Local government enforcement agencies – Public Health Act

Local government enforcement agencies have a significant role in the administration and enforcement of the Public Health Act 2016.

Public Health Act Handbook for Authorised Officers

WA Health has produced the Public Health Act 2016 Handbook (PDF 5 MB) to support local government authorised officers to interpret and administer the Act. The document summarises key provisions of the new Public Health Act and also provides practical advice to support persons who are authorised under the legislation. 

Parts of the Public Health Act relevant to local government

Each Part of the Public Health Act relevant to the functions of local government are summarised below.

Part 1	Objects and principles of the Public Health Act
Part 2	Reporting requirements for enforcement agencies
	Designation of authorised officers
	Asbestos amendments - appointments / approvals for authorised officers
	Delegations
Part 3	General public health duty
Part 4	Serious public health risks and material public health risks
Part 5	Public health plans
Part 8	Registration and licensing
Part 14	Improvement notices and enforcement orders
Part 16	Powers of entry inspection and seizure
Part 17	Crown exemptions
	Forms and Chief Health Officer guidelines
	Health local laws

Public Health Act informational videos

A range of informational videos (external site) can be viewed on YouTube explaining key features of the Public Health Act and administrative requirements for local government.

These include:

1. Overview of the Public Health Act 2016 (external site)
2. Designating authorised officers (external site)
3. Reporting requirements (external site)
4. Staged implementation of the Public Health Act (external site)

Environmental Health regulation review program

Environmental health regulations adopted under the Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1911 are currently under review in WA. Refer to the regulation review program for more details.

Refer to environmental health related acts and regulations for a full list of environmental health legislation.

 

 

For updates on the legislation subscribe to the Environmental Health e-News (external site).