INQ256

The Australian Government should fund natural disaster recovery by:
• cost sharing with state and territory governments for community recovery and reconstruction of essential public assets at a rate of 50 per cent above an annual expenditure threshold

State governments, where they have not already done so, should provide local governments with statutory protection from liability for releasing natural hazard information and making changes to local planning schemes where such actions have been taken ‘in good faith’ and in accordance with state p

The provisions in the Queensland Sustainable Planning Act 2009 for injurious affection should be repealed.

All governments should put in place best-practice institutional and governance arrangements for the provision of public infrastructure, including road infrastructure. These should include:

State and territory taxes and levies on general insurance should be phased out and replaced with less distortionary taxes.

Insurers should provide additional standardised information to households regarding their insurance policies, the natural hazards they face and indicative costs of rebuilding after a natural disaster.

The Australian Government should schedule an independent and public review of the progress of reforms to natural disaster funding arrangements five years after implementation has commenced. This review should examine the operation and efficacy of the arrangements, including the:

The Australian Government should establish a framework for the development of benchmark prices for the reconstruction of essential public assets. This should set out the broad parameters that state and territory governments should follow, without prescribing particular prices to be used.

State and territory governments should develop benchmark prices for the reconstruction of essential public assets and submit these to the Australian Government for approval within one year.

Within three years, the Australian Government should develop and implement a framework for untied grants for community recovery assistance to state and territory governments.

State and territory governments should:
• clearly articulate the statewide natural hazard risk appetite in land use planning policy frameworks by identifying the risks posed by natural hazards and specifying appropriate planning controls for each given level of risk

State and territory governments should prioritise and accelerate implementation of the Enhancing Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment Roadmap, including reviewing the regulatory components of vendor disclosure statements.

Where asset management plans at the local, state or territory level pre-identify and cost betterment of assets (improving asset resilience to natural disasters), the Australian Government should share 50 per cent of the betterment component of reconstruction costs following damage from a (eligibl

Funding to state and territory governments for community recovery should be provided as untied grants, with a transition period pending the development of a framework to assess community recovery costs.

The Australian Government should gradually increase the amount of annual mitigation funding it provides to state and territory governments to $200 million.

The Australian Government should:
• publish estimates (and their confidence ranges) of future costs of natural disasters to its budget in the Statement of Risks. These estimates should be informed by catastrophe loss modelling

State and territory governments should be required to report on the following accountability requirements:
• published risk assessments in accordance with the National Emergency Risk Assessment Guidelines

The Australian Government should:
• legislate the current eligibility criteria for the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment (AGDRP) and remove Ministerial discretion

Governments at all levels should make new and currently held natural hazard data publicly available in accordance with open public sector information principles. When collecting new natural hazard data or undertaking modelling, all levels of government should:

State and territory governments, local governments and insurers should explore opportunities for collaboration and partnerships.

Governments should task the Australia–New Zealand Emergency Management Committee with leading the development of guidelines for the collection and dissemination of natural hazard mapping, modelling and metadata.

The Australian Government should develop a formula for allocating mitigation funding to state and territory governments on the basis of where such funding is likely to achieve the greatest net benefits, taking into account the future risks of natural disasters.