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Health Act 1956

Fluoridation of drinking water - Offences

116J: Offence to contravene or permit contravention of section 116I

You could also call this:

"Breaking rules in section 116I can lead to a big fine for local authorities"

If you are a local authority and you break or let someone else break the rules in section 116I, you commit an offence. You can be fined up to $200,000 if you are found guilty. If you keep breaking the rules, you can be fined an extra $10,000 for each day you continue to break them. If something keeps happening that breaks the rules, or if the same action that breaks the rules keeps happening, it is considered a continuing offence. You can be fined for each day this continues, which means you can get a big fine if it goes on for a long time.

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This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS630011.

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116I: Local authority must comply with direction, or

"Councils must follow instructions about adding fluoride to drinking water"

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116K: Strict liability and defence to offence, or

"Breaking fluoridation rules: what you need to prove you didn't mean to do it"

Part 5AFluoridation of drinking water
Offences

116JOffence to contravene or permit contravention of section 116I

  1. A local authority that contravenes or permits the contravention of section 116I—

  2. commits an offence; and
    1. is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $200,000; and
      1. if the offence is a continuing one, is liable to a further fine not exceeding $10,000 for every day or part of a day during which the offence continues.

        1. The continued existence of any thing, or the intermittent repetition of any action, that constitutes an offence under this section is a continuing offence for the purposes of this section.

        Notes
        • Section 116J: inserted, on , by section 5 of the Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021 (2021 No 44).