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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
2019
The Parliament of the
Commonwealth of Australia
THE SENATE
Presented and read a first time
Commonwealth Electoral Amendment
(Transparency Measures--Real Time
Disclosure) Bill 2019
No. , 2019
(Senator Farrell)
A Bill for an Act to amend the
Commonwealth
Electoral Act 1918
, and for related purposes
No. , 2019
Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Transparency Measures--Real
Time Disclosure) Bill 2019
i
Contents
1
Short title ........................................................................................... 1
2
Commencement ................................................................................. 1
3
Schedules ........................................................................................... 2
Schedule 1--Amendments
3
Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918
3
No. , 2019
Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Transparency Measures--Real
Time Disclosure) Bill 2019
1
A Bill for an Act to amend the
Commonwealth
1
Electoral Act 1918
, and for related purposes
2
The Parliament of Australia enacts:
3
1 Short title
4
This Act is the
Commonwealth Electoral Amendment
5
(Transparency Measures--Real Time Disclosure)
Act 2019
.
6
2 Commencement
7
(1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table
8
commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with
9
column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect
10
according to its terms.
11
12
2
Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Transparency Measures--Real
Time Disclosure) Bill 2019
No. , 2019
Commencement information
Column 1
Column 2
Column 3
Provisions
Commencement
Date/Details
1. The whole of
this Act
The first 1 July to occur after the day this
Act receives the Royal Assent.
Note:
This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally
1
enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of
2
this Act.
3
(2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act.
4
Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it
5
may be edited, in any published version of this Act.
6
3 Schedules
7
Legislation that is specified in a Schedule to this Act is amended or
8
repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule
9
concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this Act has effect
10
according to its terms.
11
Amendments
Schedule 1
No. , 2019
Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Transparency Measures--Real
Time Disclosure) Bill 2019
3
Schedule 1--Amendments
1
2
Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918
3
1 After Division 4 of Part XX
4
Insert:
5
Division 4A--Disclosure of receipt of donations
6
307AA Interpretation
7
In this Division:
8
disclosure gift
from a person or entity means
a gift from the person
9
or entity that is equal to or more than the disclosure threshold.
10
disclosure sum
from a person or entity means a sum of gifts (other
11
than disclosure gifts) received from the person or entity that is
12
equal to or more than the disclosure threshold.
13
gift recipient
means any of the following:
14
(a) a registered political party;
15
(b) a State branch of a registered political party;
16
(c) a candidate (including a member of a group) in an election or
17
a by-election;
18
(d) a group;
19
(e) an associated entity.
20
307AB Disclosure of certain gifts to gift recipients
21
Returns after receiving disclosure gift or disclosure sum
22
(1) For each disclosure gift received by a gift recipient from a person
23
or entity during a financial year, the recipient's agent or financial
24
controller must provide a return for the gift in accordance with this
25
section within 7 days of receiving the gift.
26
(2) If a gift recipient receives a disclosure sum from a person or entity
27
during a financial year, the recipient's agent or financial controller
28
Schedule 1
Amendments
4
Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Transparency Measures--Real
Time Disclosure) Bill 2019
No. , 2019
must provide a return in accordance with this section within 7 days
1
after the day:
2
(a) the recipient receives the gift (a
trigger gift
) that makes the
3
sum of gifts received during the financial year a disclosure
4
sum; and
5
(b) of each subsequent gift (a
post-trigger gift
) after the trigger
6
gift the recipient receives from the person or entity during the
7
financial year.
8
Form of the return
9
(3) The return must:
10
(a) be in the approved form; and
11
(b) in the case of a return required under subsection (1) because
12
of a disclosure gift:
13
(i) set out the amount or value of the disclosure gift that
14
was received; and
15
(ii) set out the date on which the disclosure gift was
16
received; and
17
(c) in the case of a return required under subsection (2) because
18
of a trigger gift:
19
(i) set out the disclosure sum received; and
20
(ii) set out the amount or value of each gift that makes up
21
the disclosure sum; and
22
(iii) set out the date on which each of those gifts was
23
received;
24
(d) in the case of a return required under subsection (2) because
25
of a post-trigger gift:
26
(i) set out the amount or value of the post-trigger gift that
27
was received; and
28
(ii) set out the date on which the post-trigger gift was
29
received.
30
(4) The return must set out:
31
(a) if the person or entity was an unincorporated association,
32
other than a registered industrial organisation:
33
(i) the name of the association; and
34
Amendments
Schedule 1
No. , 2019
Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Transparency Measures--Real
Time Disclosure) Bill 2019
5
(ii) the names and addresses of the members of the
1
executive committee (however described) of the
2
association; or
3
(b) if the gift or gifts from the person or entity was paid out of a
4
trust fund or paid out of the funds of a foundation:
5
(i) the names and addresses of the trustees of the fund or of
6
the foundation; and
7
(ii) the title or other description of the trust fund, or the
8
name of the foundation, as the case requires; or
9
(c) in any other case--the name and address of the person or
10
entity.
11
Miscellaneous
12
(5) An agent or financial controller of a gift recipient must not
13
contravene subsection (1) or (2).
14
Civil penalty:
15
The higher of the following amounts:
16
(a) 60 penalty units;
17
(b) if there is sufficient evidence for the court to determine the
18
amount or value, or an estimate of the amount or value, of
19
gifts not disclosed--3 times that amount or value.
20
(6) Subsection 93(2) of the Regulatory Powers Act does not apply in
21
relation to a contravention of subsection (5) of this section.
22
307AC Disclosure of certain gifts to political campaigners
23
Returns after use of disclosure gift, disclosure sum or
24
post-disclosure sum gift
25
(1) If a political campaigner has used any part of a disclosure gift from
26
a person or entity for a covered purpose during a financial year, the
27
campaigner's financial controller must provide a return in
28
accordance with this section within 7 days after the day of that use.
29
(2) If a political campaigner has used any part of a disclosure sum
30
from a person or entity for a covered purpose during a financial
31
Schedule 1
Amendments
6
Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Transparency Measures--Real
Time Disclosure) Bill 2019
No. , 2019
year, the campaigner's financial controller must provide a return in
1
accordance with this section within 7 days after:
2
(a) if a part of a gift that makes up the sum has been used for a
3
covered purpose before the sum is a disclosure sum--the day
4
the sum became a disclosure sum; or
5
(b) otherwise--the day after a part of the sum is used for a
6
covered purpose.
7
(3) If:
8
(a) a political campaigner uses during a financial year a part of a
9
gift (a
post-disclosure sum gift
) received from a person or
10
entity for a covered purpose; and
11
(b) before receiving the post-disclosure sum gift, the campaigner
12
had made a return required under subsection (2) in relation to
13
the use of a disclosure sum from the person or entity for a
14
covered purpose during the financial year;
15
the campaigner's financial controller must provide a return in
16
accordance with this section within 7 days after the day the part of
17
the post-disclosure sum gift is used.
18
Covered purposes
19
(4) The following purposes are
covered purposes
:
20
(a) to enable a political campaigner to incur electoral
21
expenditure, or create or communicate electoral matter;
22
(b) to reimburse a political campaigner for incurring electoral
23
expenditure, or creating or communicating electoral matter.
24
Form of return
25
(5) The return must:
26
(a) be in the approved form; and
27
(b) in the case of a return required under subsection (1):
28
(i) set out the amount or value of the disclosure gift that
29
was received; and
30
(ii) set out the date on which the disclosure gift was
31
received; and
32
(iii) set out how the disclosure gift, in whole or part, was
33
used for a covered purpose; and
34
Amendments
Schedule 1
No. , 2019
Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Transparency Measures--Real
Time Disclosure) Bill 2019
7
(c) in the case of a return required under subsection (2):
1
(i) set out the disclosure sum received; and
2
(ii) set out the amount or value of each gift that makes up
3
the disclosure sum; and
4
(iii) set out the date on which each of those gifts was
5
received; and
6
(iv) set out how the disclosure sum, in whole or part, was
7
used for a covered purpose; and
8
(d) in the case of a return required under subsection (3):
9
(i) set out the amount or value of the post-disclosure sum
10
gift that was received; and
11
(ii) set out the date on which the post-disclosure sum gift
12
was received; and
13
(iii) set out how the post-disclosure sum gift, in whole or
14
part, was used for a covered purpose.
15
(6) The return must set out:
16
(a) if the person or entity was an unincorporated association,
17
other than a registered industrial organisation:
18
(i) the name of the association; and
19
(ii) the names and addresses of the members of the
20
executive committee (however described) of the
21
association; or
22
(b) if the gift or gifts from the person or entity was paid out of a
23
trust fund or paid out of the funds of a foundation:
24
(i) the names and addresses of the trustees of the fund or of
25
the foundation; and
26
(ii) the title or other description of the trust fund, or the
27
name of the foundation, as the case requires; or
28
(c) in any other case--the name and address of the person or
29
entity.
30
Miscellaneous
31
(7) A financial controller of a political campaigner must not
32
contravene subsection (1), (2) or (3).
33
Civil penalty:
34
Schedule 1
Amendments
8
Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Transparency Measures--Real
Time Disclosure) Bill 2019
No. , 2019
The higher of the following amounts:
1
(a) 60 penalty units;
2
(b) if there is sufficient evidence for the court to determine the
3
amount or value, or an estimate of the amount or value, of
4
gifts not disclosed--3 times that amount or value.
5
(8) Subsection 93(2) of the Regulatory Powers Act does not apply in
6
relation to a contravention of subsection (7) of this section.
7
2 Subsection 320(1) (after table item 4)
8
Insert:
9
4A
each return provided under
Division 4A
as soon as reasonably practicable
after receiving the return.
10