Water Services Act 2017
Number 29 of 2017
WATER SERVICES ACT 2017
REVISED
Updated to 28 April 2023
This Revised Act is an administrative consolidation of the Water Services Act 2017. It is prepared by the Law Reform Commission in accordance with its function under the Law Reform Commission Act 1975 (3/1975) to keep the law under review and to undertake revision and consolidation of statute law.
All Acts up to and including the Sex Offenders (Amendment) Act 2023 (9/2023), enacted 5 April 2023, and all statutory instruments up to and including the Sectoral Employment Order (Construction Sector) 2023 (S.I. No. 207 of 2023), made 28 April 2023, were considered in the preparation of this Revised Act.
Disclaimer: While every care has been taken in the preparation of this Revised Act, the Law Reform Commission can assume no responsibility for and give no guarantees, undertakings or warranties concerning the accuracy, completeness or up to date nature of the information provided and does not accept any liability whatsoever arising from any errors or omissions. Please notify any errors, omissions and comments by email to
revisedacts@lawreform.ie.
Number 29 of 2017
WATER SERVICES ACT 2017
REVISED
Updated to 28 April 2023
Introduction
This Revised Act presents the text of the Act as it has been amended since enactment, and preserves the format in which it was passed.
Related legislation
Water Services Acts 2007 to 2022: this Act is one of a group of Acts included in this collective citation to be construed together as one (Water Services (Amendment) Act 2022 (39/2022), s. 1(2)). The Acts in this group are:
• Water Services Act 2007 (30/2007)
• Water Services (Amendment) Act 2012 (2/2012)
• Water Services Act 2013 (6/2013)
• Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013 (50/2013)
• Water Services Act 2014 (44/2014)
• Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2015 (29/2015), Part 10 (ss. 47-51)
• Water Services Act 2017 (29/2017)
• Water Services (Amendment) Act 2022 (39/2022)
Annotations
This Revised Act is annotated and includes textual and non-textual amendments, statutory instruments made pursuant to the Act and previous affecting provisions.
An explanation of how to read annotations is available at
www.lawreform.ie/annotations.
Material not updated in this revision
Where other legislation is amended by this Act, those amendments may have been superseded by other amendments in other legislation, or the amended legislation may have been repealed or revoked. This information is not represented in this revision but will be reflected in a revision of the amended legislation if one is available.
Where legislation or a fragment of legislation is referred to in annotations, changes to this legislation or fragment may not be reflected in this revision but will be reflected in a revision of the legislation referred to if one is available.
A list of legislative changes to any Act, and to statutory instruments from 1972, may be found linked from the page of the Act or statutory instrument at
www.irishstatutebook.ie.
Acts which affect or previously affected this revision
• Water Services (Amendment) Act 2022 (39/2022)
All Acts up to and including Sex Offenders (Amendment) Act 2023 (9/2023), enacted 5 April 2023, were considered in the preparation of this revision.
Statutory instruments which affect or previously affected this revision
• Water Services Act 2017 (Commencement) Order 2022 (S.I. No. 22 of 2022)
• Water Services Act 2017 (Membership of Water Forum) Regulations 2020 (S.I. No. 526 of 2020)
• Water Services Act 2017 (Commencement) Order 2019 (S.I. No. 510 of 2019)
• Water Services Act 2017 (Part 7) (Establishment Day) Order 2018 (S.I. No. 194 of 2018)
• Water Services Act 2017 (Part 5) (Establishment Day) Order 2018 (S.I. No. 193 of 2018)
• Water Services Act 2017 (Commencement) Order 2017 (S.I. No. 511 of 2017)
All statutory instruments up to and including Sectoral Employment Order (Construction Sector) 2023 (S.I. No. 207 of 2023), made 28 April 2023, were considered in the preparation of this revision.
Number 29of 2017
WATER SERVICES ACT 2017
REVISED
Updated to 28 April 2023
CONTENTS
Preliminary and General
1. Short title, collective citation and commencement
Amendment of Water Services Act 2007
6. Amendment of section 2 of Act of 2007
7. Amendment of section 16 of Act of 2007
8. Review by Commission of rate of demand for water services provided to dwellings
9. Threshold amount and allowance amount
10. Provision of water services exceeding threshold amount
11. Notice of provision of water services exceeding threshold amount
12. Allowance for household size
13. Exemption where certain medical need
Amendment of Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013
14. Amendment of section 2 of No. 2 Act of 2013
15. Amendment of section 21 of No. 2 Act of 2013
16. Amendment of section 22 of No. 2 Act of 2013
17. Amendment of section 32 of No. 2 Act of 2013
18. Water services policy statement
20. Amendment of section 36 of No. 2 Act of 2013
Amendment of Water Services Act 2014
21. No liability in respect of certain charges
23. Customer dispute resolution: connection to, and use of, public water system
Water Forum
Establishment of Water Forum
24. Establishment day for Part 5
25. Establishment of Water Forum
28. Removal or resignation of member of Forum
Operation of Water Forum
30. Chairing of meetings of Forum
Administration and reporting
Dissolutions and Transfer of Functions
37. Transfer of land and other property to Forum
39. Liability for loss occurring before establishment day
40. Provisions consequent upon transfer of functions, assets and liabilities to Forum
41. Records of dissolved bodies
Water Advisory Body
42. Establishment day for Part 7 (Repealed)
43. Establishment of Water Advisory Body (Repealed)
44. Functions of Advisory Body (Repealed)
45. Membership of Advisory Body (Repealed)
46. Chairperson of Advisory Body (Repealed)
47. Term of office of members (Repealed)
48. Resignation of member (Repealed)
49. Membership of either House of Oireachtas, European Parliament or local authority (Repealed)
50. Meetings and procedures of Advisory Body (Repealed)
51. Declaration of interests (Repealed)
52. Grants to Advisory Body and other support (Repealed)
53. Annual report of Advisory Body (Repealed)
Miscellaneous Amendments relating to Finance
54. Transfer of local property tax to the Local Government Fund
55. Amendment of section 2 of Act of 1998
56. Amendment of section 4 of Act of 1998
57. Amendment of section 5 of Act of 1998
58. Amendment of section 6 of Act of 1998
59. Amendment of section 7 of Act of 1998
Transitional Provision and Miscellaneous Amendments
60. Transitional matters affecting section 22 of No. 2 Act of 2013
Acts Referred to
Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992 (No. 7)
Ethics in Public Office Act 1995 (No. 22)
European Parliament Elections Act 1997 (No. 2)
Finance (Local Property Tax) Act 2012 (No. 52)
Fire Services Act 1981 (No. 30)
Freedom of Information Act 2014 (No. 30)
Local Government Act 1998 (No. 16)
Local Government Act 2001 (No. 37)
Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (No. 39)
Valuation Act 2001 (No. 13)
Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013 (No. 50)
Water Services Act 2007 (No. 30)
Water Services Act 2013 (No. 6)
Water Services Act 2014 (No. 44)
Water Services Acts 2007 to 2015
Number 29 of 2017
WATER SERVICES ACT 2017
REVISED
Updated to 28 April 2023
An Act to provide for discontinuing and extinguishing liabilities in respect of charges imposed by Irish Water for the provision of water services to a dwelling; for refund of certain payments made in respect of charges so imposed; for setting a threshold amount; for liability to pay for provision by Irish Water of water services exceeding the threshold amount to a dwelling; for allowances and exemptions from that liability in certain circumstances; for funding for Irish Water; for establishment of a body to be known in the Irish language as An Fóram Uisce or in the English language as the Water Forum; for establishment of a body to be known in the Irish language as An Comhlacht Comhairleach Uisce or in the English language as the Water Advisory Body; for amending arrangements in relation to the Local Government Fund; for those purposes to amend the Local Government Act 1998, the Valuation Act 2001, the Water Services Act 2007, the Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013 and the Water Services Act 2014; and to provide for matters connected therewith.
[17th November, 2017]
Be it enacted by the Oireachtas as follows: