Commonwealth Numbered Acts

PUBLIC SERVICE AMENDMENT ACT 1976 No. 193, 1976 - SECT 5

5. Section 68C of the Principal Act is repealed and the following section
substituted:- Payment to dependants on death.
''68C. (1) Where-

   (a)  an officer dies; or

   (b)  the Board has directed, after consideration of all the circumstances,
        that an officer shall be presumed to have died on a particular date,
        this section applies in relation to the officer.

''(2) Where this section applies in relation to an officer-

   (a)  the Chief Officer-

        (i)    may authorize payment to a dependant of the officer of an
               amount (in this sub-section referred to as the 'relevant
               amount') equal to the amount, or the sum of the amounts, (if
               any) that could have been authorized to be paid to the officer
               under section 68B if he had ceased to be an officer otherwise
               than by death on the day on which he died or is presumed to
               have died; or

        (ii)   may authorize payments to 2 or more dependants of the officer
               of amounts aggregating the relevant amount;

   (b)  if the Chief Officer has not authorized a payment or payments under
        paragaph (a), he may authorize payment of an amount equal to the
        relevant amount to the legal personal representative of the officer;
        and

   (c)  if the Chief Officer has not authorized a payment under paragraph (a)
        or (b) within 12 months after the death of the officer or, if the
        Board gave a direction in relation to the officer under paragraph (b)
        of sub-section (1), within 12 months after the date on which it gave
        that direction, he shall authorize payment of an amount equal to the
        relevant amount to the legal personal representative of the officer.

''(3) Where there are 2 or more dependants of an officer to whom this section
applies, the Chief Officer shall, in exercising the powers conferred on him by
paragraph (2) (a), have regard to the respective losses suffered by those
dependants as a result of the loss of earnings of the officer.

''(4) Where an amount is payable under this section to a person who is under a
legal disability, the Chief Officer may, instead of authorizing payment of the
amount to the person, authorize payment of the amount to such trustee or
trustees as the Board appoints to be held by that trustee or those trustees
upon such trusts for the benefit of the person as the Board directs and, when
the amount is paid to that trustee or to those trustees accordingly, the
amount shall, for the purposes of this section, be deemed to have been paid to
the person.

''(5) Where, upon the death of an officer to whom this section applies, the
amount payable under this Act in relation to his death would be bona vacantia,
this Act does not authorize that amount to be paid in relation to the
officer.''.