The bill also makes changes to the Gas Act's penalty regime. The bill amends that penalty regime for industry participants by increasing the maximum civil pecuniary penalty available 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 able to be currently issued by the Gas Rulings Panel, particularly for situations where a wide range of consumers may be affected by a potential breach. This new penalty limit will apply across all gas governance regulations. The bill also creates a new penalty for consumers who are not industry participants, who will now be subject to a civil pecuniary penalty instead of a criminal penalty if they breach gas governance arrangements. This will ensure equitable treatment between industry participant consumers and non - industry participant consumers. It will be used to deter breaches of regulations by these consumers, which include 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. 