Bills Digest no. 3 2006–07
Defence Force (Home Loans Assistance) Amendment Bill
2006
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
Endnotes
Contact Officer & Copyright Details
Passage History
Defence Force (Home Loans
Assistance) Amendment Bill 2006
Date introduced: 31 May 2006
House: House of
Representatives
Portfolio: Defence
Commencement: The date of Royal Assent
The Bill would amend the Defence Force (Home Loans
Assistance) Act 1990 to extend the operation of the Defence
HomeOwner Scheme for a further 12 months beyond its current
finishing date of 31 December 2006.
The Defence HomeOwner Scheme (DHOS) was introduced in 1991 to
assist eligible members and ex-members of the Australian Defence
Force to purchase their own home by providing a subsidy on the
interest of a home loan borrowed from the approved lender, the
National Australia Bank.
The scheme is administered in accordance with the Defence
Force (Home Loans Assistance) Act 1990. The Defence Housing
Authority administers the scheme on behalf of the Department of
Defence.
The Explanatory Memorandum states that the purpose of
the 12 month date extension provided by this Bill is to:
- provide the Department of Defence with the opportunity to
conduct a review of home ownership assistance that is more
appropriate to the contemporary home loan market
- permit the issue of certificates of entitlement that establish
ADF members eligibility and access to the assistance up to 31
December 2007
- preserve the entitlements of ADF members who are eligible to
assistance under the Defence HomeOwner Scheme, but have not
accessed the entitlement, pending the implementation of revised
assistance, and
- give effect to an agreement reached between the Commonwealth
and the National Australia Bank, as the sole provider, to extend
the current franchise date to 31 December 2007.(1)
A review of
the DHOS was announced by the ADF on 10 May 2006. The broad
objectives of the review are to develop a revised scheme that:
- supports recruitment, retention and resettlement;
- is cost effective for defence; and
- recognises the benefits home ownership provides to both members
and defence.(2)
The Explanatory Memorandum states that there are no financial
implications of this Bill.(3) It is not clear whether
this refers to any new or fresh costs to the Commonwealth.
Presumably extending the scheme for a further year requires
financial resources to be expended by the Commonwealth in the same
manner as the current arrangements.
Schedule 1
Amendments to Defence Force (Home Loans Assistance) Act
1990
Item 1 amends section 3 of the above Act (
definition of finishing day ). The item would omit 31 December 2006
, and substitute 31 December 2007 .
- Explanatory Memorandum, p. 1.
- Department of Defence, Review of the Defence Home Owner Scheme,
http://www.defence.gov.au/dpe/pac/231/11715_1.html,
accessed 20 June 2006.
- Explanatory Memorandum, p. 1.
Sue Harris Rimmer
21 July 2006
Bills Digest Service
Information and Research Services
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ISSN 1328-8091
© Commonwealth of Australia 2006
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Published by the Parliamentary Library, 2006.
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