Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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INDUSTRIAL CHEMICALS (NOTIFICATION AND ASSESSMENT) REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT)1997 NO. 181

Statutory Rules 1997 No. 181

(Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Industrial Relations)

Industrial Chemicals (Notification and Assessment) Act 1989

Industrial Chemicals (Notification and Assessment) Regulations (Amendment)

Section 111 of the Industrial Chemicals (Notification and Assessment) Act 1989 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations for the purposes of the Act.

Section 110 of the Act provides that the regulations may prescribe fees, or a method of calculating fees, to be paid to the Commonwealth in respect of a variety of applications, notifications and other actions under the Act.

The fees prescribed by the Regulations are currently set at 50 per cent cost recovery. These regulations move the fees to 100 per cent cost recovery. A complete review of the fees has been undertaken and in some cases, there is either no increase or a reduction in the level of the fees is proposed because of a reassessment of the actual cost to the National Industrial Chemicals Notification and Assessment Scheme. NICNAS assesses the risks to occupational health, public health and the environment of all new and selected existing industrial chemicals.

These regulations increase the fees payable for an application for the assessment of a new industrial chemical and to make certain of these fees payable in two instalments (regulations 2.1, 2.2. 2.3 and 3.1).

The regulations also amend the fees payable for a variety of other applications, statements, nominations and notifications under the Act, such as the fee payable for the nomination of a foreign scheme for approval under subsection 43(3) of the Act (regulation 4.2)

A number of unnecessary fees are also repealed (regulation 4. 1). For example, no further applications under section 20C of the Act may now be made and the fee prescribed for such an application is therefore repealed.

The detail of the regulation is set out in the Attachment.

Attachment

Application fees for the assessment of New Industrial Chemicals

Subregulation 13(2) prescribes fees for the purposes of paragraph 110(1)(e) of the Act which relates to an application under section 23 of the Act for an assessment certificate for a new industrial chemical. Three different types of applications for which fees are prescribed, namely:

*       a standard application being an application requiring a notification statement from Parts A, B and C or Parts A, B, C and D of the Schedule to the Act;

*       a limited application being an application requiring a notification statement from Parts A and B or Parts A, B and D of the Schedule to the Act;

*       an application in relation to a synthetic polymer of low concern.

Paragraph 13(2)(a) of the Regulations currently prescribes a fee of $6,700 in relation to standard applications. Regulation 2.1 increases this fee to $11,700.

Paragraph 13(2)(b) currently prescribes a fee of $5,600 in relation to limited applications. Regulation 2.2 increases this fee to $9,800.

Paragraph 13(2)(c) currently prescribes a fee of $2,500 in relation to applications in relation to a synthetic polymer of low concern. Regulation 2.3 increases this fee to $3,300.

Payment of fees

Existing regulation 14 provides that a fee prescribed under regulation 13 must be paid at the time of lodgement of the application, statement, or notification to which it relates.

These regulations amend the time at which the fees prescribed under paragraphs 13(2)(a) and 13(2)(b) are payable. Applications for the assessment of new industrial chemicals must be made in the approved form and must be accompanied by a written notification statement.

Regulation 3.1 repeals existing regulation 14 and substitutes a new regulation 14 to provide that subject to subregulation 14(2), a fee prescribed under regulation 13 must be paid at the time of lodgement of the application, statement, or notification to which it relates.

New subregulation 14(2) provides that the fees prescribed under paragraphs 13(2)(a) and 13(2)(b) are to be payable in two instalments, The first instalment of $500 is payable when the application is given the to the Director. The second instalment (being the balance of the fee) is payable within 7 days of the Director advises the applicant that the application and accompanying notification statement are complete for the purposes of assessment.

Application fees for assessment of New Industrial Chemicals assessed under a foreign scheme

Subregulation 13(3) prescribes fees for the purposes of paragraph 110(1)(p) of the Act which relates to an application for an assessment certificate for a chemical which has already been notified and assessed under an approved foreign scheme.

Paragraph 13(3)(a) currently prescribes a fee of $4,000 for standard applications lodged with an assessment report from an approved foreign scheme. Regulation 2.4 increases this fee to $7,200.

Paragraph 13(3)(b) currently prescribes a fee of $1,000 for limited applications lodged with an assessment report from an approved foreign scheme. Regulation 2.5 increases this fee to $5,800.

Repeal of obsolete fees

Regulation 13 provides that the fee in column 3 of an item in Schedule 2 is prescribed for the purposes of the provision of the Act specified in column 2 of that item.

Item 3B of Schedule 2 sets a fee of $1,000 for an application under paragraph 110(1)(caa). This is an application under section 20C for a chemical to be included in the Australian Inventory of Chemical Substances. No further applications can be made under this section and regulation 4.1 therefore repeals this item.

Similarly, item 4 of Schedule 2 sets a fee of $500 for an application under paragraph 110(1)(d). Paragraph 110(1)(d) of the Act was repealed by section 28 of the Industrial chemicals Notification and

Assessment) Amendment Act (No. 2) 1992. Regulation 4.1 therefore repeals this item.

Fees prescribed in Schedule 2

Item 1 of Schedule 2 currently prescribes a fee of $,500 for an application under subsection 14(3) being an application for the inclusion of a chemical in the confidential section of the Australian Inventory of Chemical Substances. Regulation 4.2 reduces this fee to $1,000.

Item 2 of Schedule 2 currently prescribes a fee of $250 for an application under subsection 17(3) being an application to become the holder of a confidence in relation to a chemical included in the confidential section of the Australian Inventory of Chemical Substances. Regulation 4.2 increases this fee to $500.

Item 3A of Schedule 2 currently prescribes a fee of $1,000 for a statement under subsection 17(3) being an statement as to why the Director should not transfer a chemical out of the confidential section of the Australian Inventory of Chemical Substances. Regulation 4.2 increases this fee to $2,600.

Item 5 of Schedule 2 currently prescribes a fee of $500 for an application under section 24 to vary the notification requirements under section 23. Regulation 4.2 increases this fee to $1,000.

Item 7 of Schedule 2 currently prescribes a fee of $3,000 for an application under section 30 for a permit allowing introduction before assessment. Regulation 4.2 increases this fee to $6,300.

Item 10 of Schedule 2 currently prescribes a fee of $4,000 for an application for an assessment certificate to which paragraph 41(3)(d) applies. Regulation 4.2 increases this fee to $7,000.

Item 11 of Schedule 2 currently prescribes a fee of $3,000 for a nomination of a foreign scheme under subsection 43(3). Regulation 4.2 increases this fee to $5,200.

Item 14 of Schedule 2 currently prescribes a fee of $3,500 for secondary notification of a chemical required by section 65. Regulation 4.2 increases this fee to $7,200.

Item 15 of Schedule 2 currently prescribes a fee of $1,000 for an application under section 21R being an application for a low volume chemical permit. Regulation 4.2 increases this fee to $2,600.