Published Impact Analyses

On 15 November 2013, the Standing Council on Transport and Infrastructure endorsed  Part C1 of the National Standard for Commercial Vessels (NSCV) to align domestic commercial vessel standards to national laws and international agreements.

The sections of the NSCV have progressively replaced the Uniform Shipping Laws (USL) Code, which has been the basis of standards for domestic vessels since the late 1970s. This Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) considers one of the final pieces of the NSCV – the arrangements, accommodation and personal safety for domestic commercial vessels.

The RIS covers aspects of vessel design and construction that are vitally important to the health, safety and wellbeing of passengers and crew.

On 26 November 2013, the Chairman of the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) announced  a proposal mandating communication service providers to provide National Broadband Network (NBN) consumers with information about back up batteries. Currently all NBN consumers are provided with a back up battery, so that in the event of a power failure they will still be able to use the phone services. The NBN phones, unlike phones using a copper wire, will not be able to work in the event of a power failure.  However, some consumers do not want the back up battery because they consider it to be unsightly and they can use their mobile phones in the event of a power failure.

On 23 November 2009 the Corporations Amendment (Improving Accountability on Termination Payments) Act 2009 (the Act) received Royal Assent. The Act resulted in lowering the threshold for shareholder approval from seven times the total annual remuneration package to one year’s average annual base pay. Other amendments included:

On 28 July 2010 the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) introduced the Broadcasting and Datacasting Services (Parental Lock) Technical Standard 2010 (Parental Lock Standard) to ensure that digital televisions and digital receivers sold in Australia have a parental lock capability.  A Regulation Impact Statement was required for the proposal but not prepared. As a result, a Post-implementation Review (PIR) has been undertaken in line with best practice regulation requirements.  The PIR found that the Parental Lock Standard has had a low to negligible cost on industry and consumers and that the benefits have also been minor.

On 13 November 2013, the Government introduced legislation that provides transitional arrangements for importers of synthetic greenhouse gases (SGGs), prior to the repeal of the carbon tax (proposed to take effect from 1 July 2014).  The arrangements provide for an exemption from the equivalent carbon tax where SGGs are imported but not released onto the Australian market before repeal of the equivalent carbon tax. Under current arrangements, the equivalent carbon tax is applied when SGGs enter the economy, either at the point of import or manufacture. The equivalent carbon tax is a significant percentage of the price of SGGs. For example, the equivalent carbon tax on HFC134a is $30.40 per kilogram in 2013-14. In comparison the cost to purchase and transport HFC134a from overseas without the equivalent carbon tax is less than $10 per kilogram.

The Australian Government has tabled legislation changing the regulation of registered organisations. These changes are a specific election commitment of the Government. Registered organisations are those employer and employee associations that are registered under the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 (RO Act) to allow them to represent the interests of their members in certain workplace matters. Under the RO Act, registered organisations must comply with detailed regulations in relation to registration, rules, financial reporting, elections, conduct of officers and other matters. The Government has committed to increase the statutory and fiduciary obligations on registered organisations to more closely align them with those that corporations have to meet. The main changes are:

On 13 November 2013 the Treasurer introduced the Minerals Resource Rent Tax Repeal and Other Measures Bill 2013 into Parliament. The Minerals Resource Rent Tax (MRRT) is a profits tax which is levied at an effective rate of 22.5 per cent of the mining profit of coal and mining projects within Australia. The MRRT applied from 1 July 2012 to taxable resources (broadly iron ore and coal) after they were extracted from the ground but before they underwent any significant processing or value adding. Miners with an annual mining profit of less than $75 million are exempted from paying MRRT. The Bill repeals the Minerals Resource Rent Tax Act 2012 from 1 July 2014.

On 13 November 2013, the Prime Minister introduced the Clean Energy Legislation (Carbon Tax Repeal) Bill 2013. The repeal of the carbon tax is an election commitment of the Government. The Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) assessed the significance of this proposal as A-level, meaning it is expected to have significant economy-wide impacts. The carbon tax is directly applied to a limited range of inputs, and is paid by a relatively small number of businesses or ‘liable entities’. The carbon tax directly increases the cost of: electricity and gas; managing landfill and wastewater; liquid fuels for off-road use; and synthetic greenhouse gases. Some of these products, such as electricity and gas, are used as inputs to other production processes. Consequently, a change in the price of an input can also have indirect effects on prices other products.

 On 22 October 2013, the Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development introduced a requirement through Australian Design Rules 31/03 and 35/05  under section 7 of the Motor Vehicle Standards Act 1989 for Electronic Stability Control (ESC) to be fitted to new light commercial vehicles (LCVs).  ESC will be mandated from 2015 for new vehicle models and 2017 for all new vehicles.  ESC is already mandatory for light passenger vehicles. ESC is an advanced vehicle stability system that works by automatically braking individual wheels to help the driver steer in the intended direction during a skid.  Research has shown that ESC in LCVs is likely to be around 30 per cent effective at averting single vehicle crashes.

On 22 October 2013, the Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development introduced a requirement through Australian Design Rules 31/03 and 35/05 under section 7 of the Motor Vehicle Standards Act 1989 for Brake Assist Systems (BAS) to be fitted to new light passenger vehicles and light commercial vehicles.  BAS will be mandated from 2015 for new vehicle models, 2016 for all new light passenger vehicles and 2017 for all new light commercial vehicles. BAS are designed to help drivers stop more quickly in an emergency situation.  By detecting when a vehicle is undergoing emergency braking and then applying the maximum braking force, BAS can minimise the stopping distance of a vehicle and help to either avoid a collision or reduce its severity.  BAS has significant potential to reduce road trauma involving pedestrians and cyclists.