The Fire Services Amendment Regulation 2026 amended the Fire Services Regulation 2011 to:
- implement the annual increase to the Emergency Management Levy for 2026-27, consistent with the Government Indexation Rate
- extend the pause on Emergency Management Levy class increases until 30 June 2029, as a cost-of-living measure to assist Queenslanders
- remove red tape by reducing the number of times local governments must remit Emergency Management Levy collections to the State each year
- enhance incident response by clarifying that fire service officers from Queensland Fire and Rescue may drive unregistered rural fire brigade vehicles in certain circumstances, and
- make minor drafting changes to the definitions of full-time fire officer and part-time fire officer.
The amendments all commence on 1 July 2026.
Amendments included in the Health Legislation Amendment Act (No.2) 2025 clarified the ability of rural fire brigades to help their communities deal with an event or disaster.
The amendments provided that a brigade may carry out activities at the direction of the commissioner, in response to a request for help by the community or another entity, or on its own initiative.
That ability applies not only in relation to fire but also in response to other events such as flooding and severe weather.
The relevant activities undertaken by brigades could include, for example, blocking a road to isolate an area in the vicinity of a fallen powerline, directing traffic away from a flooded creek, or using a chainsaw to remove a fallen tree on a property that is causing a hazard.
The Fire Services and Other Legislation Amendment Regulation 2025:
- implemented the annual increase to Emergency Management Levy amounts, in line with the Government Indexation Rate
- implemented the government announcement to pause any further Emergency Management Levy increases for certain property owners for the 25/26 financial year
- expanded the categories of people who can drive unregistered rural fire brigade vehicles to include interstate fire officers deployed to Queensland and mechanics servicing or repairing the vehicles, and
- provided for the issuing of penalty infringement notices for a number of smoke alarm offences (including, for example, offences for failing to install a smoke alarm in a domestic dwelling and failing to replace a smoke alarm within 10 years from its manufacture date).
The amendments relating to the Emergency Management Levy commence on 1 July 2025. All remaining amendments commenced on 20 June 2025.