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CONTENTS
National Residue Survey (Buffalo Slaughter) Levy Bill
1997
Date Introduced: 1 October 1997
House: House of Representatives
Portfolio: Primary Industries and Energy
Commencement: On the same day as Part 3 of the
proposed Australian Meat and Live- stock Industry Act
1997, that is, on Proclamation or nine months and one day
after Royal Assent, whichever is first.
To impose a levy for funding the National Residue Survey on the
slaughter at an abattoir of buffaloes for human consumption. The
levy will be payable by the person who owns the buffaloes when
slaughter takes place.
There are basically three main on-going Commonwealth programs
which test foodstuffs for residues: the Australian Market Basket
Survey (a biennial survey of pesticide and heavy metal residues in
processed and unprocessed foods featuring in the average
Australian's diet); the Imported Foods Inspection Program (this
program inspects imported foods for microbiological or other
contamination at the point of entry into the country); and the
National Residue Survey (NRS).
NRS is a monitoring program for residues of chemical
contaminants in agricultural and fisheries food commodities, animal
feed and fibre products. The mission of the NRS is to:
monitor, assess and report on the levels of chemical residues in
commodities produced by Australian agriculture and fisheries
industries, to give domestic and international consumers confidence
in the quality and safety of those products by:
- providing an independent and authoritative audit of
commodities' chemical residue status;
- identifying chemical residue problems, their causes and
possible solutions;
- providing scientific advice on the management of chemical
residue problems, and the prevention of contamination;
- contributing to the development of industry and national
chemical residue policy; and
thereby advancing the health of the general population.
Funds for the operations of NRS are provided from five sources,
the principal being levies paid by participating industries. Levy
receipts totalled $5,815,278 in 1995-96. Administration of such
funds is through the National Residue Survey Administration Act
1992.
The National Residue Survey Administration Act 1992
provides for the administration of the NRS, including the operative
rates of NRS levy or charge; the maximum rates at which NRS levy or
charge may be prescribed; the products and activities on which
liability to pay NRS levy or charge arise; and purposes for which
money collected from NRS levy or charge may be spent.
The National Residue Survey (Live-stock Slaughter) Levy Act
1992 imposes a levy on deer, sheep, lambs, goats, donkeys,
mules, buffaloes and pigs.
This Bill forms part of a package of 17 Bills restructuring the
regulatory framework of the Australian meat and live-stock
industry. Under existing levy and charge arrangements, funds raised
primarily go towards funding the MIC, AMLC and MRC. Under the
proposed arrangements the government intends that industry
contributions will be sourced on a statutory and non-statutory
basis. The collection of statutory levies is intended to be based
on the current system but with changes providing for a transaction
levy on sheep, lambs and goats, replacing the current livestock
slaughter levy, and a separate transaction levy on grain fed
cattle.
The rationale given by the Minister in the Second Reading Speech
to the Australian Meat and Live-stock Industry Bill 1997 for the
transaction levy approach is:
The transaction levy approach for sheep, lambs and goats was
adopted at the request of a clear majority of industry whose
submission met all of the requirements of the government's levy
principles. A similar request was also submitted by the grain fed
cattle industry sector for a separate cattle transaction levy.
Again this submission met each of the Government's levy
principles.
The existing levy and charge imposition Acts have been modified
to provide for clear sectoral ownership.(1)
In relation to non-statutory contributions, the government is
setting the processor and exporter levies at zero. It should be
noted that the Minister in the Second Reading Speech to the Bill
issues a warning in respect of such contributions, that is:
Should the non-statutory contributions by processors and
livestock exporters fail to meet agreed funding levels for joint
industry functions, and as specifically agreed by these two
sectors, the Government has their prior agreement to maintain
levies at a required level to ensure there is adequate
funding.(2)
Under the proposed arrangements, the Government intends that
decisions on levels of levies and charges be the responsibility of
the peak industry councils.
In respect to this Bill, the Minister in the Second Reading
Speech to the Australian Meat and Live-stock Industry Bill 1997
states:
A revised set of national residue survey bills has been included
in this package to allow for continuation of the provision of
producer linked payments on cattle, buffalo, sheep, lambs and
goats.(3)
Effectively, the Bill replaces provisions for the imposition of
the levy contained in the National Residue Survey (Livestock
Slaughter) Act 1992. Consequential amendments to that Act are
contained in the Australian Meat and Live-stock Industry (Repeals
and Consequential Provisions) Bill 1997.
The reader is also referred to the Digest for the Australian
Meat and Live-stock Industry Bill 1997.
Clause 5 imposes a levy on the slaughter of
buffaloes at an abattoir for human consumption provided levy is
payable on the slaughter of the buffaloes under the proposed
Buffalo Slaughter Levy Act 1997.
Clause 6 provides that the rate of levy on each
head of buffaloes slaughtered will be $5.00, or a prescribed amount
not exceeding $5.00.
The levy will be payable by the person (including a
State/Territory or State/Territory authority) who owns the
buffaloes when slaughter takes place (clause
7).
- Second Reading Speech, Australian Meat and Live-stock Industry
Bill 1997:10
- Ibid: 11
- Ibid: 16
Ian Ireland
4 November 1997
Bills Digest Service
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ISSN 1328-8091
© Commonwealth of Australia 1997
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Published by the Department of the Parliamentary Library,
1997.
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Last updated: 12 November 1997
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