That the Victorian Government plan and resource recovery hubs (including online access) sufficiently to fulfil their role in long-term community recovery and resilience building.

In line with Recommendation 58, that the Victorian Government, working with local councils, investigate options for emergency funding arrangements to assist operating Emergency Relief Centres and include these arrangements in statewide operating guidelines.

That the Victorian Government provide long-term funding contracts for mental health services in flood-affected regions, with a focus to securing dedicated mental health professionals and effective service delivery in communities impacted by natural disasters.

That the Victorian Government increase funding to Shepparton and Echuca and Moama Search and Rescue squads to ensure optimal response capabilities in future emergencies.

To assist with ongoing clean-up of flood-affected areas following disasters, that the Victorian Government establish a dedicated financial support program for local businesses involved in debris removal and restoration efforts. This should include reimbursement mechanisms for businesses, such as earthmoving companies, that contributed equipment and personnel to the clean-up but suffered significant financial losses doing so.

That the Victorian Government develop a strategic rescue plan in areas at high risk of flooding, so that they have appropriate resources and expertise for rescues during a crisis event. This plan should include consideration of procurement, expansion of reserve caches and processes for rapid deployment of resources.

That the Victorian Government recognise caravan parks as essential businesses in disaster-prone areas as providers of housing and emergency support and ensure support is available (including grants) under Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements to caravan park operators, including those operating on Crown Land.

That the Victorian Government review its framework for providing housing support following an environmental disaster. In particular, the Government should assess the application system to ensure that genuinely affected households are provided support in a timelier manner and to mitigate the risk of fraudulent claims.

The Committee recommends that all large insurers commit to having a physical presence at major emergency hubs in affected communities as soon as possible following a natural disaster.

The Committee recommends that a new service be offered to support vulnerable cash settlement recipients to project manage rebuilds and major repairs. This could be similar to the Service Navigator role in Queensland’s Resilient Homes Fund.

The Committee recommends the Insurance Council of Australia in consultation with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and state, territory and local governments:
- Develop guidance for policyholders on the actions they can take to clean up their properties following a natural disaster.
- Include in the guidance any actions policyholders should take to document damage to their properties, such as taking photos to assist with their claim.
- Obtain a commitment from insurers that they will have regard for the guidance when assessing claims.
- Distribute the guidance as soon as possible to disaster-impacted local government areas.
- Make the guidance part of information distributed by insurers when a natural disaster occurs, including making the guidance available at recovery hubs in hard copy form.
- Develop debris cleanup guidance for councils.

The type and level of relief provided to insurers in an Extraordinary Catastrophe should be considered, as should the consequences for fair and efficient claims handling. This includes:
- The timing of the relief – before the event, in the immediate aftermath and up to 12 months following the event.
- Factors other than timeframes that could be subject to relief.
- The minimum commitments insurers are expected to meet; for example, prioritising vulnerable customers, supporting policyholders with emergency situations, including temporary accommodation, and communication standards.

Housing , especially social housing: That, to ease housing stress in flood prone areas and ensure new development is resilient and community-centred, Government pursue a multi-pronged, decadal strategy through:
• ensuring flood-displaced residents in emergency housing who have no safe return to home options are re-homed in more permanent settlements where community can be re-established, and that emergency housing clusters do not take on de facto permanency
• providing authoritative advice on how to reclaim and restore flood damaged houses affected by mould. This includes providing detailed advice on who is at risk from living in mould-infected houses (the immunocompromised and those with lung damage plus certain other groups) and what constitutes safe living conditions for this group
• ensuring building standards are adopted for build back after floods so that new housing stock is as flood proof and flood recoverable as possible
• investing additional state, Commonwealth and private sector monies to grow the stock of social and affordable housing
• accelerating investment by the community housing and private sectors in new social and affordable housing projects through a Government run co-contribution grant funding program
• planning for and encouraging collaborative public and private sector investment in innovative mixed-use developments in flood prone regional cities and towns that are built above ground level to be flood
• resilient, are centrally located, and increase housing diversity by providing smaller social, affordable and market dwellings
• the Government’s Expert Housing Advisory Panel providing advice on additional market interventions to improve rental affordability and ease vacancy shortages to reverse homelessness and take pressure off social housing waitlists
• fast-tracking the approval and servicing of new village developments beyond the current footprint of Lismore and other Northern Rivers towns on existing cleared agricultural land above the re-calculated flood planning level, ensuring all infrastructure including transport, retail, schools, public space and other community facilities are in situ prior to occupation
• fast-tracking planning approvals and the provision of enabling infrastructure to accelerate delivery of Aboriginal housing on Local Aboriginal Land Council land and lands owned by Native Title corporations that respects culture and kinship and supports stable accommodation pathways
• partnering with the development and community housing sectors to relocate flood prone social and affordable housing on the Hawkesbury-Nepean floodplain to new and attractive multi-use, medium density developments within the CBDs of Mount Druitt, Blacktown and other Western Sydney city centres
• under the leadership of the NSW Building Commissioner, developing a code for flood resilient, environmentally sustainable building that accounts for current and likely future supply chain disruptions and extends to modular and manufactured homes
• working with the Greater Cities Commission and regional councils to ensure future local housing strategies factor in the need for natural disaster emergency housing and promote resilient housing systems
• encouraging financial institutions and insurance companies to use pricing structures to incentivise the construction of more safely situated and resilient buildings
• supporting building industry skills growth and making building material supply chains more robust to insulate the economy from future natural disaster and other exogenous shocks
• ensuring building industry occupational health and safety regulations are enforced in the flood-affected areas rebuilding programs.

Transition initiatives: That, to improve the community’s experience during immediate disaster recovery phase, Government through the SEOCON, NSWRA, DCS/Service NSW and other state agencies as required provide greater support (financial, health [including mental health], temporary accommodation, administrative and other support services) to affected communities by:
• minimising the number of times a person is required to relive their trauma by providing evidence or narrative of their disaster impact (for the purposes of accessing relief and support services). This includes consistent and effective referral pathways and follow up mechanisms
• looking at information sharing arrangements with the Australian Government to streamline grant identification and delivery
• partnering with affected communities and individuals to navigate and access support as soon as possible during or immediately following disaster events
• where possible, merging evacuation and recovery centres for the first 30 days post disaster. Where co location is not possible, DCS/Service NSW must have a representative present at both evacuation and recovery centres.
The Inquiry notes that clear transition initiatives are required dependent on the phase of recovery and lead agency associated – for example, the transition between the SEOCON (including DCS/Service NSW) in the immediate recovery phase to the NSWRA for the longer-term recovery. Functions that may require transition include, but are not limited to, administering grants and funding, and managing infrastructure and housing projects.

That Service NSW establish teams of assessors that can be on the ground to assess and approve grant applications. 

That the NSW Government overhaul the way in which it conducts its grants process as it frustrated applicants and further traumatised them by repeatedly re-interviewing them and making them prove that they were flooded. 

That the NSW Government develop a more proactive, rapid response to manage animal welfare following natural disasters which includes improved collaboration and communication with local veterinarians and animal welfare organisations.

That the NSW Government provide an increased level of targeted support to flood affected communities contending with widespread mould. 

That the NSW Government address the mental health needs of local communities following the February-March 2022 floods by: • embedding within state emergency and recovery plans a strategy that provides surge capacity for mental health and social workers by: • prioritising funding for community groups that are currently providing social and mental health support to their local communities • ensuring all flood-impacted communities receive the mental health support they need to fully recover. 

That the NSW Government ensure that all emergency and recovery plans, including state plans, local emergency management plans and functional area plans, are reviewed and updated regularly and provide clarity on the role of non-government partners.

Regional Development Victoria should implement the recommendations from the Department of Planning and Community Development's review of the Community Recovery Fund to improve the delivery of relief and recovery programs in the future.

Review the adequacy of current arrangements for infrastructure reconstruction following a major flood event in the Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley.

Develop a Hawkesbury-Nepean Flood Recovery Plan, which identifies strategies and arrangement for recovery from severe floods in the Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley.

the state make available to the public a clear guide of who is responsible for: • clean-up and recovery of various types of infrastructure that straddle the public/private boundary; and • the policies agencies will follow in determining whether to repair infrastructure under their control.

the Department of Human Services develop proactive strategies to provide information and assistance for people applying for emergency grants.

the state review the legislation and policies that set out clean-up and recovery responsibilities for infrastructure such as crossovers, culverts, drains, bridges and waterways, including consideration of: • whether the entities who are given obligations or powers to undertake clean-up works have the capacity to do so; and • the appropriateness of having different legal regimes for what is essentially the same piece of infrastructure. If the review reveals that the current responsibility matrix is inadequate, the state develop an action plan to address the identified shortcomings.

the state clarify the transition to recovery arrangements including the processes for approving and funding of essential works after transition to recovery has been formalised.

the state review the way early outreach occurs and implement changes that will ensure that there is a consistency of approach regardless of which agency undertakes the service.

the state: • ensure that the concerns raised by Victorians regarding the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements are provided to the national review, including the issues of: – betterment (what it means and how it is applied); and – the 51 per cent income rule for eligibility of businesses for grants. • establish a single point of information (such as the single web portal referred to in recommendation 33) on all emergency related financial assistance available to individuals, businesses and local government. The means of accessing this information should be widely circulated in the community.

the state amend the current protocol governing National Registration and Inquiry System information collection and sharing to: • clarify the role of councils and Centrelink during and after emergencies • ensure the amended protocol is written in plain English and easily understood; and • coordinate, in conjunction with the state and federal privacy commissioners, the development of a new National Registration and Inquiry System information sharing protocol in line with the proposed National Registration and Inquiry System 6 and state or federal privacy legislation.

the state finalise the 2008 review of Victoria’s municipal assistance. This should include addressing: • the provision of upfront funding for local councils for repair of community assets • packages for early relief and recovery to be included in both the Natural Disaster Funding Arrangements and the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements, including outreach packages; and • the process of reimbursement of local councils after floods.

the state, in respect of the Rapid Impact Assessment process: • resolve which agency/ies has policy and operational responsibility for this process • define the purpose of Rapid Impact Assessment; and • review the process, in light of the 2010–11 floods, to examine options to improve the efficiency of the collection of information.

the state implement arrangements to improve the support provided to local government on disaster financing before, during and after emergency events.