On 1 August 2014 the Government released an exposure draft regulation and a draft explanatory statement which seek to amend the Superannuation Industry (Supervisory) Regulations 1994. The proposed ‘pass-through’ regulation would require any superannuation fund that receives data relating to a contribution being made to another fund to on-forward that data to the other fund – e.g. If Fund ABC received data about a contribution being made to Fund XYZ, then Fund ABC would be required to pass the data onto Fund XYZ. The proposal has been assessed by the Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) as likely to have a measurable but contained impact on the economy with minor impacts on competition. A RIS has been prepared by the Treasury for consultation. The Treasury is currently inviting interested parties to comment on the exposure draft and explanatory statement. The closing date for submissions is Monday, 1 September 2014.
Published Impact Analyses
Official website for Published Impact Analyses for decisions announced by the Australian Government, Ministerial Forums and National Standard Setting Bodies.
On 17 July 2014, the Minister for Justice introduced the Crimes Legislation Amendment (Psychoactive Substances and Other Measures) Bill 2014, which proposes to ban the importation of all substances that have a psychoactive effect that are not otherwise regulated. The amendments criminalise the importation of new psychoactive substances and permit Australian Customs and Border Protection Service officers to seize unknown substances that are not existing illicit drugs or do not have a regulated legitimate use. The ban aims to address the importation of substances which mimic the psychoactive effects of, or are marketed as legal alternatives to, illicit drugs. The underlying concern is that these substances are frequently of unknown origin and are potentially harmful. There are examples where these drugs have proven equally as harmful as existing illicit drugs.
The Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) has published a range of guidance material associated with the Australian Government Guide to Regulation. The way businesses compete against each other greatly affects the welfare of consumers. In the absence of competition, consumers are likely to be worse off. Competition can also be a driver of efficiency and innovation, both of which lead to enhanced productivity. For that reason, the Guide to Regulation and the COAG Best Practice Regulation Guide, require that the competition impacts of new regulatory proposals be examined in a Regulation Impact Statement (RIS). Furthermore, both the Guide to Regulation and the COAG Guide require additional ‘competition tests’ for a RIS that recommends a regulatory proposal that the OBPR has assessed as restricting competition.
The Office of Best Practice Regulation has today published a range of guidance material associated with the Australian Government Guide to Regulation. The purpose of these guidance notes are to assist policy makers on particular aspects of preparing a Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) or Post-implementation review. These documents will be updated from time to time as necessary to support the Guide to Regulation. The full list of guidance notes is:
On 15 May 2014 legislation was introduced into Parliament to reduce disclosure requirements and company Directors’ risk in relation to the issuance of simple retail corporate bonds. Previously, the Corporations Act required a corporation to prepare a full prospectus for the offer of corporate bonds to retail investors. Additionally, a Director had liability for any misstatement in, or omission from, the disclosure document irrespective of whether the Director was involved in the misstatement or omission. The RIS considers that the relatively onerous disclosure and liability requirements have resulted in an unnecessarily low number of simple retail corporate bonds being issued. Consequently, the RIS proposes to limit the disclosure obligations by introducing a 2-part prospectus for certain bond issuances.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) have decided to remake two sunsetting legislative instruments without significant amendments: the Radiocommunications (Compliance Labelling - Electromagnetic Radiation) Notice 2003 and the Radiocommunications (Electromagnetic Radiation - Human Exposure) Standard 2003. In line with the Australian Government best practice regulation requirements for sunsetting legislative instruments, the ACMA has assessed the operation of these instruments in consultation with affected stakeholders and interest groups, and have certified that these instruments are operating efficiently and effectively.
The Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) has published a range of guidance material associated with the Australian Government Guide to Regulation. This guidance note provides additional detail on the application of the whole-of-government consultation principles outlined in the Guide to Regulation, as well as the role of OBPR in encouraging best practice consultation processes.
The Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) has published a range of guidance material associated with the Australian Government Guide to Regulation. This User Guide is designed to be read alongside the Guide to Regulation. It provides detail on the specifics of developing your Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) and having it assessed by the OBPR. Among other things, this guide will help you decide what type of RIS to undertake and provide helpful step-by-step advice.
On 7 July 2014, the Government announced plans to progress the Biosecurity Bill 2014 to replace the Quarantine Act 1908. The proposed biosecurity legislation is designed to reduce unnecessary red tape and provide a more flexible risk based approach to compliance. The reforms will lead to better outcomes for business and Australia’s biosecurity risk management. The legislation builds on and expands the existing benefits to the Commonwealth and industry members by improving partnerships to manage biosecurity risk and allowing industry to contribute to managing biosecurity risk in return for a commercial advantage. The Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) has agreed that the estimated regulatory cost savings is $6.9 million per annum. This is due to clearer, easier to use legislation and improved processes.
On 17 July 2014, the Attorney-General’s Department released a Consultation Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) examining the proposed measures to enhance chemical security in relation to 84 toxic chemicals of security concern. These include a variety of industrial, agricultural and veterinary chemicals. The Attorney-General’s Department has raised concerns that these toxic chemicals could be exploited by individuals and groups for criminal purposes – particularly terrorism and organised crime. The Attorney-General’s Department invites submissions on the consultation RIS. Submissions are open until 5pm on Wednesday, 27 August 2014. This Consultation RIS has been approved by the OBPR.