Report 12

Regulation of Builders and Building Surveyors

Response from the Department of Commerce

The Department of Commerce is pleased with the Auditor General’s findings that licensing policies are appropriate and are consistently applied to new WA builders and building surveyors. It also welcomes the finding that the Building Commission resolves complaints against builders in a reasonable manner and with a significant reduction in time taken. The Department accepts each of the Auditor General’s recommendations. The audit has been a valuable, independent review of the regulation of builders and building surveyors since the introduction of new legislation in 2011 and will help us improve our delivery of service.

The Department notes the audit conclusions that the Building Commission was slow in making use of its audit powers, that the time to process applications was slow, that some complaints take longer to resolve and that there are no firm timelines for when some reforms will be completed.

The Building Commission has overseen a major updating of building regulation based on new legislation that came into effect in 2011 and 2012. These reforms have required the merger of the Builders and Painters Registration Boards, the Plumbers Licensing Board and the Building Industry Development directorate, two office relocations and adoption of Department of Commerce standard systems and processes. They have also required the development and deployment into industry and local governments of new systems of registration, audit, and complaint resolution. The pace of reform has been tempered by these reorganisations, financial restrictions and the rate at which industry and local governments are adapting to progressive change.

The Auditor General’s findings are a snapshot in a time of accelerating delivery following secured funding for reforms in the 2015-16 financial year. The process of spreading renewal dates uniformly throughout the year and standardising three-year registration periods concluded with the last bulk renewal on 1 February 2016 and will further help to reduce processing time. The Department’s on-line licensing system is currently under development and builder and building surveyor registrations should be moved onto this system by 30 June 2017 as recommended.

The Building Commission has developed clear project plans and delivery dates for its key reform projects and these are set out on its website. The development of an on-line lodgement and processing system for building permits is a major project that is still being scoped in consultation with industry and local governments. Many of these reforms are interrelated and some cannot proceed until others are completed. The successful building industry summit held in February 2016 confirmed the importance and priority of the reform program.

The Building Commission is examining ways to resolve other concerns or implement other recommendations made by the Auditor General. These include on-going development of the Building Commission’s audit program and processes for dealing with faulty work, an active fines recovery process, working with local governments to improve enforcement with building permits and building standards, further speeding up resolution of building services complaints and the follow-up of compliance with remedy orders. Joint technical and policy working groups are preparing detailed recommendations to improve quality and compliance.

Page last updated: June 22, 2016

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