have released a draft guideline, published under section 13 of the Essential Services Commission Act 2001. The guideline provides context and includes detail and examples of key terms from the reporting obligation in the Water Industry Standards. The key terms addressed in the guideline are:
- potential and actual non-compliance
- material adverse impact
- timeliness (of reporting)
- the requirement for reports to be in writing
This guideline does not create any additional obligations on water businesses or legally alter the obligations in the Water Industry Standards.
Along with the draft guideline, we have also released a draft reporting template. The template is designed to provide practical assistance to a water business for meeting its self-reporting obligation and to identify relevant information relating to the potential or actual non-compliance and the remediation it is undertaking.
Next Steps
Stakeholders are invited to provide feedback on specific elements of the draft guideline and draft reporting template by mail or phone.
- Email: water.compliance@esc.vic.gov.au
- Mail: Essential Services Commission, Level 8, 570 Burke Street, Melbourne Victoria 3000
- Phone: +61 3 9032 1300
Our consultation process closes at 5pm on Tuesday 10 September 2024.
In early September 2024, we will hold a workshop with stakeholders from the water sector to further engage on the draft guideline and draft reporting template. If you are interested in attending you can notify us of your interest at water@esc.vic.gov.au