The Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Strengthening Communications in Natural Disasters) Bill 2026 seeks to improve the resilience of Australia's mobile networks during extreme weather events. The Bill is structured around three "pillars" designed to prevent communities from becoming isolated when infrastructure fails.
The first pillar requires the ACMA to establish "minimum power requirements for critical network units in areas at high risk of being affected by natural disasters" [Explanatory Memo page 2]. This is intended to ensure that essential towers have backup power, such as batteries or generators, to remain operational when the main power grid fails. The second pillar grants the Minister the power to mandate "temporary disaster roaming," which would "require carriers... to enable end-users in an affected area to access an alternative mobile network for a limited period during an emergency" [Explanatory Memo page 5]. This ensures that if one provider's network goes down, customers can still connect via any other available network.
The third pillar amends the Telecommunications (Consumer Protection and Service Standards) Act 1999 to allow public interest grants to be used for disaster-specific communications, such as "emergency community Wi-Fi projects" and "Cells on Wheels" [Explanatory Memo page 5]. According to the Statement of Compatibility, the Bill primarily promotes the "right to life" by ensuring individuals can contact emergency services and receive life-saving warnings during disasters [Explanatory Memo page 7].
The primary justification for this Bill is the protection of human life and the maintenance of social order during crises. In the modern era, telecommunications are not a luxury but a critical utility; when they fail during a bushfire or flood, the result is often a preventable loss of life due to the inability to receive warnings or call for help [Judgment]. By mandating minimum power requirements and temporary roaming, the government is fulfilling its core Hobbesian duty to provide for the safety and security of its citizens.
Furthermore, this legislation addresses a significant equity gap between urban and regional Australia. Regional communities are disproportionately affected by outages and often lack the redundant infrastructure found in cities. Strengthening the resilience of these networks is a matter of community survival and solidarity, ensuring that no Australian is left isolated simply because of their geography [Judgment]. The provision for public interest grants further supports this by funding flexible, community-led solutions like satellite-backed Wi-Fi in local halls.
While the intent of the Bill is noble, it represents a significant intervention into the private property and operational autonomy of Mobile Network Operators (MNOs). Mandating "temporary disaster roaming" effectively forces companies to share their proprietary infrastructure with competitors, which may disincentivize future private investment in network hardening if companies believe they can simply rely on a competitor's resilience during a crisis [Judgment].
There are also significant epistemic concerns regarding the technical feasibility and unintended consequences of these mandates. Forcing roaming onto a single surviving network during a disaster could lead to catastrophic congestion, potentially causing the remaining network to fail under the sudden influx of traffic from all providers [Judgment]. Additionally, the Bill grants broad powers to the ACMA and the Minister to set requirements that may not account for the varying technical constraints of different sites. A more effective approach might involve collaborative, incentive-based programs rather than top-down regulatory mandates that risk undermining the overall stability of the telecommunications ecosystem.
2026-05-25
House of Representatives
Before House of Representatives
HAINES, Helen, MP
Unspecified
Infrastructure, Science / Technology, Climate Change / Environment