New South Wales Prepares New Law to Support Music Venues

Why It Matters

By providing targeted funding and regulatory relief, the bill could stabilize venue economics and set a template for other governments to protect live‑music infrastructure.

Key Takeaways

• Music Bill 2026 creates Sound NSW advisory board
• Accreditation scheme categorises dedicated, significant, live music venues
• AU$500k grants target all‑ages concert venues
• Bill streamlines noise complaint handling and event approvals
• Potential model for global grassroots venue support policies

Pulse Analysis

The live‑music sector in Australia has been hit hard by pandemic‑induced closures, stringent festival licensing and the dominance of overseas streaming catalogs. Grassroots venues, which serve as incubators for emerging talent, faced revenue shortfalls and mounting compliance costs. Policymakers therefore recognised that without a dedicated support framework, the cultural pipeline could dry up, eroding both local artist development and community engagement. The Music Bill 2026 arrives as a direct response, aiming to shore up the financial and regulatory foundations that keep small clubs and all‑ages spaces operational.

At the heart of the legislation is the creation of Sound NSW, an advisory board tasked with guiding policy and mediating disputes between venues, residents and authorities. An accreditation tier system will label venues as dedicated, significant or live‑music sites, unlocking streamlined approvals and tailored assistance. The AU$500,000 grant scheme specifically targets venues that host all‑ages concerts, addressing a critical gap in funding for youth‑focused programming. By simplifying noise‑complaint processes and fast‑tracking event permits, the bill reduces administrative burdens, allowing operators to focus on programming rather than bureaucracy.

Beyond state borders, the Music Bill could become a benchmark for other jurisdictions grappling with similar venue crises. Its blend of advisory oversight, tiered accreditation and earmarked grants mirrors successful models like the UK’s Music Venue Trust while adding legislative teeth. If adopted elsewhere, such frameworks could rejuvenate live‑music ecosystems worldwide, fostering local talent pipelines and counterbalancing the homogenising effect of global streaming platforms. Industry stakeholders are watching closely, as the bill’s outcomes may shape future public‑policy approaches to cultural preservation and economic diversification in the entertainment sector.

New South Wales prepares new law to support music venues

By Stuart Dredge · February 17, 2026

We’ve been writing about the challenges facing grassroots music venues around the world for some time, with many of the efforts to support them coming from within the live industry: grant funds, voluntary ticket levies and so on.

Governments have got involved, making funding available and (in the UK) prodding for the voluntary levies. But in New South Wales in Australia, we’re now seeing the proposal for some full‑blown legislation: the Music Bill 2026.

You can read the bill here, and TheMusic’s rundown of its key provisions here. The new law would set up a ‘Sound NSW’ advisory board and an accreditation scheme for ‘dedicated’, ‘significant’ and ‘live music’ venues – which will smooth the process of providing them with support.

The bill would also ease challenges around noise complaints about outdoor events; speed up approvals of events; and comes with a new AU$500 k scheme offering grants to venues putting on all‑ages concerts.

“Our music industry has been smashed by lockouts, lockdowns, overregulation of festivals and the algorithmically enhanced onslaught of American music,” said New South Wales minister for music and the night‑time economy John Graham. “We have to back our local musicians or they’ll continue to drop out of our charts.”

That’s a reference to the ongoing debate in Australia about the declining domestic stream‑share of local artists, with Spotify pushing back with a stream of announcements stressing those artists’ global growth on its platform.

Because both of those trends can be simultaneously true, the debate about streaming’s impact on Australian artists will rage on. But if the challenge at hand is to reinvigorate their local streams, supporting the local venues and festivals where they can play live is vital.

That’s why this legislation is noteworthy in Australia, but its impact is also wider.

Just as the work of the UK’s Music Venue Trust charity has inspired similar efforts elsewhere – Australia included – so New South Wales’s Music Bill 2026 may give politicians around the world some pointers for what they could do to support their own grassroots live‑music industries.