Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 3rd July, 2015.

I, ALAN KELLY, Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by Section 5 of the Water Services Act 2014 (No. 44 of 2014), with the consent of the Minister for Social Protection, hereby make the following Regulations:-

Citation

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Water Services Act 2014 (Water Conservation Grant) Regulations 2015.

Interpretation

2. In these Regulations-

(a)“Act” means the Water Services Act 2014 (No. 44 of 2014);

(b)“customer account number” means the unique number assigned by Irish Water to each Irish Water customer’s account;

(c)“Minister” means the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government;

(d)“non-Irish Water Customer” means a person who has registered with Irish Water who has their own or group source of water supply and sewerage treatment or a combination thereof;

(e)“principal private residence” means any dwelling or part of a dwelling which is used by its owner or occupier as his or her sole or main residence;

(f)“reckonable date of occupancy” means occupation of a principal private residence on 30 June 2015;

(g)“registration number” means the unique number assigned by Irish Water to each non-Irish Water customer who registers with it;

(h)“water point reference number” means the unique reference number assigned by Irish Water to each household property registered with it.

Water Conservation Grant Scheme

3. The Department of Social Protection shall administer, on behalf of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, a water conservation grant scheme to promote the sustainable use of water and to enhance water conservation in households.

Grant Amount

4. (1) The water conservation grant amount shall be €100 and shall be paid in one instalment by the Department of Social Protection to an eligible person in respect of their principal private residence.

(2) Only one grant payment may be made in respect of each principal private residence annually.

Eligibility Criteria

5. (1) Persons who register with Irish Water as required under section 5(2)(a) of the Act on or before 30 June 2015 shall be eligible to receive the grant in 2015 if they were normally resident at the principal private residence on that date.

(2) Such persons shall be “eligible persons” for the purposes of the grant scheme.

Application Process

6. (1) Following registration with Irish Water and the transfer by Irish Water of certain data provided at the time of registration to the Department of Social Protection, that Department will contact eligible persons inviting them to make an application for the water conservation grant.

(2) Irish Water shall assign to eligible persons a water point reference number unique to the relevant principal private residence and a customer account number or in the case of non-Irish Water customers a registration number.

(3) The deadline for the submitting of a completed application for the grant in 2015 shall be 8 October 2015.

Information to be Provided by Eligible Persons Making an Application

7. (1) Eligible persons when making the application to the Department of Social Protection shall be required to confirm that the application is in respect of their principal private residence on the reckonable date of occupancy and that it is the sole residence in respect of which a grant application has been made.

(2) Eligible persons shall also be required to furnish the following information when completing the application, their:-

(a) water point reference number;

(b) customer account number or registration number;

(c) payment instructions; and

(d) such other information as may be requested by the Department of Social Protection including a personal public service number.

(3) It is the responsibility of eligible persons to ensure that the information provided when making the application is correct in all respects.

(4) All information requested in paragraph (2) shall be furnished in order to facilitate payment of the grant.

Overpayments and Erroneous Payments

8. Any overpayment or erroneous payment made in respect of a grant paid shall be reimbursed by the recipient within four weeks of receipt of the payment, or within four weeks of receipt of a notification that such a payment has been made.

Administrative Guidelines

9. The Minister may publish administrative guidelines in respect of the operation of the grant scheme.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Social Protection,

29 June 2015.

JOAN BURTON,

Minister for Social Protection.

GIVEN under my Official Seal,

30 June 2015.

ALAN KELLY,

Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation)

These Regulations provide for the administrating by the Department of Social Protection on behalf of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government of a water conservation grant scheme in respect of all households (principal private dwellings) that complete a valid response to Irish Water’s customer registration process.

The €100 grant will assist households in adopting a sustainable approach to their use of water and wastewater services, irrespective of whether or not the households are customers of Irish Water.