Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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COAT MINING INDUSTRY (LONG SERVICE LEAVE FUNDING) REGULATIONS 1993 NO. 136

Statutory Rules 1993 No. 136

(Issued by authority of the Minister for industrial Relations)

Coal Mining Industry (Long Service Leave Funding) Act 1992

Coat Mining Industry (Long Service Leave Funding) Regulations

In 1992 the Government passed a package of legislation to reform the funding of long service leave in the black coal mining industry in New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia and Tasmania. The Acts included in that package were:

•       the Coal Mining Industry (Long Service Leave Funding) Act 1992;

•       the Coal Mining Industry (Long Service Leave) Payroll Levy Collection Act 1992;

•       the Coal Mining Industry (Long Service Leave)- Payroll Levy Act 1992; and

•       the States Grants (Coal Mining Industry Long Service Leave) Amendment Act 1992.

The legislative package will terminate the present excise funding arrangements and implement a new industry-managed fully funded long service leave scheme.

The only parts of the package that have been proclaimed to commence are sections 3 to 34, 36 to 43 and 50 to 55 of the Coal Mining Industry (Long Service Leave Funding) Act 1992 (the Funding Act). These provisions commenced on 4 September 1992. The remainder of the package will automatically commence on 27 June 1993.

Section 54 of the Funding Act provides that the Governor-General may make regulations for the purpose of the Act.

Included in the provisions that have commenced is section 6, which establishes the Coat Mining Industry (Long Service Leave Funding) Corporation (the Corporation). The functions of the Corporation are set out in section 7 and include the establishment and management of the Coal Mining Industry Long Service Leave Fund (the Fund), collection of the levies from employers and advising the Minister as to the rates of payroll levy that should be imposed.

The Funding Act also establishes a Board to manage the affairs of the Corporation and administer the Fund. The Board has the power pursuant to subsection 8(2) of the Funding Act to enter a contract with a person to administer the Fund on its behalf.

These regulations require the Board to ensure that any person contracted to administer the Fund meets certain minimum requirements and as such will safeguard the proper management of the Fund.

In particular, subregulation 3(2) provides that where an individual is appointed to administer the Fund, the Board must be satisfied that he or she has suitable educational qualifications, is not insolvent and has not been convicted of an offence involving financial dishonesty. In addition the Board may take into account other matters that have a bearing on his or her good fame and character or honesty, efficiency or fairness.

Where the Board proposes that the Fund should be managed by a corporation, subregulations 3(3) and (4) provide that the Board must be satisfied that the corporation is not externally administered and that directors or executive officers of the corporation either fulfil all the requirements for individual appointees or to the extent that they do not, that the administration of the Fund would not be prejudiced.

The regulations commence on gazettal and are made pursuant to the Governor-General's power to make regulations prescribing any matters necessary or convenient to give effect to the Funding Act (refer to section 54).