Land Acquisition Act 1993

Land Acquisition Act 1993

This Act may be cited as the Land Acquisition Act 1993.

This Act commences on a day to be proclaimed.

In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears – acquire means purchase or take; acquiring authority or authority means the Crown, a public authority, a local authority or a promoter; arbitrator means a Special Arbitrator or an arbitral tribunal under the Commercial Arbitration Act 2011, as the case requires; authorized purpose, in relation to the acquisition of land, means a purpose for which the land may be acquired by an acquiring authority; authorized securities means securities in which trustees are authorized to invest trust funds by section 5 of the Trustee Act 1898; claimant means a person who claims an entitlement to compensation under this Act; clerk, in relation to an acquiring authority, means – a general manager within the meaning of the Local Government Act 1993; the secretary or similar officer of a public authority; or a promoter; or the secretary or similar officer of a promoter;Commission has the same meaning as in the Tasmanian Planning Commission Act 1997; convey includes surrender, release, transfer, assign and otherwise assure;Court means the Supreme Court of Tasmania; the Crown includes the Governor and a Minister of the Crown when they are authorized as provided in section 4; encumbrance means a charge or encumbrance on land, other than a mortgage; estate, in relation to land, includes any estate, interest, easement, right, title, claim, demand, charge, lien or encumbrance in, over, to or in respect of that land; former owner, in relation to land that has been acquired, means a person who – was an owner of that land when the first notice to treat was served; or became an owner of that land subsequent to that service but before the notice of acquisition in respect of that land was gazetted;Government Department means a Government department established under the State Service Act 2000 or by any other enactment as a Government department within the meaning of that Act; judge means a judge of the Supreme Court; land includes messuages, tenements, hereditaments, buildings attached to the land and any estate in the land; lease includes an agreement for a lease; legal practitioner means an Australian legal practitioner; local authority means the council exercising jurisdiction in the locality to which the context relates; major infrastructure project has the same meaning as in the Major Infrastructure Development Approvals Act 1999; notice of acquisition means a notice of acquisition gazetted under section 18 or 70; notice of withdrawal means a notice of withdrawal under section 12; notice to treat means a notice to treat under section 11; owner, in relation to land, means a person who, whether jointly or severally, is seised or possessed of, or entitled to, an estate in the land at any time on and from the day on which a notice to treat in respect of the land is first served on a person until (but not including) the day on which a notice of acquisition in respect of the land is gazetted, and includes a person who is enabled under this Act, any other Act or any instrument to sell or convey the land to an acquiring authority; prescribed rate, in relation to interest on compensation payable by an acquiring authority, means the rate that, on any day, is advised by the Commonwealth as being the weighted average issue yield for the longest term stock in the most recent Treasury bond tender; proclaimed day means the day fixed by proclamation under section 2; promoter means a person, other than a public or local authority, empowered by a special Act to execute the works or undertaking authorized by that Act; public authority means a body or authority, whether incorporated or not, established or constituted by or under an Act or under the Royal Prerogative, being a body or authority which, or of which the governing authority, wholly or partly comprises persons appointed by the Governor, a Minister of the Crown or another public authority, but does not include a Government Department or a local authority; public purpose means a purpose related to the administration of the Government of this State; purchase means purchase by agreement under this Act; reconvey means convey land taken to its former owner under section 23(1); regulations means regulations made and in force under this Act;Rules of Court means the Rules of Court made under the Supreme Court Civil Procedure Act 1932 and the Civil Process Act 1985;Secretary means the Secretary of the Department; special Act means an Act authorizing the acquisition of land for the purpose of an acquiring authority other than the Crown;Special Arbitrator means a Special Arbitrator appointed under section 6; subject land means land acquired or being acquired under this Act; take, in relation to land, means take by compulsory process under this Act.

In this Act, a reference to the "acquiring authority" or "authority" is a reference to the acquiring authority concerned with or affected by the matter to which the context relates.

In this Act, a reference to the relevant Supreme Court Rules is a reference to the Supreme Court Rules 2000 made under the Supreme Court Civil Procedure Act 1932, as those rules are amended from time to time, and to any rules made in substitution for those rules.

Land is to be acquired as provided by this Act where the Crown, the Governor or a Minister of the Crown is authorized – by an Act to undertake, construct or provide a public work for which the land is required; or by this Act or any other Act to purchase, acquire or take the land for any purpose.

Except to the extent that the provisions of this Act are expressly varied or made inapplicable by an Act referred to in subsection (1), other than this Act, those provisions – apply to the work or purpose authorized by that Act as far as they are applicable to that work or purpose; and form part of that Act, together with any other Act that is to be incorporated with that Act; and are to be read as one Act with that Act and any other Act so incorporated.

The Governor may, by order, authorize a Minister of the Crown to acquire land for a public purpose or public work if there is no statutory authorization to acquire the land as mentioned in subsection (1).

An authorization under subsection (3) is an authorization to the Minister under this Act for the purposes of subsection (1).

An order made under subsection (3) is not a statutory rule within the meaning of the Rules Publication Act 1953 and section 38A (2) (a) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1931 does not apply in relation to it.

Except as provided in section 74, this Act does not affect the right of the Crown to resume land by virtue of a right reserved in the grant of the land, but land that may be so resumed may be acquired under this Act.

Where an acquiring authority (other than the Crown) is authorized by a special Act to acquire any land required for the purposes of the authority, that land – if it is Crown land, is to be purchased as provided by the Crown Lands Act 1976; or if it is not Crown land, is to be acquired as provided by this Act.

Except to the extent that the provisions of this Act are expressly varied or made inapplicable by a special Act, those provisions – apply to the purpose authorized by that special Act as far as they are applicable to that purpose; and form part of the special Act, together with any other Act that is to be incorporated with that special Act; and are to be read as one Act with the special Act and any other Act so incorporated.

Aboriginal land, within the meaning of the Aboriginal Lands Act 1995, may not be acquired under this Act.

The Governor may appoint a person as a Special Arbitrator to act as an arbitrator under this Act.

A person appointed under subsection (1) is to be a person who, in the opinion of the Governor, has sufficient experience in the assessment of compensation in relation to the acquisition of land to act as an arbitrator.

Subject to this section, a Special Arbitrator holds and vacates office subject to such terms and conditions as are specified in the instrument of appointment.

A Special Arbitrator may resign office by notice in writing addressed to the Minister.

A Special Arbitrator holds office for such term, not exceeding 4 years, as may be specified in the instrument of appointment.

A Special Arbitrator is to be paid such remuneration and allowances as the Governor determines.

Where this Act authorizes or requires –

an agreement to be entered into; or a notice or other document to be served or given; or any other act or thing to be done, including the exercise of a discretion –

for the purposes of, or arising out of, the acquisition of land by the Crown, the Minister is, except as otherwise provided by this Act, to enter into the agreement, serve or give the notice or other document, or do that other act or thing on behalf of the Crown.

For the purposes of this Part –

development has the same meaning as in the Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993;

infrastructure means any structure, facility or work arising in connection with the provision to the public or a section of the public of services relating to – water; energy; communications; transport; education; health; emergency response; sewerage; any other service which may be prescribed;

permit has the same meaning as in the Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993;

planning authority has the same meaning as in the Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993;

proponent means the person who proposes to construct or operate infrastructure on land acquired pursuant to an order made under this Part, and does not include the Crown;

proposed infrastructure, in relation to an order made under section 7B(2), means the infrastructure which it is proposed to develop on land to which the order relates;

Register has the same meaning as in the Land Titles Act 1980;

Registry of Deeds has the same meaning as in the Registration of Deeds Act 1935;

sale, in relation to land, means the disposal of land by sale, lease, exchange for proper consideration or any other means;

special planning order has the same meaning as in the Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993;

use has the same meaning as in the Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993.

This Part does not apply to the acquisition of land for a major infrastructure project.

The Minister may recommend to the Governor the making of an order authorising the Minister to acquire land for the purposes of infrastructure to be constructed or operated by a person other than the Crown.

The Governor may make an order in accordance with a recommendation made under subsection (1).

An order under subsection (2) is to be published in the Gazette.

The Minister must cause an order under subsection (2) to be laid before each House of Parliament within the first 10 sitting days of the House after it is so published.

An order under subsection (2) is of no effect until it has been approved by both Houses of Parliament.

For the purposes of subsection (5), a House of Parliament is taken to have approved an order under subsection (2) if a copy of it has been laid on the table of that House and – it is approved by that House; or at the expiration of 15 sitting days after it was laid on the table of that House, no notice has been given of a motion to disallow it or, if such notice has been given, the notice has been withdrawn or negatived; or if any notice of a motion to disallow it is given during that period of 15 sitting days, the notice is, after the expiration of that period, withdrawn or negatived.

As soon as practicable after an order under subsection (2) has taken effect, the Minister must give written notice of the taking effect of the order to – each planning authority with jurisdiction over the land to which the order relates; and each planning authority on which obligations are imposed by the order; and each instrumentality or agency of the Crown on which obligations are imposed by the order; and each owner of land which it is proposed to acquire pursuant to the order.