Rosetta Landslip Act 1992

Rosetta Landslip Act 1992

This Act may be cited as the Rosetta Landslip Act 1992.

This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires –

advisory committee means the committee established under section 5;

affected area means the area near the junctions of Officer Street, Hone Road and Crosby Road in Rosetta in the City of Glenorchy;

affected property means a property in the affected area that is within an area declared to be an A landslip area by an order made under Division 6 of Part 2 of the Local Government (Building and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1993, and includes any improvements to any such property;

application means an application made to the Minister by an eligible owner for the Crown to purchase an affected property owned by that person;

the Bank means the bank registered under the Trustee Banks Act 1985 and trading as the Trust Bank and previously trading as, variously, the Hobart Savings Bank, the Savings Bank of Tasmania and the SBT Bank;

Council means the Glenorchy City Council;

eligible owner means a person who is the owner of the fee simple of an affected property but does not include – the Crown, the Bank or the Council; or a person who has instituted proceedings against the Crown, the Council or the Bank or a person acting on behalf of the Crown, the Council or the Bank in respect of any damage suffered or alleged to have been suffered as a result of any actual or potential earth movement in the affected area; or a person, one of whose predecessors in title was a person referred to in paragraph (b);

the Fund means the Rosetta Landslip Trust Fund established under section 12;

requisition means a notice requesting an eligible owner to provide the advisory committee with information in relation to an application made by that eligible owner;

send means send by post.

This Act binds the Crown in right of Tasmania and, so far as the legislative power of Parliament permits, in all its other capacities.

There is established an advisory committee consisting of – a presiding member, being a person nominated by Tasmania Development and Resources; and the following members:the Valuer-General or a person nominated by the Valuer-General; the Secretary of the responsible Department in relation to the Financial Management Act 2016 or a person nominated by that Secretary; a person appointed by the Council; a person appointed by the Bank; a person appointed by the eligible owners.

An eligible owner is not eligible to be a member of the advisory committee.

Tasmania Development and Resources is to make a person available to the advisory committee to carry out the duties of secretary to the committee.

The committee is to regulate its proceedings in such manner as it considers will best achieve the purposes of this Act.

It is the duty of the advisory committee to advise the Minister on whether, in its opinion – a dwelling on an affected property has become uninhabitable by virtue of earth movements; or an eligible owner who owned his or her affected property at the time it became an affected property is suffering or is likely to suffer special financial hardship by virtue of actual or potential earth movements.

The advisory committee must – in making an assessment for the purposes of subsection (1)(a) – have regard to the criteria set out in Part 2 of Schedule 1; and in making an assessment for the purposes of subsection (1)(b) – have regard to the criteria set out in Part 3 of Schedule 1.

For the purposes of subsection (2), the advisory committee is not to regard any single criterion as being necessarily decisive.

The advisory committee may at any time advise the Minister in respect of any matter arising under this Act and must do so if so requested by the Minister.

For the purposes of carrying out its duty, the advisory committee may send requisitions to any eligible owner who makes an application.

In this section prescribed period, in relation to an application, means the period commencing on the day on which a requisition is posted to the eligible owner who made the application and ending on the day on which the information sought by the requisition is received by the advisory committee.

Subject to subsection (3), if the advisory committee is required to carry out its duty under section 6(1) in relation to an application, the committee must advise the Minister on the application within the period of 30 days immediately after the day on which it is received by the committee.

The 30 day period referred to in subsection (2) is exclusive of any prescribed period.

The Minister may make offers to purchase affected properties in accordance with this section.

The Minister – must, within the period of 30 days immediately after receiving the advice of the advisory committee given in accordance with section 6(1) in respect of an application; and may, at any time after receiving the advice of the advisory committee given in accordance with that section in any other case – determine whether or not to make the relevant eligible owner an offer to purchase the affected property owned by that person.

If the Minister determines to make an eligible owner an offer to purchase an affected property the Minister must – make that offer in writing; and send it to that person within the period of 14 days immediately after the day on which the Minister makes that determination.

If the Minister determines not to make an offer to purchase an affected property that is the subject of an application, the Minister must send notice of the determination to the eligible owner who made the application within the period of 14 days immediately after the day on which the Minister makes that determination.

In this section assessed value, in relation to an affected property, means the value that the property (exclusive of any chattels) would have had if – any dwelling or other structure on the property were undamaged by earth movements; and the value of the property and other properties in the area were not affected by actual or potential earth movements – as assessed by the Valuer-General.

An offer to purchase property in accordance with section 8 is to provide – that the purchase price is to be 75% of the assessed value of the property at the date of the offer; and that the property is to be transferred by the owner free of any mortgage or other charge and free of any lease or licence giving any person the right to occupy the whole or any part of the property (other than necessary easements for services to other properties) – and may be made subject to such other terms and conditions, including conditions providing for the salvaging of materials, fixtures and fittings from the property, as the Minister considers appropriate.

If an offer to purchase an affected property made under section 8 is accepted, the Crown must purchase the property in accordance with the offer.

Notwithstanding the Crown Lands Act 1976, if, as a result of an offer made and accepted in accordance with this Act, an affected property is purchased by the Crown, the Crown may sell or otherwise transfer that property to the Council on such terms and conditions as agreed between the Crown and the Council.

A covenant – restricting the use of an affected property; or requiring the owner of an affected property to undertake any work or other obligation – ceases to have effect immediately before any purchase of the property by the Crown under section 10(1).

Subsection (1) does not apply in respect of a covenant relating to the provision of necessary services to other properties.