Rural Water Commission of Victoria

The Rural Water Commission of Victoria (RWCV) was established on 1 July 1984 after the State Rivers and Water Supply Commission (SRWSC, VA 723) was abolished by the Water (Central Management Restructuring) Act 1984. RWCV assumed a majority of SRWSC's functions, powers, responsibilities and assets. The functions of the RWCV were as follows:

• To provide water and water-related services for irrigation, domestic and stock uses and for commercial, industrial, recreational, environmental and other beneficial uses in irrigation and other rural areas throughout Victoria;
• To design, construct, operate and maintain the necessary infrastructure to enable the delivery of services;
• To allocate and sell water, and where necessary purchase water, and implement pricing and demand management policies;
• To undertake resource assessment, and investigations pursuant to the effective and efficient operation and maintenance of rural water services;
• To undertake water services and related functions as may be assigned by legislation, directed by the Minister or delegated to the Commission by other public authorities; and
• To develop public education programs to promote broad community awareness of the role of rural water services in Victoria's social and economic development. 

The restructuring of SRWSC followed a review by the Public Bodies Review Committee of Victoria's non-metropolitan water industry. Further reforms of the water industry in the 1990s saw the abolition of RWCV, which was replaced by the Rural Water Corporation (RWC, VA 4234) according to the Water (Rural Water Corporation) Act 1992. RWC was tasked with decentralising management of the rural water services and establishing the rural water industry as commercially self-sufficient.