Bills Digest No. 120 2002-03
Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme (Consequential
Amendments) Bill 2003
WARNING:
This Digest was prepared for debate. It reflects the legislation as
introduced and does not canvass subsequent amendments. This Digest
does not have any official legal status. Other sources should be
consulted to determine the subsequent official status of the
Bill.
CONTENTS
Passage History
Purpose
Background
Main Provisions
Contact Officer & Copyright Details
Passage History
Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme
(Consequential Amendments) Bill 2003
Date Introduced: 13 February 2003
House: House of Representatives
Portfolio: Treasury
Commencement: 1 July 2003
Purpose
To amend or repeal seven Acts consequent to the
enactment of the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme.
As discussed in the companion Bills Digest for
the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme Bill 2003 (Bills Digest No. 119,
2002 03), the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme [EG(C)S] will replace
the Diesel and Alternative Fuels Grants Scheme (DAFGS) and the
Diesel Fuel Rebate Scheme (DFRS). The basis
of the policy commitment, the positions
of interest groups/press commentary, pros and cons, and ALP/Australian Democrat/Greens policy positions
are discussed in that Bills Digest.
The implementation of the EG(C)S affects seven
Acts:
The Bill is arranged such that each of
Schedules 1 to 5 deals with the
amendments to a particular Act while Schedule 6
deals with two Acts [A New Tax System (Australian Business
Number) Act 1999 and the Income Tax Assessment Act
1936 (ITAA 1936)]. Schedule 7 contains
transition provisions.
Schedule 1: Amendment of the
Product Grants and Benefits Administration Act 2000
Schedule 1 amends the Product
Grants and Benefits Administration Act (PGBAA). To be able to claim
a grant under the EG(C)S, claimants must be registered. Section 9
of the PGBAA deals with registration requirements. They include,
among other things, that applicants who wish to be registered must
have an ABN [paragraph 9(2)(a)]. Item 6 repeals
paragraphs 9(2)(a) to (c) and substitutes proposed new
paragraphs (a) to (d) to allow, among
other things, the registration of applicants who do not have an ABN
and are not entitled to have one. To register, such applicants must
provide evidence of identity and address, where the Commissioner of
Taxation determines the kind of evidence.
Item 7 repeals subsections 9(4)
and 9(5) and substitutes proposed new subsection
9(4), which deals with specific registration requirements
for energy grants. To register for an energy grant, applicants must
notify the Commissioner that they are buying energy grants scheme
fuel for a particular use or uses that, when applicants are
registered, will entitle applicants to receive a grant in respect
of that fuel.
Section 13 of the PGBAA allows the Commissioner
to make an advance on account of a grant or benefit that may become
payable while section 14 allows the Commissioner to formulate
guidelines concerning advances. Item 10 adds a
new subsection 14(1A) that provides that the
guidelines can include circumstances under which the Commissioner
is not to pay advances.
Section 15 of the PGBAA provides that applicants
for grants must make a claim before they can receive a grant. It
further provides [paragraph 15(2)(a)] that the claim must
relate to all the goods in respect of which applicants are entitled
to a grant or benefit for the claim period in question.
Item 12 substitutes 'may' for 'must'. This seems
to allow claims to encompass some as distinct from all of the goods
in respect of which a grant is payable.
Section 19 provides that the Commissioner must
issue a notice of an assessment. Item 17 amends
subsection 19(1) so that it reads:
Except where the assessment is that you are
entitled to the full amount of the grant or rebate claimed, the
Commissioner must give you notice of an assessment as soon as
practicable after the assessment is made. However, failing to do so
does not affect the validity of the assessment.
This seems to limit the circumstances under
which the Commissioner must issue a notice of an assessment to
cases where the claimant is entitled to less than the amount
claimed.
Proposed Part 4A deals with
public and private rulings. In essence, this Part extends the
system of public and private rulings in the Income
Tax Assessment Act 1997 to the EG(C)S. The implications are
discussed in paragraphs 3.20 to 3.36 of the Explanatory
Memorandum.
Proposed Part 5 deals with
record keeping requirements. (The reference to sections 225 and 255
of the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme Bill 2003 in paragraph 3.37
of the Explanatory Memorandum should be to proposed
sections 49 and 55, which deal with disqualifying
use).
Section 27 of the PGBAA deals with post-claim
record-keeping requirements. Item 23 adds
proposed section 27A. In short, this provides that
the claimant, having made a claim for the use of fuel but does
subsequently does not use the fuel for an eligible activity, must
inform the Commissioner. The purpose of this section seems to be to
ensure that claims relate only to the eligible use of fuel.
Schedule 2 Repeal of the Diesel
and Alternative Fuels Grants Scheme Act 1999
Schedule 2 deals with the
repeal of the DAFGS Act and transitional provisions. Item
1 repeals this Act.
Item 2 provides that claims
already made under the DAFGS Act will continue as if the Act had
not been repealed. This provision ensures that claims are not
rejected on account of the ending of the DAFGS. Item 2 further
provides that claims for fuel used before 1 July 2003 can be made
between 1 July 2003 and 30 November 2003, provided that no claim
has already been made. This seems to be aimed at ensuring that
claimants who have not submitted claims by 1 July 2003 are not
disadvantaged.
Schedule 4 Amendment of the
Excise Act 1901
Items 1 to 24 in
Schedule 3 remove from the Customs Act redundant
wording relevant to the DFRS. Item 25 continues
claims made before 1 July 2003 as if the above sections had not
been repealed. Further, item 25 allows claims to be made in the
five-month period beginning 1 July 2003 for fuel used before 1 July
2003. Schedule 4 similarly amends the Excise
Act.
Item 1 in Schedule
7 contains transitional arrangements relating to
entitlements. The DFRS and DAFGS have sunset provisions that allow
entitlements to expire. Item 1 treats claimable fuel bought between
1 July 2000 and 30 June 2003 as if it were bought under the EG(C)S.
Claimants can claim an energy grant provided they have not already
made a claim under the DFRS or the DAFGS.
Richard Webb
28 February 2003
Bills Digest Service
Information and Research Services
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ISSN 1328-8091
© Commonwealth of Australia 2003
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Published by the Department of the Parliamentary Library,
2003.
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