ABORIGINAL CULTURAL HERITAGE BILL 2021 — REGULATORY
IMPACT ASSESSMENT
1116. Hon NEIL THOMSON to the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs:
(1) Did the state
undertake a regulatory impact assessment on the impact of the Aboriginal
Cultural Heritage Bill 2021; and, if not, why not; and, if yes, is the
regulatory impact statement available to the public?
(2) Regardless of
the answers to (1), how did the state consider the economic impact on the
following sectors: farming; earthmoving;
small contractors, including plumbers and electricians; house construction;
orchardists; semirural landowners; owners of industrial land; and
government agencies, such as Main Roads?
(3) Has the minister consulted on
the 2021 bill with representatives from the categories listed in (2)?
Hon
STEPHEN DAWSON replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
(1) Yes. The
Department of Treasury's Better Regulation Unit advised that the
consultation papers published and the consultation process implemented met the
requirements of the regulatory impact assessment program. The consultation
process and papers published are available on the www.wa.gov.au website.
(2)–(3) Representatives
from the listed sectors were consulted during the development of the Aboriginal
Cultural Heritage Bill 2021. The bill
replaces the current one-size-fits-all section 18 process under the 1972 act
with a tiered land use approval system that is sensitive to the nature of the
proposed land use and the level of ground disturbance. Over 380 submissions
were received from a wide range of stakeholders with an interest in the future
management and protection of Aboriginal cultural heritage in Western Australia,
including representatives from the
sectors listed. In total, over 1 500 people have participated in around 175
workshops, stakeholder
meetings or public information sessions held across the state. A consultation
draft was made public in 2020 and details about the content of the final bill
have been public since August 2021.