EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

 

Select Legislative Instrument 2008 No. 207

 

Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

 

Forestry Marketing and Research and Development Services Act 2007

Forestry Marketing and Research and Development Services Regulations 2008

 

Section 16 of the Forestry Marketing and Research and Development Services Act 2007 (the Act) provides for the Governor-General to make regulations prescribing matters required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Act.

 

The Act provides for the establishment of a forestry industry services body to provide marketing and research and development services to the forestry industry. Forest and Wood products Australia Limited (FWPA) was established in response to a forestry industry vote in 2006 to replace Forest and Wood Products Research and Development Corporation. FWPA was declared the industry services body under section 11 of the Act prior to commencing operations on 3 September 2007.

 

The Act also enables the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry to enter into a funding contract with FWPA to enable it to receive and administer levies and state grower contractual payments collected by the Commonwealth for industry promotion, research and development, and the Commonwealth’s matching funding for eligible research and development expenditure.

 

Section 9 of the Act sets annual limits on what can be paid to FWPA. The annual limit is the lesser of either 0.5% of the gross value of production GVP) of the Australian forestry industry or 50% of the amount spent by the industry services body on research and development activities that qualify under the funding contract in that financial year.

 

Subsection 9(5) provides that regulations may prescribe the manner in which the Minister is to determine the GVP of the Australian forestry industry.

 

The Regulations establish a formula which the Minister will use to determine the GVP of the Australian forestry industry.

 

The Regulations are a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.

 

The Regulations commenced on the day after they were registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.