Regulation & Legislation
There are a huge number of planning and building laws that HIA members need to keep up to date with. Federal, State and local council rules can all impact on your work. The information sheets in this section aim to provide short explanations of changes that may affect you and your business.
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Current at: 18 December 2008
NSW Housing Code Factsheet (NSW/Hunter/Sthn NSW)
The NSW Government has released a new State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP) which will allow single and two storey houses, alterations and additions and a range of other building work to be approved as complying development. New rules have also been included for minor building work to be exempt development.
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Current at: 10 November 2008
Next stage of planning law changes start November 2008 (NSW)
The third set of changes to the Environmental Planning & Assessment (EP&A) Act and Regulation and the Building Professionals (BP) Act and Regulation commenced on 3 November 2008. This information sheet provides a brief summary of the changes.
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Current at: 11 September 2008
Planning and building approval process (NSW/Hunter/Sthn NSW)
In NSW, the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act (EP&A Act) is the principal law overseeing the assessment and determination of development proposals. There are three main types of development in NSW for residential buildings.
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Current at: 04 August 2008
Changes to NSW planning & building laws start 1 August 2008 (NSW/Hunter/Sthn NSW)
The Environmental Planning and Assessment (EP&A) Amendment Act 2008 and the Building Professionals (BP) Amendment Act 2008 passed through Parliament on 25 June 2008. Changes to the two principal Acts will commence in stages over the next 12 months with a number commencing on 1 August 2008.
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Current at: 29 July 2008
Asbestos Removal Regulations (NSW)
Under NSW legislation, material that contains asbestos is referred to as either friable or bonded and there are specific rules for working with and removing asbestos from building sites.
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Current at: 22 July 2008
Electrical safety on residential construction sites (NSW/Hunter/Sthn NSW)
In New South Wales, there are specific requirements for the management of electrical risks. This information sheet gives you an overview of the requirements for electrical safety on residential construction sites.
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Current at: 07 July 2008
Summary of important changes to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act and Regulation
The NSW Government’s planning reforms were passed by Parliament on 18th June.
A subset of the planning reform package is the NSW Housing Code, scheduled to be introduced later this year. The Code is part of a State Environmental Planning Policy which will override local council policies in relation to exempt and complying development.
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Current at: 11 June 2008
BASIX for alterations and additions (NSW/Hunter/Sthn NSW)
A BASIX certificate is required for all alterations and additions to existing houses, valued at $50,000 or more requiring council approval. Each design will need unique options based on the type of renovation or alterations.
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Current at: 13 May 2008
National Water Efficiency Regulations (Nat)
This information sheet provides a simple summary of current state water efficiency regulations in place across Australia for new homes and renovations.
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Current at: 12 December 2007
Electrical Equipment Testing and Tagging (NSW/Hunter/Sthn NSW)
There are laws in NSW that cover the testing and tagging of electrical equipment used on construction sites. This information sheet provides a summary of these requirements which are generally contained in the Code of Practice for Electrical Practices for Construction Work.
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Current at: 17 September 2007
Wire Balustrades Requirements BCA 2007 (Nat)
This information sheet has been prepared specifically to provide details on wire balustrades. More information on general requirements for balustrades is available in the information sheet titled “Balustrade Construction for Class 1 buildings”.
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Current at: 04 July 2007
Asbestos Identification (Nat)
There are several different types of asbestos products which may still be found in existing homes across Australia. This information sheet provides helpful information on the names of some of the products, how to identify and deal with asbestos.
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Current at: 18 May 2007
Safety Precautions when Working with Asbestos (Nat)
There are precautions you can take when removing, repairing or otherwise handling asbestos cement sheet products. This information sheet provides guidance to help you ensure you work safely with asbestos.
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Current at: 16 May 2007
Machine Grade Pine - MGP (Nat)
Machine Graded Pine (MGP) is a product which is the result of a research and development program undertaken by Pine Australia on behalf of its producer members. MGP grades have been introduced as an effective way to use the new design properties.
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Current at: 05 March 2007
Public Access to Council Documents (NSW/Hunter/Sthn NSW)
Are you aware that local councils in NSW do not have permission to refuse any member of the public access to certain council documents on the grounds of ‘privacy’ or for other reasons. To find out what council documents you are allowed to access, this information sheet provides more details.
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