New South Wales Consolidated Acts

MINE SUBSIDENCE COMPENSATION ACT 1961 - SECT 16

16 Powers of members and officers

(1) A member of the Board or any officer or person employed by the Board shall have power to make inspection, examination and inquiry as may be necessary to ascertain the nature and extent of any damage occasioned to any property where such damage is alleged to have been caused by subsidence, or to assess whether damage to any property from subsidence could reasonably have been, or be, anticipated and the nature and extent of any works necessary to prevent or mitigate any such damage or anticipated damage, or to ascertain whether the provisions of this Act or any determination of, or condition imposed by, the Board under the provisions of this Act have been or are being complied with.

(1A) Subject to subsections (1B) and (1C), the Board by its officers, servants and agents may, for the purpose of exercising the powers conferred upon it by section 13A, enter upon any land.

(1B) The powers conferred upon the Board by subsection (1A) shall not authorise entry into a dwelling house without the consent of the occupier unless the anticipated damage is damage to that dwelling house.

(1C) Subject to subsection (1B), the powers conferred upon the Board by subsection (1A) shall not be exercised unless:

(a) the Board has given any occupier of the land reasonable notice of its intention to exercise those powers, and

(b) the Board has, so far as may be practicable in the circumstances, given the like notice to any other person whose consent to the proposed entry and the carrying out of the proposed works would, but for subsection (1A), be required.

(1D) A member of the Board or any officer or person employed by the Board may do both or either of the following things:

(a) enter any colliery holding at any reasonable time for the purposes of any inspection, examination or inquiry under this Act,

(b) require the production of any books or documents which are:

(i) in the possession or under the control of the proprietor of a colliery holding or of the manager or any other person employed at or in connection with a mine, and

(ii) relevant to any inspection, examination or inquiry under this Act.

(1E) When books or documents are produced pursuant to a requirement under subsection (1D), the person to whom the books or documents are produced may make copies of, or take extracts from, the books or documents.

(2) A person shall not, without reasonable excuse:

(a) obstruct or hinder a person in the exercise of his or her powers under this Act,

(b) refuse or fail to comply with a requirement under subsection (1D), or

(c) refuse or fail to provide a person with all reasonable assistance and facilities in order to enable the person to exercise his or her powers under this Act.

Maximum penalty (subsection (2)): 20 penalty units.