EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

 

Select Legislative Instrument 2005 No. 266

 

 

Subject:            Legislative Instruments Act 2003

 

                        Legislative Instruments Amendment Regulations 2005 (No. 4)

 

Section 62 of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations prescribing all 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 establishes a comprehensive regime for the management of Commonwealth legislative instruments, including the creation of the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments as a repository for Commonwealth legislative instruments, explanatory statements and compilations. The Act commenced on 1 January 2005.

 

Subsection 29 (1) of the Act requires legislative instruments made before 1 January 2005 to be lodged for registration on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments (“backcaptured”) before the two deadlines set out in the table in that subsection. The first deadline is 31 December 2005, and applies to legislative instruments made during the five-year period ending on 31 December 2004. Under paragraph 29 (1) (d), this deadline will also apply to an earlier principal legislative instrument that was amended during that five-year period. The second deadline, by which all current instruments must be lodged for registration, is 31 December 2007.

 

If a legislative instrument is not lodged for registration before the relevant deadline, section 32 of the Act provides that the instrument ceases to be enforceable and is taken to have been repealed. However, subsection 29 (1) allows regulations to modify the requirement to lodge a legislative instrument before the deadline set out in the table in that subsection.

 

The purpose of the Regulations made under subsection 29 (1) of the Act is to extend the first backcapture deadline to 30 September 2006. It has been found that more older instruments than expected were amended during the five-year period ending on 31 December 2005 and are therefore subject to the first deadline. Many of these do not have electronic versions, and accurate electronic versions must be prepared before they can be lodged. Extending the first backcapture deadline will allow agencies to comply properly with the Act, and reduce the risk of error. It is expected that the majority of current instruments will be lodged for registration by that date, and that comparatively few will remain for lodgement by the second deadline. The date has also been chosen to avoid the peak periods of registration of new instruments in June and December.

 

Details of the Regulations are set out in the Attachment.

 

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

 

The Regulations commence on the day after they are registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.

 

Consultation was unnecessary for this legislative instrument, as this instrument is of a minor or machinery nature only. It has no direct, or substantial indirect, effect on business.

 

ATTACHMENT

 

Details of the Legislative Instruments Amendment Regulations 2005 (No. 4)

 

Regulation 1 — Name of Regulations

 

This regulation provides that the title of the Regulations is the Legislative Instruments Amendment Regulations 2005 (No. 4).

 

Regulation 2 — Commencement

 

This regulation provides that the Regulations commence on the day after they are registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.

 

Regulation 3 — Amendment of Legislative Instruments Regulations 2004

 

This regulation provides that the Legislative Instruments Regulations 2004 (the Principal Regulations) are amended as set out in Schedule 1.

 

Schedule 1 — Amendment

 

Item [1] — Subregulation 6 (1)

 

This item replaces existing subregulation 6 (1) of the Principal Regulations with new subregulation 6 (1).

 

Existing subregulation 6 (1) provides an exception to the requirement under section 29 of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (the Act) for agencies to lodge for registration an electronic copy of a legislative instrument made before 1 January 2005 with the Attorney-General’s Department. The exception applies in circumstances where the Department already holds an electronic copy of that instrument. Since all legislative instruments made before 1 January 2005 for which the Department held an electronic copy have been registered, subregulation 6 (1) is no longer necessary.

 

New subregulation 6 (1) modifies the operation of item 1 of the table in subsection 29 (1) of the Act by extending the deadline for lodgment for registration of legislative instruments made during the period commencing on 1 January 2000 and ending at the end of 31 December 2004. The effect of new subregulation 6 (1) is to extend the deadline for backcapture of these legislative instruments from 31 December 2005 to 30 September 2006.