Wage Justice for Early Childhood Education and Care Workers (Special Account) Bill 2024 - Initial Scrutiny [2024] AUSStaCSBSD 193 (18 September 2024)

• Wage Justice for Early Childhood Education and Care Workers (Special Account) Bill 202449
• Broad discretionary powers50

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Wage Justice for Early Childhood Education and Care Workers (Special Account) Bill 2024^[49]

Purpose	The bill seeks to provide the legal framework for the establishment and operation of a special account, known as the Wage Justice for Early Childhood Education and Care Workers Special Account (the Account), which will be used to administer grant funding for the Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) Worker Retention Payment Program (the Program). The measures under this grant program are intended to fund a 15 per cent wage increase for ECEC workers over two years.
Portfolio	Education
Introduced	House of Representatives on 12 September 2024
Bill status	Before the House of Representatives

Broad discretionary powers^[50]

1.51 The bill provides that the Secretary may, on behalf of the government, make a grant of financial assistance to a person or body that is an approved provider^[51] in relation to the remuneration of workers engaged by the provider.^[52] There are no criteria set out on the face of the bill by which the Secretary is to assess whether an application from a provider will be granted. In relation to the eligibility criteria the explanatory memorandum states:

Grants under section 10 will be subject to, and administered in accordance with, the Commonwealth grants policy framework as established through the Commonwealth Grants Rules and Guidelines 2017 (CGRGs) (noting these will be replaced by the Commonwealth Grants Rules and Principles 2024 (CGRPs) from 1 October 2024). The CGRGs (and the CGRPs in due course) provide for best practice and apply to all grants administration conducted on behalf of the Commonwealth. In this respect, the Grant Opportunity Guidelines for these grants will, amongst other things, set out eligibility criteria for grant applicants and the purposes for which grant funding must be used by grant recipients.^[53]

1.52 While the explanatory memorandum has noted that the criteria, by which a grant will be made, will be set out in the Grant Opportunity Guidelines, there has been no justification provided as to why it is necessary and appropriate for these important considerations to be set out in non-legislative guidance which are exempt from parliamentary oversight. Given that the eligibility criteria are key to determining whether a grant of public money will be awarded, the committee expects that such criteria would be more appropriately set out on the face of the bill, or, at the very least, in a disallowable legislative instrument.

1.53 The committee is therefore concerned that the bill confers on the Secretary a broad power to make grants in relation to remuneration of early childhood education centre workers with no parliamentary oversight of the eligibility criteria on which grants will be awarded or refused. This is especially concerning as merits review is not available for decisions to refuse grants under the bill.^[54]

1.54 The committee therefore requests the minister's advice as to:

• why it is necessary and appropriate for the eligibility criteria for decisions to grant remuneration made under clause 10 of the bill to be left to non-legislative guidance;

• the eligibility criteria for decisions made under clause 10 of the bill; and

• whether the bill can be amended to include additional guidance on the exercise of the power on the face of the primary legislation.

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^[49] This entry can be cited as: Senate Standing Committee for the Scrutiny of Bills, Wage Justice for Early Childhood Education and Care Workers (Special Account) Bill 2024, Scrutiny Digest 12 of 2024; [2024] AUSStaCSBSD 193.

^[50] Subclause 10(1). The committee draws senators’ attention to this provision pursuant to Senate standing order 24(1)(a)(ii).

^[51] A provider is an approved provider under the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Administration Act 1999. Section 3 defines an approved provider as a provider for which an approval is in effect under Division 1 of Part 8.

^[52] Subclause 10(1).

^[53] Explanatory memorandum, p. 12.

^[54] Explanatory memorandum, p. 12.