Community Disputes Resolution (Limitation of Powers and Duties) Regulations 2025

These Regulations are the Community Disputes Resolution (Limitation of Powers and Duties) Regulations 2025 and come into operation on 24 March 2025.

In these Regulations, “specified powers and duties” means the powers and duties of the Director-General, Directors, Deputy Directors, Senior Assistant Directors, community relations officers and auxiliary community relations officers in the following provisions of the Act:

section 13I(1)(a) to (k), (m) and (n) and (2) to (5) (powers of community relations officers);

section 13J(1)(a) to (h) and (2) to (5) (powers of auxiliary community relations officers);

section 13L (powers to issue and enforce abatement orders).

For the purposes of section 13G(1)(a) of the Act, the categories or types of unreasonable interference in relation to which the specified powers and duties may be exercised or performed are the following:

the causing of excessive noise;

the accumulation or stockpiling, in a place of residence, of excessive or unconstrained things or material that —

a reasonable person would consider to be of low or no value or no utility in the circumstances; and

is of a nature or in a quantity that causes unreasonable interference to the individual’s neighbour such as excessive smell or the infestation of pests.

For the purposes of section 13G(1)(b) of the Act, the unreasonable interference of causing excessive noise must in the determination of the Director‑General be serious and severe before the specified powers and duties may be exercised or performed.

The Director‑General may in making his or her determination under paragraph (1) —

do so on the information or evidence alleged or disclosed on the face of the complaint and any document or material submitted in support of the complaint without any further investigation or other action; and

consider any of the following factors:

the alleged volume or intensity of the alleged excessive noise;

the time at which the alleged excessive noise is alleged to occur and the duration for which it is alleged to occur;

whether the alleged excessive noise would reasonably be expected to occur in the course of ordinary daily activities;

any possible impact that the alleged excessive noise may have on the daily activities of the individual’s neighbour;

whether there was any prior attempt by a public agency, mediator or other neutral party to facilitate dialogue or resolution between the individual and the individual’s neighbour in relation to the complaint and if so, the outcome of the attempt.

To avoid doubt, the limitations in this regulation do not apply to the unreasonable interference mentioned in regulation 2(b).

For the purposes of section 13G(1)(b) of the Act, the unreasonable interference of causing excessive noise must in the determination of the Director‑General be serious and severe before the specified powers and duties may be exercised or performed.

The Director‑General may in making his or her determination under paragraph (1) —

do so on the information or evidence alleged or disclosed on the face of the complaint and any document or material submitted in support of the complaint without any further investigation or other action; and

consider any of the following factors:

the alleged volume or intensity of the alleged excessive noise;

the time at which the alleged excessive noise is alleged to occur and the duration for which it is alleged to occur;

whether the alleged excessive noise would reasonably be expected to occur in the course of ordinary daily activities;

any possible impact that the alleged excessive noise may have on the daily activities of the individual’s neighbour;

whether there was any prior attempt by a public agency, mediator or other neutral party to facilitate dialogue or resolution between the individual and the individual’s neighbour in relation to the complaint and if so, the outcome of the attempt.

To avoid doubt, the limitations in this regulation do not apply to the unreasonable interference mentioned in regulation 2(b).

[Deleted by S 582/2026 wef 01/09/2026]