Summary
Introduced with the Underwater Cultural Heritage Bill 2018 to replace the framework established by the Historic Shipwrecks Act 1976, the bill: repeals the Historic Shipwrecks Act 1976; and makes consequential amendments to the Australian Heritage Council Act 2003, Navigation Act 2012, Protection of the Sea (Powers of Intervention) Act 1981 and Sea Installations Act 1987. Also includes transitional provisions in relation to: automatically and individually declared sites and articles; notified relics; notices of possession, custody and control of articles; applications for, and issued, permits; and continuation of the Register of Historic Shipwrecks.