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Department of Primary Industries

Secretary's Animal Care and Ethics Committee Use Criteria

Use Criteria have been developed to assist stakeholders when considering whether the Secretary’s ACEC is the right committee for them.

Use Criteria:

  1. The project must be undertaken in the State of NSW. Projects also being conducted interstate should seek approval from relevant State based Committee. Applications for projects that will also be conducted in States and Territories that no public facing committee will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the Secretary’s ACEC.
  2. The individual or organisation has not had an ARA cancelled due to non-compliance or been convicted under the Act or equivalent interstate legislation.
  3. If the applicant is from a corporation or business, that employs less than ten employees involved in animal research and teaching activities.
  4. If the business is a corporation, they must be accredited as an Animal Research Establishment (ARE).
  5. Where the applicant undertakes remote work, monitoring of remote projects must be completed via reporting with provision of visual evidence as requested by the ACEC.
  6. Applicants will be subject to the Secretary’s ACEC fee schedule.
  7. Applicants will be subject to risk-based monitoring of their fixed facilities at least triennially.
  8. Users of the Secretary’s ACEC, the ACEC members and support staff maintain a mutual expectation of reasonable and fair treatment. Abusive or disrespectful behaviour will not be tolerated and may result in termination of Secretary’s ACEC oversight.  Where a user of the ACEC is unhappy with decisions, treatment, or processes of the ACEC, grievance procedures should be followed to investigate the matter in a professional, respectful, and transparent manner.

What the SACEC will not oversee:

  1. Researchers employed by businesses and accredited establishments more than ten employees involved in animal research and teaching activities and/or requiring more than ten projects approved concurrently.
  2. Researchers who own or are employed by businesses that are not accredited when they should be.
  3. Researchers that have had the same, unchanged application rejected by other ACECs.