Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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FISHING LEVY AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2002 (NO. 3) 2002 NO. 238

STATUTORY RULES 2002 No. 238

Issued by the authority of the Minister for Forestry and Conservation

Fishing Levy Act 1991

Fisheries Management Act 1991

Fishing Levy Amendment Regulations 2002 (No. 3)

Section 8 of the Fishing Levy Act 1991 (the Levy Act) empowers the Governor-General to make regulations for the purposes of section 6 of the Levy Act.

Section 5 of the Levy Act imposes levy in respect of a fishing concession. Section 6 of the Levy Act provides that the amount of levy imposed on the fishing concession is the amount prescribed by the Regulations.

Section 168 of the Fisheries Management Act 1991 (the Management Act) empowers the GovernorGeneral to make regulations for the purposes of the Management Act.

Section 110 of the Management Act provides that the levy imposed by the Levy Act is due and payable at a time or times ascertained in accordance with the regulations made under the Management Act.

"Fishing Concession" is defined in section 3 of the Levy Act and section 4 of the Management Act to mean, among other things, a fishing permit.

Most Commonwealth fisheries are either conducted under the terms of a formalised plan of management, or they are listed as separate fisheries in Regulation 4B of the Fisheries Management Regulations 1991. The exceptions are called Informally Managed Fisheries (IMF), which are defined as fisheries for which a plan of management has not been made under section 17 of the Management Act, and which are not listed in regulation 4B of the Fisheries Management Regulations 1991.

The purpose of the Regulations is to amend the Fishing Levy Regulations 2001 to include provisions that set the amount of levy payable for an IMF fishing permit.

The Regulations are made under both the Levy Act and the Management Act.

In accordance with government policy and legislation, AFMA recovers from the holders of fishing concessions (operators) in each fishery:

•       the costs of management attributable to the operators' activities, such as the costs of developing and implementing management arrangements, surveillance costs and costs of running the Management Advisory Committees (MACs); and

•       the fishing industry's contribution to the Fisheries Research & Development Corporation (FRDC) to fund research in each fishery. (This is contribution is known as the research component and is recovered under the Levy Act in accordance with the Primary Industries and Energy Research and Development Act 1989 and the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation Regulations. A part of the research component is recovered from each fishery, with that part being collected from each concession holder in the fishery.)

Other costs, such as the costs of prosecutions, are funded by the Commonwealth.

AFMA recovers the management costs and the research component in the form of a levy paid to the Commonwealth under the Levy Act and the Management Act, which is then paid to AFMA under arrangements provided for in the Fisheries Administration Act 1991.

The Regulations set the levy payable for an IMF fishing permit in force on or after the commencement of the Regulations and on or before 31 December 2002. The amount of levy payable is $1,000. This amount has been calculated to include a component for the costs of managing the fishery, and a research component of $60.

Permit Holders were made aware prior to the grant of their permits that a levy would be payable.

Levy is payable on or after 28 days after the invoice date for the levy.

Details of the Regulations, which commenced on gazettal, are set out below:

Regulation 1 provides for the Regulations to be cited as the Fishing Levy Amendment Regulations 2002 (No. 3).

Regulation 2 provides that the Regulations commence on gazettal.

Regulation 3 provides that Schedule 1 amends the principal Regulations.

Schedule 1 Item 1 inserts a reference to the Informally Managed Fishery into Note 1 after Regulation 1.4.

Schedule 1 Item 2 inserts a new Part 22 which imposes a levy for IMF permits.