A Change Proposal is the means to amend the Retail Energy Code (REC) as set out in the Main Body of the REC Code or the Change Management Schedule. A Change Proposal may be submitted with a developed solution or may be transformed from an Issue in accordance with the Change Management Schedule.

Raising a Change Proposal

Any interested person, stakeholder, REC Party or the Code Manager can raise a Change Proposal if they believe they have a developed solution that appropriately addresses their problem. To do so, the proposer will need to submit a REC Change Proposal form.

If the proposer needs help defining a solution or believes multiple solution options could be considered, they should submit an Issue form, and Code Manager will utilise established working groups and Subject Matter Experts to harness the industry’s expertise to find the most appropriate solution. 

Once the form is submitted, it will be reviewed by the Change team. The proposer will usually be told of a decision to accept or reject the Change Proposal within five working days. If longer is needed, they will be advised of the timeline and the reasons for the extension.

If the Change Proposal is accepted, it will be assigned a reference number (starting with an ‘R’), and a Change page will be created to hold the relevant information and documents. This page will be accessible through the Change Register on the REC Portal.

Understanding the Change Progression

The below diagram demonstrates the end-to-end stages that a proposal may go through during the change lifecycle. Each stage has various activities which the Code Manager may complete if required.

REC Issues will go through the Verification, Assessment and Definition stages prior to progressing to a Change Proposal. If during these stages the Code Manager believes that the proposal has no reasonable prospect of being accepted they may recommend to reject it. For example: 

• The Proposal would directly contradict, or prevent the REC from achieving, the relevant objectives of the Code. 
• The Proposal would cause RECCo, REC Parties, REC Service Providers or the Code Manager to be in breach of their legal obligations. 
• A recent decision or previous precedent has been made in relation to the same, or similar, issue which is still relevant. 
• The Proposal is vexatious

Change Proposals may progress to the Change Proposal stage for Consultation after Verification without the need for Solution Development, however, still may undergo Impact Assessment, if required.

For more information regarding the Change Management process, activities and documentation, please refer to the REC Change Process user guide.