Official website for Published Impact Analyses for decisions announced by the Australian Government, Ministerial Forums and National Standard Setting Bodies.
On 1 March 2017, the Australian Building Codes Board released the final Decision Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) which considers options to mandate automatic fire suppressions systems for covered balconies over 25 meters in effective height.
In March 2017, the Australian Buildings Codes Board (ABCB) released a Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Consultation Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) which considers whether current requirements for temperature control when replacing water heaters in private residences can be improved to further reduce the risk of scalding injuries and fatalities.
The Consultation RIS has been assessed by the OBPR and complies with the COAG requirements for COAG Consultation RISs.
Comments are invited by close of business Friday, 21 April 2017, and can be emailed to abcbris@abcb.gov.au.
On 9 February 2017, the Government introduced the Diverted Profits Tax Bill 2017. The bill introduces a 40 per cent tax on diverted profits to encourage greater compliance by large multinational enterprises with their tax obligations in Australia.
A Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) was prepared and certified by the Treasury, and was assessed as compliant and consistent with best practice by the Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR).
The diverted profits tax is expected to impose a transitional regulatory burden averaged out to $16.4 million a year over 10 years. The OBPR agreed to the estimated regulatory burden.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is remaking its Class Order [CO 03/217] Differential fees, which is scheduled to sunset on 1 April 2017, without significant amendments.
Under equal treatment requirements set out in Section 601FC(1)(d) of the Corporations Act 2001, responsible entities are prohibited from charging different fees to members of the same class. Subject to certain conditions, [CO 03/217] allows a responsible entity to discriminate between registered managed investment scheme members in relation to fees.
On 9 December 2016, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) endorsed a 2 September 2016 decision of the COAG Disability Reform Council to adopt a national quality and safeguarding framework to apply to providers of supports under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
The framework is intended to provide a level of consumer protection for participants in the NDIS and includes:
an independent national complaints and serious incidents system
worker screening requirements
national registration and a Code of Conduct for providers
In January 2017, the COAG Education Council endorsed changes to the National Quality Framework (NQF) for Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) arising from the 2014 National Quality Agenda Review.
The most significant changes proposed are:
A simplified and more transparent assessment and rating process for all services, which includes a revised National Quality Standard.
Measures to improve oversight of and support within Family Day Care (FDC) services, which are aimed at increasing the integrity and transparency of FDC delivery and helping to ensure quality outcomes for children.
Streamlined documentation of assessments or evaluations of school age children in Outside School Hours Care (OSHC).
On 20 December 2016, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) released the final revised Prudential Standard APS 210 Liquidity (APS 210) and Prudential Practice Guide APG 210 Liquidity (APG 210) which incorporates, among other things, the Net Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR) requirements for some authorised deposit-taking institutions (ADIs).
The NSFR requires ADIs to fund their activities with more stable sources of funding on an ongoing basis, and thereby promotes greater balance sheet resilience. In particular, the NSFR should lead to reduced reliance on less-stable sources of funding, such as short-term wholesale funding, that proved problematic during the global financial crisis.
The final revised standard APS 210 will commence on 1 January 2018.
In October 2016, a majority of Work Health and Safety ministers agreed to progress the development of nationally consistent approaches to four areas within existing explosives regulation. These four areas are the definition of explosives, the licensing framework, notification processes, and the explosives authorisation process.
A Decision Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) was prepared by Safe Work Australia and assessed as adequate by the Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR).
Safe Work Australia prepared RISs at the consultation and decision-making stages consistent with the COAG best practice regulation requirements.
On 10 November 2016, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) released its final revised standard on securitisation.
Securitisation involves selling a ‘pool’ of assets (typically loans) to a special purpose vehicle, which then obtains funding for these assets from the capital markets. As with loans and other exposures, Authorised Deposit-taking Institutions (ADIs) that choose to hold exposures to securitisation vehicles must hold regulatory capital against these exposures. However, ADIs may be able to reduce the amount of regulatory capital APRA requires them to hold against securitised loans by removing them from their balance sheets.
On 9 December 2016, the Australian Accounting Standards Board (AASB) released AASB Standard 1058 Income of Not-for-Profit Entities.
The new Standard, which will come into effect on 30 June 2020, makes two major changes to improve the accuracy of not-for-profits’ reporting of their financial position.
Currently, not-for-profits report revenue as income when it is received and expenses when they are incurred. But some grants or donations have performance obligations attached to them. AASB 1058 will allow not-for-profits to recognise such grants or donations as income when the performance obligation has been fulfilled, and not when the revenue is received.