Date
December 2022 — March 2023
The challenge
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), a government body that regulates Australian aviation safety including licensing pilots and registering aircraft, required an independent review of its regulatory enforcement function. The review was needed to determine whether the process was effective and find out whether there were any opportunities to align with better practice regulation domestically and internationally.
CASA chose Proximity to undertake this important project due to our extensive understanding of CASA’s operating environment, having supported the development of its regulatory functions for over five years. CASA also sought our expertise due to having undertaken a number of independent reviews of regulators and their regulatory and non-regulatory functions in the past.
Approach
CASA’s regulatory enforcement function includes all disciplinary activities that CASA undertakes after an aviation safety risk or issue has been identified, whether that’s via CASA’s initial surveillance into a regulated entity or following notification from a partner agency or regulated entity.
Proximity was engaged to make an assessment as to the appropriateness of regulatory enforcement with reference to best practice principles of effective regulation. Proximity leveraged its legal expertise to assess the appropriateness of CASA’s approach and actual enforcement activities with respect to principles of administrative law.
Proximity undertook this review across three phases. In Phase 1, Proximity reviewed CASA documentation including case studies of regulatory enforcement matters (i.e. show cause notices, regulatory decision outcome notices, interactions with regulated entities under investigation etc.).
To provide guidance on CASA’s regulatory framework and approach, Proximity also conducted a thorough review of better practice principles in Australia (i.e. ACQSC, AMSA, SWA and ATSB) and internationally (UK, USA, Canada and New Zealand civil aviation regulators). This phase produced a framework for assessing CASA’s regulatory enforcement approach against better practice principles garnered from the research.
In Phase 2, Proximity met with key regulatory enforcement personnel, from investigators to the Director of Aviation Safety (CEO) to attain feedback and insights into the effectiveness of the current function, challenges and any desired improvements.
In Phase 3, Proximity assessed CASA against the developed better practice principles. Proximity provided CASA with assurance as to the high quality of their regulatory enforcement practices relative to other regulators within Australia and internationally, as well as opportunities for improvement with a roadmap for how to implement those opportunities.
Value
delivered
Having received feedback in parliamentary committees regarding their approach to regulatory enforcement CASA welcomed the review. By having this review conducted independently, CASA both learned more about the broader Commonwealth regulatory community and international civil aviation regulation, as well as how they stacked up against these reference points. Proximity delivered a review that not only supported CASA at a point in time, but provided them with indicia to continue to assess themselves against into the future.
