I also note that this bill makes changes to the Gas Act penalty regime. The bill amends the penalty regime for industry participants, by increasing the maximum civil penalty able to be imposed by the Gas Rulings Panel for breaches of gas governance regulations from $20,000 to $200,000. This addresses concerns about the low level of pecuniary penalty available to be currently issued by the Gas Rulings Panel, particularly for situations where there are a wide range of consumers that may be affected by a potential breach. The bill also creates a penalty for consumers who are not industry participants, who will now be subject to civil pecuniary penalty instead of criminal penalties if they breach gas governance arrangements. This will ensure equitable treatment between industry participants and consumers, and non-industry participant consumers. It will be used to deter breaches of regulation by these consumers, including some of the larger consumers of natural gas. This penalty will also have a maximum of $200,000, and will not apply to residential consumers.