By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim
The New South Wales Labor government just introduced a further piece of legislation on Thursday, 6 August 2026, that serves to strengthen existing NSW legislative regimes that target the work of organised crime. The previous Coalition government commenced this process in 2022, and the last reforms related to it have only recently been progressed through NSW parliament in June.
Tabled by NSW police minister Yasmin Catley, the Crimes and Other Legislation Amendment (Further Organised Crimes Reforms) Bill 2026 strengthens laws requiring civilians comply with the NSW Crime Commission, unlinks digital evidence access order use from warrants, links NSW driver licence ID photos to a national database, and it makes toll camera photos reveal drivers’ identities.
“Earlier this year, the government introduced new offences and tougher penalties targeting abhorrent behaviour committed in the context of organised crime,” Catley told the lower chamber last week. “The bill builds on these reforms by amending legislation to assist law enforcement in responding to emerging techniques and evasive methods used by organised crime offenders.”
These bills that are being rolled out in the name of fighting organised crime, although many of the measures involved spark civil liberties issues for the rest of the constituency that they’re supposed to be protecting, and the measures in the current bill, compared with those of the recently passed Organised Crime and Gang-Related Bill, more so encroach upon the privacy of regular constituents.
These privacy questions are in particular sparked by laws in the current bill that are attempting to provide access to all NSW driver licence photos to aid in fighting organised crime, as when similar reforms were first proposed in 2018, the NSW Berejiklian government sought to provide this state’s ID photos to a national database that would enable a nationwide surveillance program.
Penalties upped for refusing NSWCC directions
The first amendments of the new bill involve changes to the Crime Commission Act 2012 (NSW) (the CC Act). This is the legislation that established the NSW Crime Commission, which is a statutory corporation that aims to curb organised crime. The first amendments in the current reform bill double the penalties that apply when an individual refuses a direction from the NSWCC.
The bill seeks to up the penalties that apply to section 25 of the CC Act offence of failure of a witness to attend and answer questions from a $2,200 fine and 2 years in prison to a $4,400 fine and up to 4 years in prison. The penalties related to subsection 27(2) of the CC Act offence of providing false or misleading evidence are also to be doubled to a fine of $11,000 and up to 10 years imprisonment.
The penalties for the subsection 28(4) of the CC Act offence of refusing to provide information about certain government agencies will also be doubled to a $4,400 fine and 12 months in prison, and the penalties that apply to the subsection 29(9) offence of refusing to comply with a production notice will be the same as the 28(4) offence if the new bill successfully passes.
Failure to comply with a condition related to a release order applied to a witness who was arrested and compelled to testify by the Crime Commission, under subsection 37(3) of the CC Act, is to carry up to a $4,400 fine and/or 4 years imprisonment, while subsection 45(3) penalties for publishing information subject to a nondisclosure order will rise to $22,000 and/or up to 4 years gaol time.
The penalties contained in subsection 45A(6) of the CC Act apply to an accused who has testified as a witness in respect of the offence of which they have been charged and have subsequently been ordered to refrain from any further disclosures, going on to make more disclosures in contravention of this order have been upped to $11,000 and/or 4 years imprisonment.
The punishments applying to obstructing or disrupting the NSW Crime Commission in its work, contrary to 47G of the CC Act, are to increase to $22,000 fine and/or 4 years imprisonment, whilst those related to the nondisclosure of required production notice documents, under section 81 of the CC Act, are being doubled to a fine of $11,000 and/or 2 years imprisonment.
New subsection 85(1A) of the CC Act would result in the ability to prosecute the noncompliance offences “under section 25, 37(3), 45(3), 45A(6), 47D(5) or 47G(1)” on indictment in the NSW District Court, despite subsection 85(1) stipulating that all criminal offences contained in the CC Act should be dealt with summarily in the NSW Local Court.
The bill also lists the section 25, 37(3), 45(3), 45A(6), 47D(5) or 47G(1) offences of the CC Act under table 2 of schedule 1 of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW), which means these crimes can be dealt with either summarily in the NSW Local Court or on indictment in the NSW District Court, depending upon how the prosecution would like to proceed.
Section 268 of the Criminal Procedure Act provides that table 2 offences are to be tried in the Local Court, with the maximum penalties that apply being 2 years prison time and/or a fine of up to $11,000. However, new subsections 45(3A), 45A(6A) and 47G(2) of the CC Act provide that the new doubled fines being inserted will apply even when tried summarily in the NSW Local Court.
The final amendments to the CC Act involve subsection 47C(5), which will require that if a witness is found to be in contempt of court that they are immediately taken into custody by the NSW police or an officer nominated by the NSWCC, and they will then have to show cause as to why they should not be dealt with via the NSW Supreme Court for this contempt, as per section 47B of the CC Act.
Scanning phones at traffic stops
The second major reform made by the Further Organised Crime Reforms Bill involves extending the digital evidence access order (DEAO) regime to provide that the preexisting mechanism that requires suspects to open their mobile devices in order to allow NSW police to scan its content when it is related to a search or a serious crime warrant is made available in other situations, like traffic stops.
To this effect, the new legislation distinguishes digital evidence access orders (warrant) and digital evidence access orders (organised crime) under section 3 of the Law Enforcement (Powers and Responsibilities) Act 2002, or the LEPRA, and it further inserts new laws relating to the DEAO (organised crime) regime under new division 4B of part 5 of the LEPRA.
The DEAO regime that has been underway since 2022 will continue as the DEAO (warrant) regime, while the DEAO (organised crime) regime will provide that such orders to scan a phone are made available in connection with “organised crime offences”.
As described under new section 76AS of the LEPRA, organised crime offences are serious offences that are linked to organised crime, and include crimes planned by two or more people, or those involving substantial planning, or systemic activity or committed to obtain power and profit or those committed as a form of retribution.
New section 76AR defines a serious offence as aggravated property damage, possession of explosives with intent, kidnapping, demanding property with intent to steal, fraud, possession and use of firearms and possession of illicit tobacco or tobacco products without a warning.
A NSW police officer will be able to apply for a DEAO (organised crime) when a device has been reasonably seized and organised crime information is suspected to be on it, while the reasons behind this must be explained. An application or an order is made to “a judge of the NSW Local Court”, and it can be done in person or electronically.
The issuing officer must be satisfied of the soundness of this procedure on multiple reasonable grounds regarding the reasons behind making the DEAO and circumstances involved in securing the device, and they must take an oath to show this.
New section 76AZE explains that a DEAO permits an executing officer to require a person to provide them with access to the device, allow them to copy data or convert it into documentary form. If biometric data or a fingerprint is required to open the device, this must be supplied, and a person under 18 cannot be forced to undertake this process without a suitable representative present.
The new legislation also increases the maximum penalty that applies to failure to comply with a DEAO from 5 years imprisonment to 7 years, while the maximum fine of $11,000 remains the same.
Nationwide biometric ID database
The NSW police minister further outlines in her second reading speech on the bill that additional amendments will permit NSW government agencies to provide “facial images” from NSW driver licence and photo cards to a national database to allow for the collection and use, release or disclosure of them to a Commonwealth face matching service.
This is not the first time this has been proposed and that’s why section 271A of the Road Transport Act 2013 (NSW), has provisions within it working towards this end. But the content of 271A is now being updated, which will allow identity photos to be included in the National Driver Licence Facial Recognition Solution, which had not been finalised in 2018, when section 271A was first enacted.
The entire picture
“The amendments in this bill will also create a framework in the Roads Act 1993 for the collection, storage and disclosure to NSW police of unredacted toll camera images in certain circumstances,” the NSW police minister continued in finishing off her speech.
“These amendments are intended to provide police access to the valuable intelligence that will help police establish cultural links in serious and organised crime investigations.”
Currently, photos that are captured by road toll cameras only provide the image related to a vehicle’s number plate and the identity of the driver is redacted. However, the Minns government plans on inserting “part 15B”, which contains laws relating to the “collection, storage and disclosure of toll camera images”, into the Roads Act.
Laws under new section 261D and 261E of the Roads Act would permit for toll cameras to take a photo of the entire vehicle, including the driver and passengers and permit exemption provisions for when the collection, storage and disclosure of these images is to be permitted, which includes for payment of tolls and functions related to this, as well as for law enforcement purposes.
New section 261F of the Roads Act provides individuals with the ability to collect toll camera images to facilitate an investigation or prosecution of serious indictable offences, as well as to locate missing persons, or prevent or lessen the threat to a person’s life or to support in the investigation of a death that will be the subject of a coronial inquiry.
The final change the organised crime legislation makes is to insert new section 261G into the Roads Act to allow for the disclosure of toll camera images to authorised agencies, which include toll operators, the NSW Crime Commission, the NSW Police Force and the NSW Ombudsman.
“The amendments in the bill will enhance the capabilities of our law enforcement agencies in their important work of responding to the threat of serious and organised crime,” the NSW police minister said in ending her explanatory speech on the new laws.
“They represent an important improvement to the legislative framework to ensure that it is fit for purpose in the fight against organised crime and in keeping the community safe,” Catley said in ending. “I commend the bill to the house.”
Photo of NSW police officer by Paul Gregoire
