TRADE MEASUREMENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE TRADE MEASUREMENT REVIEW OF THE UNIFORM TRADE MEASUREMENT LEGISLATION PROPOSAL FOR AMENDMENT AND REQUEST FOR COMMENTS AMENDMENT OF THE TRADE MEASUREMENT (WEIGHBRIDGES) REGULATION 1991 October 2000

TRADE MEASUREMENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE

REVIEW OF THE UNIFORM TRADE MEASUREMENT LEGISLATION

PROPOSAL FOR AMENDMENT AND REQUEST FOR COMMENTS

AMENDMENT OF THE

TRADE MEASUREMENT (WEIGHBRIDGES) REGULATION 1991

Introduction

Under a formal agreement signed in 1990 between the Commonwealth, the States and the Territories (except Western Australia), all jurisdictions, with the exception of Western Australia, enacted model uniform trade measurement legislation.

In 1995 a Trade Measurement Advisory Committee ("TMAC") was formed by the Ministerial Council on Consumer Affairs ("MCCA") and one of its functions was the ongoing review of trade measurement legislation nationally.

TMAC has recommended that the trade measurement legislation be amended to improve trade measurement administration and MCCA has requested that Queensland proceed with drafting the recommended amendments to the Queensland Trade Measurement Act 1990 ("the Act"). In the interests of uniformity these amendments will be used as a model by the other participating States and Territories to amend their own legislation.

Note: The numbering of the Act and Regulations in this document refers to the Queensland legislation. It may differ from that of other States and Territories.

This paper addresses one of the proposed amendments and is forwarded to your organisation for comment because of your involvement in the relevant industry. Only those amendments that relate to the operation of your organisation have been forwarded to you for comment.

This paper addresses the proposal to amend the Trade Measurement (Weighbridges) Regulation 1991:

"The Trade Measurement Act and the Trade Measurement (Weighbridges) Regulation 1991 should be amended to remove the requirement for certificates of suitability for public weighbridges and a requirement which incorporates the certificate of suitability as part of the licence be made.

Section 23(1) of the Trade Measurement (Weighbridges) Regulation 1991 should be amended to make the provision of tare mass books optional.

Section 23(2), (3) and (4) of the Trade Measurement (Weighbridges) Regulation 1991 should be amended to allow for the electronic printing and storage of measurement tickets."

However, should you wish to comment on the other amendments to the legislation, please contact this Office so that a copy of the relevant consultation papers can be forwarded to you.

Other Amendments

The other amendments for which Issues Papers have been prepared are:

1. "Amendment to Section 28 of the Trade Measurement (Pre-packed Articles) Regulation 1991" - Section 28 of the Trade Measurement (Pre-packed Articles) Regulation 1991 should be amended by repealing the Table and requiring the products listed in sub-regulation (1) to be unit priced only when packed in random mass packs.

Section 28 should also be amended to remove the references to `fruit' and `vegetables'.

2. "Amendment of the Trade Measurement Act 1990 - Firewood" - The provisions of the Trade Measurement Act 1990 should be amended to make it a requirement to "stack" firewood for sales by volume. Definitions of "stacked" and "firewood" are also seen as a requirement. (This does not preclude firewood being sold by reference to mass or per load.)

3. "A new section 15(1)(c) be added to the Act which states that the administering authority `may provide for certification periods to be set'.

"Section 15(2) of the Act be re-written so that it relates to the new section 15(1)(c) and states that the administering authority `may provide for the certification of a measuring instrument as often as is necessary or desirable in relation to specified classes of instruments'".

4. "The Average Quantity System" - The Average Quantity System to be introduced into legislation and current shortweight provisions be repealed. This includes repealing "mass when packed" and "mass at standard condition" provisions.

5. "Amendment of Section 25 of the Trade Measurement Act 1990" - Section 25 of the Trade Measurement Act 1990 should be repealed to remove the "Special provisions for sale of meat".

6. "Amendment of Section 19(b) of the Trade Measurement (Pre-packed Articles) Regulation 1991" - Section 19(b) of the Trade Measurement (Pre-packed Articles) Regulation 1991 be amended by deleting the existing words and replacing them with:

"(b) the total net mass of all the eggs in the package".

This would also require the deletion of the reference to eggs in section 18(1)(a) of the Regulation."

National Competition Policy

You are also asked to comment on the implications that the requirements for certificates of suitability, licensing, tare mass books and measurement tickets in relation to weighbridges may have in terms of the National Competition Policy review of legislation. Under the Competition Principles Agreement signed by the States, Territories and the Commonwealth, it was agreed that existing legislation and proposed legislation would be reviewed in terms of its impact on competition in the relevant market. The Agreement provides that:

"The guiding principle is that legislation ... should not restrict competition unless it can be demonstrated that:

(a) the benefits of the restriction to the community as a whole outweigh the costs; and

(b) the objectives of the legislation can only be achieved by restricting competition".

The review that is to be conducted should:

"(a)clarify the objectives of the legislation;

(b) identify the nature of the restriction on competition;

(c) analyse the likely effect of the restriction on competition and on the economy generally;

(d) address and balance the costs and benefits of the restriction; and

(e) consider alternative means for achieving the same result including non-legislative approaches".

The specific issues that you are asked to address are set out in the body of this Issues Paper.

HOW TO MAKE COMMENTS AND SUBMISSIONS You are invited to make comments and submissions on the issues raised in this Issues Paper. You are also invited to contact the MCCA Secretariat to request information on the other amendments proposed to be made to the trade measurement legislation. Written comments and submissions should be sent to: Neil Power Executive Officer Ministerial Council on Consumer Affairs Consumer Affairs Division Department of the Treasury Parkes Place PARKES ACT 2600 Facsimile transmissions can be sent to (02) 6263 2960. Email can be sent to npower@treasury.gov.au Oral submissions can be made by telephoning Malcolm Bartlett on (07) 3836 0409. Closing date for submissions is 30 November 2000.

CONFIDENTIALITY

Unless there is an indication from you that you wish your submission to remain confidential, your submission may be subject to release under the Freedom of Information Act 1992 (Qld).

Background

Certificates of Suitability and Licences

The Trade Measurement Act provides for the licensing of a person who makes a weighbridge available as a public weighbridge. Section 3 of the Trade Measurement (Weighbridges) Regulation 1991 ("the Regulation") defines "public weighing" as:

"`public weighing' means the use of a weighbridge by or on behalf of the public or for which a charge is made".

One of the requirements that a licensee must comply with relates to certificates of suitability as defined in section 3 of the Regulation as:

"`certificate of suitability' in relation to a weighbridge, means a certificate issued by the administering authority for the purposes of section 50(1)(a) of the Act to the effect that the weighbridge is suitable for use as a public weighbridge".

A licensee is only able to operate a weighbridge as a public weighbridge if there is a current certificate of suitability.

Section 23 of the Regulation

Section 23 of the Regulation provides:

"Tare books and measurement tickets

23.(1) A licensee must provide at each weighbridge made available under the authority of the licence -

(a) tare mass books in accordance with Forms 1 and 2 in Schedule 2; and

(b) measurement tickets in accordance with Forms 1-4 in Schedule 3.

(2) The measurement tickets provided by a licensee -

(a) must be printed and bound in books, or provided in approved pads, containing original tickets and provision for at least one copy of each original; and

(b) must be numbered consecutively with each copy ticket bearing the same number as its original; and

(c) must have the work `original' printed on each original ticket and the work `duplicate' on each copy ticket.

(3) The licensee must ensure that a copy of the relevant measurement ticket is issued to a customer of the licensee and the licensee must retain for at least 12 months all original tickets (whether or not a copy has been issued) and all unissued copy tickets.

(4) A licensee must, immediately after a pad of measurement tickets has been completely used, permanently make up in book form (by stapling or other suitable means) all originals and copies retained under subregulation (3) from the used pad.

(5) A licensee must, on being required by an inspector to do so, produce original and copy tickets retained under subregulation (3)".

Section 23 of the Regulation requires a licensee to have a tare mass book and appropriate measurement tickets for public weighbridges. The measurement ticket can provide the same information that is provided by a tare mass book and this results in a duplication of records that a licensee must retain.

Section 23(2), (3) and (4) of the Regulation specify that measurement tickets must be printed in bound books or pads and that the books or pads must be retained in this way for a period of 12 months. This does not cater for electronic printing or storage of measurement tickets and is seen as an outdated method of record keeping in today's environment. It also results in the need for storage facilities to be maintained by licensees.

Proposal for Amendment

Certificates of Suitability and Licences

It is arguable that there is no need for both a certificate of suitability and for a licence. The basic requirements for the documentation for both the certificate of suitability and the licence are the same and it is argued that it would be desirable to combine the licence and certificate of suitability into one process.

This proposal would require the amendment of the Regulation so that there is only one requirement with respect to licensing and certificates of suitability. This could be achieved by incorporating the requirement for a certificate of suitability into the requirement for a licence.

The primary objective of trade measurement legislation is to promote fair trading and accuracy in the relevant market place. Trade measurement authorities are responsible for ensuring that traders and consumers are confident that goods are sold in a fair and equitable manner and for ensuring that regulatory regimes promote efficient industry practices.

National Competition Policy guidelines provide that the benefit to the restriction to the community should outweigh the costs and that the objectives of the legislation cannot be achieved by any other means.

Licensees will benefit from this amendment because the regulatory regime will be streamlined and the process for obtaining a licence and a certificate of suitability will only require the completion of one set of documentation. This amendment should not result in any restriction on competition in the industry as all licensees will be subject to the same regulatory regime.

Consumers will benefit from this regime because licensees will operate in a more efficient and effective manner.

Section 23 of the Regulation

Section 23(1) of the Regulation should be amended to make the provision of a tare mass book optional as the requirement to retain both a tare mass book and a measurement ticket is seen as an unnecessary cost and as a burden on industry.

Section 23(2), (3) and (4) of the Regulation should be amended to allow licensees to print and store measurement tickets by electronic means.

The proposed amendments to section 23 are seen as being beneficial to industry because they allow licensees to take advantage of more modern technology and to maintain electronic records rather than hard copy records.

An added advantage is that those licensees who wish to retain hard copy records will still be able to do so without altering the methods they currently use.

Comments

You are asked to comment on the amendment. In particular your comments in relation to the following questions are welcomed:

1. Should the Trade Measurement (Weighbridges) Regulation 1991 be amended as described? Why do you think so?

2. Will the amendment as described have any impact on you whether you are a licensee or a consumer?

3. If it is considered that the amendment will impact on you, can you describe the potential costs to you as either a licensee or a consumer?

4. Are there any potential restrictions involved in the proposed amendment?

5. If there are considered to be any restrictions, will these restrictions involve any cost or disadvantage to you either as a licensee or consumer?

6. Will the proposed amendment have any impact on competition in the market place in which you either trade or purchase goods? If so, what impact will it have?

7. If you are a licensee, do the current requirements for tare mass books and measurement tickets and the requirements for record keeping impose significant restrictions on how you wish to do business?

8. Do the current requirements add significantly to business costs? If they do, what are those costs and would they be reduced by the proposed amendments?

9. Do the current requirements create barriers to new entrants? Would the proposed amendments create more flexibility?

10. Are there any other issues that you consider relevant?

If you are interested in participating in follow up consultation on these issues, please provide us with a telephone number where you can be contacted during office hours.