Page 213 - Week 01 - Thursday, 13 February 2020
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In 2004 the territory took its first major step towards providing basic protection for occupants by introducing part 5A of the Residential Tenancies Act 1997. Although the flexibility of an occupancy agreement has meant that they are available for a variety of purposes, these past 15 years have shown that this flexibility also meant a lack of certainty about how and when an occupancy agreement should be used. Over time, it has become clear that part 5A requires adjustment for it to appropriately meet the growing demand and needs across a range of accommodation sectors.
This bill demonstrates the government’s commitment to clarify the nature of occupancies, improve the processes that relate to owner-renters within caravan and manufactured home parks, and provide clearer and fairer share housing processes in the ACT. The bill also demonstrates our commitment to meaningful, informed discussion on legislative reforms with a wide range of stakeholders. I thank those stakeholders who have contributed their invaluable experience and expertise through the public consultation period to ensure that we have developed a bill that works well for our community.
Turning to some of the specifics of the proposed reforms, firstly, the bill proposes a new definition of an occupancy agreement to clarify the difference between an occupancy agreement and a residential tenancy agreement. This will allow users of the Residential Tenancies Act to identify properly which rights and obligations apply to them without having to undertake complex legal analysis to determine if an agreement is an occupancy or a tenancy agreement. The intention is that occupants and grantors will be able to make more informed decisions about their residential agreements as well as expect clearer legal advice and decisions from legal professionals and decision-making bodies.
During the consultation period, this approach was fine-tuned in response to feedback from the sector, creating a brighter line between residential tenancies and occupancy agreements. We have also relied on the lived experience of those in the sector to reduce, as much as possible, the risks associated with unintended consequences. We have also created limited exemptions for education providers in key areas to ensure that student discipline decisions and important welfare actions continue to be supported by tenancy law.
Secondly, the bill proposes to mandate that certain occupancy principles will form part of an occupancy agreement. While part 5A of the Residential Tenancies Act currently contains occupancy principles which a person must have regard to, mandating compliance with these principles will assist to ensure that there are essential basic minimum protections provided to all occupants. To strengthen minimum protections for occupants, the bill also proposes to introduce a number of new occupancy principles. The occupancy principles are nevertheless drafted to be adaptable to a range of occupancy accommodation contexts. Grantors will be provided with clear guidance regarding their obligations towards occupants, and occupants will be able to seek the enforcement of a more robust set of rights.
One of the new occupancy principles included within these minimum protections is a new requirement that grantors must provide occupants with information about dispute
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