• National Emergency Medal (Floods November 2022) Declaration 2026.

1 Name

This instrument is the National Emergency Medal (Floods November 2022) Declaration 2026. 

2 Commencement

(1)    Each provision of this instrument specified in column I of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.

Note: This table relates only to the provisions of this instrument as originally made. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this instrument.

(2)    Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this instrument. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this instrument.

3 Authority

This instrument is made under subregulation 3(2) of the National Emergency Medal Regulations 2011: 

(a)    set out in the Schedule to the Letters Patent dated 23 October 2011 that instituted the National Emergency Medal; and
(b)    as amended by the Schedule to the Letters Patent dated 3 July 2026.

4 Definitions

Note: A number of expressions used in this instrument are defined in the Regulations, including the following:

(a)    Medal for sustained service;

(b)    nationally-significant emergency;

(c)    service.

(1)    In this instrument:

declared emergency means the emergency declared in section 5.

eligible service means service of a type mentioned in section 9.

Regulations means the National Emergency Medal Regulations 2011:

(a)    set out in the Schedule to the Letters Patent dated 23 October 2011 that instituted the National Emergency Medal; and
(b)    as amended by the Schedule to the Letters Patent dated 3 July 2026.

(2)    Unless the contrary intention appears, expressions used in this instrument have the same meaning as in the Regulations.

5 Declared emergency

For the purposes of subregulation 3(2) of the Regulations, the floods that happened in the State of New South Wales in November 2022 are an emergency that is declared to be a nationally-significant emergency for the purposes of the Regulations.

6 Name of declared emergency

For the purposes of paragraph 3(4)(a) of the Regulations, the name by which the declared emergency is to be known for the purposes of the Regulations is the "Floods November 2022". 

7 Geographical area of declared emergency

For the purposes of paragraph 3(4)(b) of the Regulations, the geographical area in Australia where the declared emergency happened is the area that consists of the following local government areas in the State of New South Wales, as at 14 November 2022:

(a)    Cabonne;
(b)    Cowra;
(c)    Forbes;
(d)    Lachlan;
(e)    Parkes.

8 Duration of declared emergency

(1)    For the purposes of paragraph 3(4)(c) of the Regulations, the declared emergency began on 14 November 2022. 

(2)    For the purposes of paragraph 3(4)(d) of the Regulations, the duration of the declared emergency was the period beginning on 14 November 2022 and ending on 27 November 2022.

9 Eligible service during declared emergency

For the purposes of paragraph 3(4)(e) of the Regulations, the type of service in relation to the declared emergency that is required to qualify for the award of the Medal for sustained service is service by a person: 

(a)    in the protection of lives and property; or
(b)    in the service of interests that are not their own;

in direct response to the declared emergency (including support that enables or facilitates the emergency response). 

10 Minimum duration of eligible service during declared emergency

For the purposes of paragraph 3( 4)( e) of the Regulations, the minimum duration of eligible service required to qualify for the award of the Medal for sustained service is 5 days during the period mentioned in subsection 8(2) of this instrument.