Bills Digest no. 146 2006–07
Forestry Marketing and Research and Development Services
(Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Bill 2007
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
Financial implications
Main Provisions
Concluding Comments
Endnotes
Contact Officer & Copyright Details
Passage History
Forestry Marketing and Research and
Development Services (Transitional and Consequential Provisions)
Bill 2007
Date introduced:
29 March 2007
House: House of Representatives
Portfolio: Fisheries, Forestry and
Conservation
Commencement:
Sections 1 to 3 commence
on the day the Act receives Royal Assent. Schedule 1 commences on
the later of either the day after this Act receives Royal Assent or
the time the Forestry Marketing and Research and Development
Services Act 2007 commences, and will not
commence at all if the Forestry Marketing and Research and
Development Services Act 2007 does not commence. Schedule 2
commences on a date to be proclaimed, or failing that, six months
after Royal Assent.
The main purpose of this bill is to provide
transitional arrangements for the change of the Forest and Wood
Products Research and Development Corporation (FWPRDC) from
statutory body to a non-statutory forestry industry services
corporation.
This is the second of two bills designed to
provide for the creation of a forestry industry services company to
provide marketing and research and development and other industry
services to the forestry industry. The background to the Bill is
the outlined in the Bills
Digest for the principal Bill, Forestry Marketing and Research
and Development Services Bill 2007. The Forestry Marketing and
Research and Development Services (Transitional and Consequential
Provisions) Bill 2007 provides for:(1)
- abolition of the FWPRDC,
- transfer of assets, liabilities and staff from the FWPRDC to
the new industry services body; and
- repeal of some legislation and consequential amendments to
other legislation.
The net value of assets (including cash
balances) and liabilities to be transferred to the new industry
services body is approximately $6.4 million. The final value will
be determined following the financial transfer on the cessation
date of the FWPRDC.(2)
Immediately after the cessation of the FWPRDC,
its assets and liabilities transfer to the successor body (the new
industry services body). No conveyance or formal property transfer
is required (proposed item 4) and the processes
are exempt from stamp duty or other taxation (proposed item
6). Pending proceedings relating to the assets and
liabilities are also transferred to the new industry body
(proposed item 5). Registrations of assets are
also transferred (proposed item 8). The
Explanatory Memorandum suggests that such assets would include
things like registered patents and trademarks.
After the cessation of FWPRDC, any references
to the FWPRDC in instruments are to be construed as references to
the new industry services body (proposed item
7).
All the staff of the FWPRDC are transferred to
the new industry body on the cessation of FWPRDC (proposed
item 9). Proposed item 10(1) states that
employees will be employed by the new industry services body on the
same terms and conditions and with the same accrued entitlements to
benefits. The employees service with the new industry services body
will be considered to be continuous with the FWPRDC
(proposed item 10 (2)). However, the terms and
conditions may be varied after the cessation of FWPRDC provided the
variations are carried out in accordance with applicable law,
awards, determinations or agreements and following any procedures
specified in the terms of the employee s employment
(proposed item 11).
A range of benefits currently available to
employees of the FWPRDC as Commonwealth employees will continue to
be available to employees in limited circumstances, even though the
new industry services body is not a Commonwealth authority. This is
particularly the case where the entitlement to the benefits accrued
before the cessation of the FWPRDC. These benefits are:
- workers compensation under the Safety, Rehabilitation and
Compensation Act 1988 in respect of employees who were injured
or suffered property loss before the cessation of the FWPRDC
(proposed item 13);
- long service leave entitlements accrued under the Long
Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976 carry over for
employees who are transferred to the new industry services body.
(proposed items 20 and 24).
Special transitional arrangements apply to
workers compensation payments. For the purposes of workers
compensation claims arising before the cessation date, the
Commonwealth is taken to have been the employer of FWPRDC employees
(proposed item 14). Hence, the Commonwealth will
be liable to pay the premium to Comcare in respect of those
employees. The new services industry body is not liable for
premiums under the Commonwealth scheme. The new services industry
body will be entitled to a refund of the premium paid by FWPRDC for
the part of the financial year after the cessation date, although
use of the refund may be made subject to certain conditions
(proposed item 16). However, the new services
industry body is not wholly exempt from the operation of the
Commonwealth workers compensation scheme. It will have to cooperate
with Commonwealth in assisting it to fulfil its obligations in
relation to rehabilitation and providing suitable employment for
employees injured prior to the cessation of FWPRDC
(proposed item 15).
Proposed items 20 to 25
contain specific transitional provisions for long service leave
entitlements. An employee who has accrued at least 10 years of long
service at the cessation date carries over all his or her accrued
benefits under the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees)
Act 1976. Because long service leave entitlements are
preserved, employees are not entitled to receive any payment for
ceasing to be employed in the public service (proposed item
24).
Employees who have served less than 10 years
and transfer to the new industry services body carry with them
their long service leave credits. After they have served a total of
at least 10 years, they may be granted long service leave on full
salary (proposed item 20(3)) or on half salary for
a period twice as long (proposed item 20 (5)).
Proposed item 21 allows employees with less than
10 years of service at the cessation date to be paid in lieu of
long service leave if they cease to be an employee of the new
industry services body or after the day they reach 10 years of
combined service with the FWPRDC and industry services body.
Where an employee who is transferred to the
new industry services body dies after serving at least one year but
less than 10 years in total combined service, his or her dependants
are entitled to payment at full salary for the period of long
service leave accrued (proposed item 22).
Some benefits currently available to FWPRDC
employees will cease to be available when they are transferred to
the new industry services body. The new industry services body is
not an approved authority for the purposes of Commonwealth public
sector superannuation legislation, so private superannuation
arrangements will apply to employees from the cessation date
(proposed items 17 and 18).
The FWPRDC must produce a final annual report
covering its operation and financial status up to the cessation
date. It will continue to notionally exist after the cessation date
for the sole purpose of producing the annual report
(proposed item 27).
Proposed item 28 provides a
formula for working out the limit on the appropriation for matching
payments for a financial year. Matching payments are used for
research and development purposes. It provides for any unmatched
research and development excess from the FWPRDC to be carried over
to the new services industry body at the cessation date.
The Minister has power to delegate his or her
powers prescribed by Schedule 1 to the Secretary of the
administering Department or an SES employee, or acting SES employee
of the Department. (proposed item 30).
Proposed item 31 provides
that the acquisition of property from a person under the Bill must
be on just terms in accordance with paragraph 51 (xxxi) of the
Constitution. The Federal Court is appointed to arbitrate on the
question of what amounts of compensation would constitute just
terms if the Commonwealth and the person whose property is acquired
are unable to agree.
The Governor-General has power to make
regulations relating to any matter contained in the Bill
(proposed item 32).
A number of consequential amendments are made
to other Acts to enable the operation of this Act. The main
amendment is the insertion of a new definition of industry body
into related legislation.
The passage of this bill is necessary to
enable to termination of the current FWPRDC and for the transition
to the new industry services body under the Forestry Marketing and
Research and Development Services Bill 2007.
-
Catherine Lorimer Forestry Marketing and Research and
Development Services Bill 2007, Bills Digest No. 147,
2006-07, Parliamentary Library, Canberra, 9 May
2007. http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/bd/2006-07/07bd147.pdf
-
Explanatory Memorandum, p. 2.
Catherine Lorimer
9 May 2007
Bills Digest Service
Parliamentary Library
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ISSN 1328-8091
© Commonwealth of Australia 2007
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Published by the Parliamentary Library, 2007.
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