Building Regulations Advisory Committee

The Building Regulations Advisory Committee (BRAC) is an independent statutory body established under section 210 of the Building Act 1993 (the Act).

The BRAC functions are set out in section 211 of the Act.

These are to:

• advise the Minister on:
  • draft regulations prepared under the Act
  • the administration of the Act and the regulations
  • the impact on the building regulations system
  • issues relating to the building permit levy
  • any matter referred to it by the Minister.

and

• accredit building products, including construction methods, design components or systems connected with building products.

List of accredited building products

BRAC’s terms of reference are currently under review.

The BRAC comprises 16 members who have been appointed by the Minister for Planning for their expertise.

Committee members (as at 25 October 2020)

• Yvonne von Hartel AM (Chair)
  Commissioner, Victorian Building Authority
• Gregory du Chateau
  Nominated by the Property Council of Australia
• Mark White
  Nominated by the Minister for Finance
• Andrew Andreou
  Nominated by the Minister for Emergency Services
• Nick Karatatis
  Nominated by the Australian Institute of Building Surveyors
• Steven Baxas
  Nominated by Melbourne City Council
• Wayne Liddy
  Nominated by the Australian Institute of Building Surveyors
• Regina Bron
  Nominated by the Australian Institute of Architects
• Brian Murphy
  Member with building industry experience
• Richard Drew
  Nominated by Engineers Australia
• Natasha Stojanovich
  Lawyer
• Melanie Fasham
  Nominated by the Master Builders Association
• Michael Spence
  Consumer Advocate
• Peter Zagorski
  Nominated by the Housing Industry Association
• Mehran Khademollah
  Nominated by the Municipal Association of Victoria
• Greg Blanch
  Nominated by the Building Designers Association of Victoria

The 2019–20 year in review

In 2019–20, 11 BRAC meetings were convened in addition to sub-committee meetings, with meeting attendance shown below.

Six applications for building product accreditation were received in the 2019–20 financial year. Three products received accreditation and three applications for accreditation are under consideration.

BRAC members’ attendance is reported below and by the Victorian Public Sector Commissioner at www.publicboards.vic.gov.au.