Water Act 2000

In this section—officer, of a water authority, includes—

an employee of the water authority; and

an employee of a government entity who performs work for the water authority under a work performance arrangement between the water authority and the government entity.

An officer of a water authority must not—

make a statement concerning the affairs of the authority to another officer or the Minister that the first officer knows is false or misleading in a material particular; or

omit from a statement concerning the authority’s affairs made to another officer or the Minister anything without which the statement is, to the first officer’s knowledge, misleading in a material particular.

It is enough for a complaint for an offence against subsection (2)(a) or (b) to state the statement made was ‘false or misleading’ to the person’s knowledge, without specifying which.

An officer of a water authority must not give to another officer or the Minister a document containing information that the first officer knows is false, misleading or incomplete in a material particular without—

indicating to the recipient that the document is false, misleading or incomplete and the respect in which the document is false, misleading or incomplete; and

giving the correct information to the recipient if the first officer has, or can reasonably obtain, the correct information.

if the contravention is committed with intent to deceive or defraud the water authority, its creditors or creditors of another person or for another fraudulent purpose—500 penalty units or imprisonment for 5 years; or

otherwise—100 penalty units.