Commonwealth of Australia Bills Commonwealth of Australia Bills[Index] [Search] [Download] [Related Items] [Help]
This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
2002
The Parliament of
the
Commonwealth of
Australia
HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES
Presented and read a first
time
Egg
Industry Service Provision Bill 2002
No.
, 2002
(Agriculture, Fisheries and
Forestry)
A Bill for an Act relating to
service provision for the egg industry
Contents
A Bill for an Act relating to service provision for the
egg industry
The Parliament of Australia enacts:
This Act may be cited as the Egg Industry Service Provision Act
2002.
This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal
Assent.
The following is a simplified outline of this Act and the Egg Industry
Service Provision (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Act
2002:
This Act provides for a company to be declared as the industry services
body for the Australian egg industry (see Part 2).
It also provides for the industry services body to receive funding from the
Commonwealth (see Part 3).
The Egg Industry Service Provision (Transitional and Consequential
Provisions) Act 2002 provides for transfers of assets and liabilities to the
industry services body from the Rural Industries Research and Development
Corporation (which provided services to the Australian egg industry at the time
this Act was enacted).
In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:
Australia, when used in a geographical sense, includes the
external Territories.
egg means an egg of a domesticated chicken.
eligible body means a body that is registered under the
Corporations Act 2001 as a company limited by guarantee.
funding contract means a contract entered into under
section 7.
industry services body means the body declared to be the
industry services body under subsection 6(1).
matching amounts means:
(a) amounts of levy imposed under subclause 3(1) of Schedule 16 to
the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999 at a rate set under
paragraph 4(a) of that Schedule and received by the Commonwealth on or after the
transfer time; and
(b) amounts a person is liable to pay under section 7 of the
Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991 in relation to
the levy mentioned in paragraph (a) of this definition that are received by
the Commonwealth on or after the transfer time.
Note: Section 7 of the Primary Industries Levies and
Charges Collection Act 1991 concerns liability of
intermediaries.
matching payments means payments referred to in paragraph
7(1)(c).
Presiding Officer means:
(a) in relation to the House of Representatives—the Speaker of the
House of Representatives; and
(b) in relation to the Senate—the President of the Senate.
promotion amounts means:
(a) amounts of levy (egg levy) imposed on eggs under
Schedule 27 to the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Regulations
1999 and received by the Commonwealth on or after the transfer time;
and
(b) amounts a person is liable to pay under section 7 of the
Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991 in relation to
egg levy that are received by the Commonwealth on or after the transfer time;
and
(c) amounts payable under section 15 of the Primary Industries
Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991 in relation to egg levy that are
received by the Commonwealth on or after the transfer time.
Note: Section 7 of the Primary Industries Levies and
Charges Collection Act 1991 concerns liability of intermediaries and
section 15 of that Act concerns penalty for late payment.
promotion payments means payments referred to in paragraph
7(1)(a).
R&D amounts means:
(a) amounts of levy (laying chicken levy) imposed under
subclause 3(1) of Schedule 16 to the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies
Act 1999 at a rate set under paragraph 4(a) of that Schedule and received by
the Commonwealth on or after the transfer time; and
(b) amounts a person is liable to pay under section 7 of the
Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991 in relation to
laying chicken levy that are received by the Commonwealth on or after the
transfer time; and
(c) amounts payable under section 15 of the Primary Industries
Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991 in relation to laying chicken levy
that are received by the Commonwealth on or after the transfer time.
Note: Section 7 of the Primary Industries Levies and
Charges Collection Act 1991 concerns liability of intermediaries and
section 15 of that Act concerns penalty for late payment.
R&D payments means payments referred to in paragraph
7(1)(b).
transfer time means the time declared as the transfer time
under section 8 of the Egg Industry Service Provision (Transitional and
Consequential Provisions) Act 2002.
This Act applies both within and outside Australia.
(1) The Minister may, in writing, declare an eligible body to be the
industry services body if:
(a) the Minister is satisfied that, if the body is so declared, it will
comply with its obligations under the funding contract and this Act;
and
(b) the Commonwealth and the eligible body have entered into a funding
contract.
Note 1: For information about the assets and liabilities of
the eligible body first declared as the industry services body, see the Egg
Industry Service Provision (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Act
2002.
Note 2: Subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act
1901 provides for the repeal, variation etc. of
instruments.
(2) A declaration under this section must specify the day on and after
which the relevant body is to be the industry services body. That day must not
be earlier than the day after the day, or the later of the days (as the case may
be), that paragraph (3)(a) is complied with.
(3) The Minister must cause a copy of each declaration under this section
to be:
(a) laid before each House of the Parliament or, if a House is not
sitting, presented to the Presiding Officer of that House for circulation to the
members of that House and tabling on the next sitting day, within 5 days after
the declaration is made; and
(b) published in the Gazette within 14 days after the declaration
is made.
(4) For the purposes of subsection (3), if a House has been dissolved
and the newly-elected House has not met when a declaration is provided to the
Presiding Officer, circulation to the persons who were members of that House
immediately before the dissolution is taken to be circulation to the members of
the House.
(5) To avoid doubt, the function of a Presiding Officer of receiving,
circulating and tabling a declaration under subsection (3) is a function of
the Presiding Officer for the purposes of the Parliamentary Presiding
Officers Act 1965.
(6) A declaration is not invalid merely because it has not been published
as required under paragraph (3)(b).
(1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, enter into a contract
for the purposes of this subsection with an eligible body that provides for the
Commonwealth to make payments of the following kinds to the body if the body is
declared to be the industry services body:
(a) payments referred to as promotion payments;
(b) payments referred to as R&D payments;
(c) payments made in respect of particular financial years, referred to as
matching payments.
(2) Before entering into a contract for the purposes of
subsection (1), the Minister must be satisfied that the terms of the
contract make adequate provision to ensure that:
(a) promotion payments are spent by the body on the promotion of eggs and
the provision of industry services for the benefit of the Australian egg
industry; and
(b) R&D payments are spent by the body on research and development
activities for the benefit of the Australian egg industry; and
(c) matching payments are spent by the body on research and development
activities for the benefit of the Australian egg industry and the Australian
community generally.
(3) The contract may require the Commonwealth to pay amounts up to, but
not exceeding, the limits applicable under section 8.
Note: For example, the contract may provide that the
Commonwealth will pay a lesser amount so it can deduct the costs of collecting
promotion amounts and R&D amounts and have the capacity to deal
appropriately with refunds and payments made in error.
(4) The contract may include provisions relating to assets and liabilities
that are transferred to the body under the contract or the Egg Industry
Service Provision (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Act 2002. This
subsection does not impliedly limit the matters that may be included in the
contract.
(5) This section does not impliedly limit the executive power of the
Commonwealth to enter into agreements.
(1) The Consolidated Revenue Fund is appropriated for the purposes of
payments by the Commonwealth under the funding contract.
Overall limits for payments
(2) The total limit on the appropriation for the purposes of each type of
payment under the funding contract is:
(a) for promotion payments—the total amount of promotion amounts;
and
(b) for R&D payments—the total amount of R&D amounts;
and
(c) for matching payments—the total amount of matching
amounts.
Matching payments—annual limit
(3) For matching payments in respect of a particular financial year, the
limit on the appropriation is the lesser of:
(a) 0.5% of the amount determined by the Minister to be the gross value of
egg production in Australia in that financial year; and
(b) 50% of the amount spent by the industry services body in that
financial year on activities that qualify, under the funding contract, as
research and development activities.
(4) For the purposes of subsection (3), the regulations may prescribe
the manner in which the Minister is to determine the gross value of egg
production in Australia in a financial year.
Matching payments—unmatched R&D excess
(5) If there is an unmatched R&D excess for a financial year, the
amount spent by the eligible body in the following financial year on activities
that qualify, under the funding contract, as research and development activities
is taken, for the purposes of this section (including for the purposes of this
subsection and subsection (6)), to be increased by the amount of the
unmatched R&D excess.
Note: This means that research and development expenditure
that is not “50% matched” in one financial year because of the cap
in paragraph (2)(c) or (3)(a) can be carried forward into later
years.
(6) For the purposes of subsection (5), there is an unmatched
R&D excess for a financial year if:
(a) the eligible body spends a particular amount (the R&D spend
amount) in the financial year on activities that qualify, under the
funding contract, as research and development activities; and
(b) because of the operation of paragraph (2)(c) or
paragraph (3)(a), the matching payments for the financial year are less
than 50% of the R&D spend amount;
and the amount of the unmatched R&D excess is:
(1) The Minister may give a written direction to the industry services
body if:
(a) the Minister:
(i) is satisfied that the direction is in Australia’s national
interest because of exceptional and urgent circumstances; and
(ii) is satisfied that the direction would not require the body to incur
expenses greater than the sum of the amounts previously paid to the body under
the funding contract that have not been spent or committed and the amounts the
body will receive under the funding contract during the period to which the
direction relates; and
(iii) has given the body’s directors an adequate opportunity to
discuss with the Minister the need for the proposed direction and the impact of
compliance with subsection (3) on the body’s commercial activities;
and
(b) the direction is made for a purpose that is within the
Commonwealth’s legislative power.
(2) If the body is given a direction under subsection (1), it must
comply with it.
(3) Subject to subsection (4), if the Minister gives a direction to
the body under subsection (1):
(a) the Minister must cause a copy of the direction:
(i) to be published in the Gazette as soon as practicable after
giving the direction; and
(ii) to be tabled in each House of the Parliament within 5 sitting days of
that House after giving the direction; and
(b) the annual reports of the body applicable to periods in which the
direction has effect must include:
(i) particulars of the direction; and
(ii) an assessment of the impact that the direction has had on the
operations of the body during the period.
(4) Subsection (3) does not apply in relation to a particular
direction if:
(a) the Minister, on the recommendation of the body, determines, in
writing, that compliance with the subsection would, or would be likely to,
prejudice the commercial activities of the body; or
(b) the Minister determines, in writing, that compliance with the
subsection would be contrary to the public interest.
(5) The Minister is not to be taken to be a director of the body for the
purposes of the Corporations Act 2001 merely because of the power
conferred on the Minister by this section.
(6) The Commonwealth is not to be taken to be in a position to exercise
control over the body merely because of the power conferred on the Minister by
this section.
(1) The Minister may delegate all or any of the Minister’s powers
and functions under this Act or the regulations to:
(a) the Secretary of the Department; or
(b) an SES employee, or acting SES employee, in the Department.
The delegation must be in writing.
(2) In exercising powers or functions under a delegation, the delegate
must comply with any directions of the Minister.
(1) If:
(a) apart from this section, the operation of this Act would result in the
acquisition of property from a person otherwise than on just terms;
and
(b) the acquisition would be invalid because of paragraph 51(xxxi) of the
Constitution;
the Commonwealth is liable to pay the person a reasonable amount of
compensation in respect of the acquisition.
(2) If the Commonwealth and the person do not agree on the amount of the
compensation, the person may institute proceedings in the Federal Court of
Australia for the recovery from the Commonwealth of such reasonable amount of
compensation as the court determines.
(3) In this section:
acquisition of property has the same meaning as in paragraph
51(xxxi) of the Constitution.
just terms has the same meaning as in paragraph 51(xxxi) of
the Constitution.
The Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters:
(a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or
(b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving
effect to this Act.