Distribution businesses annually attest to the Minister for Energy and Resources. The attestation should include specific reference to, but not limited to: Capacity and capability to connect main streets and key community assets in areas at high risk of prolonged power outages to temporary generation within 12 hours of an event. Information on location of temporary generation sites, network connection points and key access routes should be included in Regional Emergency Management Planning Committees and Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committees.

Distribution businesses annually attest to the Minister for Energy and Resources. The attestation should include specific reference to, but not limited to: Capability and capacity to achieve effective management of events and timely restoration of customers.

Distribution businesses annually attest to the Minister for Energy and Resources. The attestation should include specific reference to, but not limited to: Processes to report timely and accurate information about status to restore services and confirm ‘safe’ infrastructure to emergency services and communities.

Distribution businesses annually attest to the Minister for Energy and Resources. The attestation should include specific reference to, but not limited to: Adoption and operation of State Emergency Management Priorities including ‘make safe’.

The Victorian Government and energy sector work with The Energy Charter #BetterTogether Life Support Customer Initiative to support and implement in Victoria a national approach to achieve better outcomes for life support customers that meets strong standards of consumer protection.

DEECA in conjunction with Emergency Management Victoria design and run a networkwide, multi-sector emergency exercise to test implementation of lessons learnt following the 13 February event and identify and remove barriers to effective coordination and response by September 2025

That, to ensure mobile generators are sourced and distributed on a priority basis during natural disasters, the EUSFAC work with the NSW Telco Authority, relevant NSW government agencies and commercial stakeholders to develop a mobile asset deployment strategy. The strategy should reduce duplication in purchasing, maintaining and housing mobile generators and improve agility in deployment.

That, in order to minimise communication outages and extend basic communication coverage during bush fires, the NSW Government work directly, or together with other Australian governments and/or their relevant power and telecommunications regulatory, policy and market bodies, to:
- ensure there are sufficient redundancy options available (e.g. backup diesel generators, deployed temporary telecommunications facilities, etc.) to supply power to essential telecommunication infrastructure or alternative telecommunications infrastructure
- ensure that the telecommunication entities’ and electricity network providers’ Bush Fire Risk Management Plans are updated annually and reported on in the NSW RFS Commissioner’s annual statement to Parliament on the upcoming bush fire season and include details of all actions taken to mitigate those risks including maintenance of APZs and access roads
- ensure there is appropriate auditing of distributors’ preparedness for risks arising from network assets being affected by bush fire, as well as the risk of networks initiating a bush fire
- facilitate cross-carrier roaming arrangements between carriers and the public for basic text, voice and data during the period of emergency in areas directly affected by fire
- enable NSW RFS to require carriers to provide regular information on the status of outages and areas affected by fire.

That, in order to maximise the protection of critical infrastructure in a bush fire, Australian governments revise the regulatory framework for the provision to government authorities of information about all critical infrastructure (public and private) including a possible change to compel the owners of critical assets to provide all needed metadata, updated annually, for appropriate planning, preparation and response for bush fire. This would include information about location, ownership, access, details of service the infrastructure supports, and fire treatments of building and surrounding zones.

That, in order to improve response times to Triple Zero calls, the NSW RFS implements the integrated dispatch system before the 2020-21 fire season commences.

Improve information about electricity demand during heatwaves.

Establish emergency services ICT redundancy arrangements for damage loss of communications infrastructure.

The Working Group recommends that State/Territory emergency management plans should explicitly take the need for rapid assessment of damaged physical infrastructure into account. The importance of rapid physical infrastructure assessment in ensuring the supply of utilities including sewerage and drainage, electricity, water and gas to residential structures and other types should be recognised and considered.