Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL REGISTRY OF EMISSIONS UNITS AMENDMENT REGULATION 2012 (NO. 2) (SLI NO 124 OF 2012)

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Select Legislative Instrument 2012 No. 124

Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency

Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011

Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 2)

The Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011 (the ANREU Act) provides the legislative basis for the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units (the Registry). The Registry tracks the location and ownership of Australian carbon credit units issued under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011, and meets Australia's ongoing obligations under the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. From 1 July 2012, the Registry will also act as the Registry for carbon units issued under the Clean Energy Act 2011. The Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Regulations 2011 (the ANREU Regulations) provides necessary details supporting the administration of the ANREU Act.

Requests to open Registry accounts must be made in the approved form and be accompanied by certified copies of relevant documents. The effect of an amendment made to the definition of 'certified copy' by item [1] of Schedule 1 to the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 1) was to narrow the list of persons who can certify that a copy of a document is a true copy of the document for account opening purposes. Before the amendment was made, a copy could be certified by any person before whom a statutory declaration could be made; since the amendment a copy can only be certified by certain bank, building society or credit union officers, judicial officers, legal or medical practitioners, ministers of religion and police officers. This amendment commenced on 30 May 2012.

The Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 2) provides that this amendment does not apply in relation to requests that were signed before the commencement of the amendment (i.e. no later than 29 May 2012) and given to the Clean Energy Regulator within two weeks of that date (i.e. no later than 12 June 2012). In effect, the Regulation preserves the more liberal certification procedures that applied at the time the requests were prepared and signed, thus ensuring that applicants are not required to re-certify and re-submit relevant documents. Any applicant who complied with the later, more restrictive certification procedures would still be compliant with the more liberal procedures, and so would be unaffected by the Regulation.

Details of the Regulation are set out in Attachment A.

A statement of compatibility with human rights is set out in Attachment B.

Consultation

The amendment is of a minor nature and does not alter existing arrangements. Rather it preserves the certification arrangements that applied before the commencement of the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 1) in relation to applications signed before the commencement of that instrument and given to the Clean Energy Regulator within two weeks of that date. Consultation was therefore not required.

Authority: Section 97 of the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011 

ATTACHMENT A

Details of the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 2)

1 - Name of regulation

Section 1 provides that the name of the Regulation is the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 2).

2 - Commencement

Section 2 provides that the Regulation is taken to have commenced on 30 May 2012.

3 - Amendment of Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Regulations 2011

Section 3 provides that Schedule 1 to the Regulation amends the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Regulations 2011 (the ANREU Regulations).

SCHEDULE 1 - Amendment

Item [1] - After subregulation 14(2)

Item [1] inserts new subregulation 14(2A) into the ANREU Regulations.

The effect of this subregulation is to preserve the certification procedures that applied before the commencement of the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 1) in respect of requests to open Registry accounts that were signed before the commencement of that instrument (i.e. no later than 29 May 2012) and given to the Clean Energy Regulator within two weeks of that date (i.e. no later than 12 June 2012). Requests signed and given by or before these dates may be accompanied by copies of relevant documents certified by any person before whom a statutory declaration may be made.

Requests signed or given after these dates will need to be accompanied by copies of relevant documents certified by one of the following persons who is in Australia:

                                i.            a bank, building society or credit union officer with five or more continuous years service;

                              ii.            a commissioner for declarations;

                            iii.            a judge of a court;

                            iv.            a justice of the peace;

                              v.            a legal practitioner;

                            vi.            a medical practitioner;

                          vii.            a minister of religion registered under Subdivision A of Division 1 of Part IV of the Marriage Act 1961;

                        viii.            a police officer;

                            ix.            a sheriff or a sheriff's officer.

ATTACHMENT B

Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 2)

The Regulation is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Overview of the Regulation

The Regulation makes transitional provisions in relation to an amendment made to the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Regulations 2011 by the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 1). In particular, the Regulation preserves the certification procedures that applied before the commencement of the amendment in relation to applications signed before, and given within two weeks of, the commencement of the amendment.

Human rights implications

The Regulation does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.

Conclusion

The Regulation is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.

Greg Combet

Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency

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