CFA Regulations Review 2025

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The Country Fire Authority Regulations 2014 (“the Regulations”) expire in August 2025.

In the last eleven years CFA’s structure and operating environment has significantly changed and the regulations need updating to ensure CFA continues to modernise and stay relevant.

Some of the regulations are now obsolete, duplicate other laws and impose unnecessary red tape on our volunteers and staff.

The regulations review provides an opportunity to look at how CFA can streamline, simply and modernise the way we operate.

Some of the key areas being looked at include:

Administrative matters such as Authority proceedings, registration of CFA brigades and groups, brigade model rules and elections, and financial management of brigades
Membership of brigades including conduct and physical fitness requirements and duties
Employee and volunteer discipline and appeals (including conduct offences, investigations, hearing of charges and ability to suspend employees pending outcome of hearings)
Volunteer compensation for officers and members of brigades and industry brigades
Fees and charges for CFA services
Fire prevention measures including elections and local government nominations to regional fire prevention committees, permits to burn during fire danger periods, conditions or restrictions on engaging in high fire risk activities, regulating fire suppression equipment
Compliance requirements for fire alarm monitoring services

CFA members and the Victorian public are encouraged to have their say on the draft regulations. To have your say on the regulations please visit www.engage.vic.gov.au

Timeline

24 February 2025 – Consultation on the draft regulations goes live

13 May 2025 – Consultation closes and feedback is reviewed

June – July – Regulations finalised

From February 2025 onwards – CFA undertakes implementation activity

1 August 2025 – CFA Regulations 2025 commence

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the CFA regulations?

The Country Fire Authority Regulations 2014 and Country Fire Authority (Community Fire Refuges) Regulations 2014 (“the Regulations”) are the regulations that CFA operates under. The Country Fire Authority Regulations 2014 are due to expire on 1 August 2025. CFA is proposing these two regulations are rolled into one and updated to better reflect the current structure and operating environment of CFA that has changed significantly in the last few years.

Some of the topics the regulations cover include: administrative matters, brigade membership, employee and volunteer discipline and appeals, volunteer compensation, fees and charges, fire prevention measures and compliance requirement for fire alarm monitoring.

What is a Regulatory Impact Statement?

Regulatory Impact Statements (RIS) are documents prepared by Victorian Government departments and agencies that explain the expected impacts (costs and benefits) of proposed regulations. The adequacy of a RIS is independently assessed by the Commissioner for Better Regulation, with support from Better Regulation Victoria (BRV).

Why can’t the current regulations just remain in place?

Regulations expire every 10 years, and the Regulatory Impact Statement is required to analyse the regulatory problem as if the existing regulations did not apply. This process is designed to support government to develop better options that do not simply maintain the status quo.

This enables significant changes in technology, community expectations and business practices to be considered so that the basis for analysis is the nature of the problem today, and not 10 years ago.

What principles did CFA use to guide the review of the regulations?

Government Regulations are required to follow the principles outlined in the Victorian Guide to Regulation.

CFA also established two CFA specific principles:

Recognise, value, respect and promote the contribution of volunteer members to the well-being and safety of the community and have regard to the commitment and principles set out in the Volunteer Charter.
Enable and support the streamlining and efficiency of CFA operations.

CFA has deliberately gone beyond the normal requirements of a regulatory impact statement to provide additional explanations and context to CFA members about the policy proposals.

Why are we reviewing the regulations now?

In early 2023 CFA commenced engaging with key stakeholders to seek feedback on the current operation of the regulations. CFA was also aware of existing areas of improvement in the regulations due to matters or issues identified over the life of the 2014 regulations.

Following the engagements with stakeholders about the operation of the current regulations CFA developed policy proposals for approval by the CFA Board. These policy proposals aimed to guide the drafting of new regulations by the Department of Justice and Community Safety (DJCS).

Following the approval of the CFA Board, CFA consulted with key stakeholders on these policy proposals.

DJCS reviewed and endorsed the policy proposals. The policy proposals were then approved by the Minister for Emergency Services.

The approved policy positions formed the basis for the development of the Regulatory Impact Statement and draft Regulations.

Will there be changes to the way CFA operates?

Yes, in some circumstances there will be changes.

There are four key areas of change in the regulations:

regulations about the management and administration of CFA – which affect CFA members or employees only;
regulations pertaining to CFA membership and the rights and obligations of CFA volunteers – which affect CFA members, prospective members and other persons (e.g. dependants of members entitled to compensation under CFA’s Volunteer Compensation Scheme.
regulations about fire prevention and control – which affect all individuals and businesses in country Victoria; and include specific regulatory requirements affecting the private plantation forestry sector, and companies providing automatic fire alarm monitoring services; and
regulations about fees and charges for CFA services – which affect users of the services for which charges may be imposed.

A significant number of the changes are administrative in nature. A detailed analysis of the key areas of change is available within the Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS).