In Australia, technical and safety electrical regulatory functions are largely the responsibility of state and territory governments.

 A considerable amount of liaison is therefore required between the eight Australian states and territories and New Zealand to coordinate their activities in respect of regulatory strategies, policies and ongoing reforms.

ERAC is the organisation that works towards this coordination. 

The council is made up of representatives of the regulatory authorities responsible for electrical safety, supply and energy efficiency in New Zealand and the Australian states, territories and commonwealth.

ERAC meets twice a year and regularly corresponds both internally and with industry stakeholders on regulatory issues with a view to developing recommendations for consistent operational policy across jurisdictions. 

ERAC representatives cover the interests of other members in national forums such as Standards Australia policy boards and technical committees.  ERAC also provides a practical single point of regulator contact for unions, industry and other areas of government, at the national level.

Although ERAC exists entirely through cooperative action and has no executive powers, it is recognised throughout the electrical industry as an authoritative voice for electrical regulators. 

See our profile for more information.

History of ERAC

ERAC has a long history, its predecessors being the Electrical Regulatory Authorities Approvals Committee (RAAC) and Regulatory Authorities Licensing Committee (RALC) which were sponsored by the ESAA (Electricity Supply Association of Australia) dating back to the 1960s. 

ERAC took over from the RAAC and RALC committees as an independent body in 1995.