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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
1996-97-98
The Parliament of
the
Commonwealth of
Australia
HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES
Presented and read a first
time
National
Firearms Program Implementation Bill
1998
No. ,
1998
(Attorney-General)
A
Bill for an Act to provide for financial assistance in connection with the
implementation of the national firearms program, and for related
purposes
Contents
A Bill for an Act to provide for financial assistance in
connection with the implementation of the national firearms program, and for
related purposes
The Parliament of Australia enacts:
This Act may be cited as the National Firearms Program Implementation
Act 1998.
This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal
Assent.
In this Act:
amnesty period, in relation to a Territory, means the period
notified by the Attorney-General under section 4 in relation to that
Territory.
national firearms program means the program of measures
agreed to by the Australasian Police Ministers’ Council at its meetings on
10 May 1996, 17 July 1996, 15 November 1996 and 16 July 1997.
qualifying compensation, in relation to a Territory, means
compensation, to the extent that it meets the following conditions:
(a) the compensation is paid under a compensation scheme approved by the
Attorney-General in writing for the purposes of this Act;
(b) the compensation is paid:
(i) for property surrendered by a person during the amnesty period;
or
(ii) to meet a claim for compensation for loss of business lodged by a
person during the amnesty period;
(c) the compensation relates to:
(i) self-loading rifles, self-loading shotguns or pump-action shotguns;
or
(ii) firearms or other weapons certified by the Attorney-General (whether
before or after the compensation is paid) to be firearms or other weapons whose
surrender is consistent with the spirit of the national firearms
program.
Territory means Norfolk Island, the Territory of Christmas
Island or the Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands.
(1) The Attorney-General may, by notice in the Gazette, notify a
period as the amnesty period in relation to a Territory for the purposes of this
Act.
(2) A notice under subsection (1) cannot be amended or revoked.
(1) The Attorney-General may authorise:
(a) payments of qualifying compensation in relation to a Territory;
or
(b) payments to a Territory by way of reimbursement for qualifying
compensation paid by the Territory.
(2) The Attorney-General may authorise the payment to a Territory of
advances on account of amounts that are expected to become payable to the
Territory under paragraph (1)(b).
(3) If the total amount paid to a Territory under this section is more
than the total amount of qualifying compensation paid by the Territory, then the
Territory must repay the excess to the Commonwealth.
(4) An amount payable by a Territory to the Commonwealth under subsection
(3) is recoverable by the Commonwealth as a debt in a court of competent
jurisdiction.
(1) In addition to payments under section 5, the Attorney-General may
authorise:
(a) the payment to a Territory of other amounts in connection with the
implementation of the national firearms program; and
(b) other payments by the Commonwealth in connection with the
implementation of the national firearms program.
(2) The total of the amounts that may be authorised under this section and
section 5 of the National Firearms Program Implementation Act 1996 cannot
be more than the limit notified under subsection 5(2) of that Act.
The Consolidated Revenue Fund is appropriated for payments under this
Act.