Commonwealth Public Service Regulations (Amendment) (Cth)

STATUTORY RULES

1923. No. 212

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REGULATIONS UNDER THE COMMONWEALTH PUBLIC SERVICE ACT 1922 (NINTH AMENDMENT, 1923).

THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS appointed under the Commonwealth Public Service Act 1922, in pursuance and exercise of the authority conferred upon it by the said Act, and subject to the approval of the Governor‑General, hereby makes the following amendment of the Regulations, such amendment to come into operation from the 19th July, 1923.

Dated this tenth day of December, 1923.

C. B. B. White, Chairman,	Board of Commissioners.
W. J. Skewes,
J. P. McGlinn,

Approved in Executive Council this twentieth day of December, 1923.

FORSTER,

Governor‑General.

By His Excellency’s Command,

W. G. GIBSON,

for Acting Prime Minister.

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Amendment of Commonwealth Public Service Regulations.

(Statutory Rules 1923, No. 93, as amended to this date.)

Part IX. of the Commonwealth Public Service Regulations is repealed and the following part inserted in its stead:—

“Part IX.—Divisional Representatives.

Continuance of existing divisional representatives.

“139. (1) Pending election of representatives of the Third and Fourth Divisions, the officers elected or appointed as divisional representatives under regulations repealed by these Regulations and holding office at the commencement of these Regulations shall continue to act as divisional representatives for the purpose of sub‑section (5) of section 55 of the Act as provided hereunder:—

(a) Officer selected or appointed as divisional representatives of the Professional Division shall represent officers who, at the commencement of these Regulations, are classified in the Professional Division and who, after the commencement of these Regulations, are included in the Third Division.

(b) Officer selected or appointed as divisional representatives of the Clerical Division shall represent officers who, at the commencement of these Regulations, are classified in the Clerical Division and who, after the commencement of these Regulations, are included in the Third Division.

C.19654.—Price 5d

(c) Officers elected or appointed as divisional representatives of the General Division shall represent officers who, at the commencement of these Regulations, are classified in the General Division and who, after the commencement of these Regulations, are included in the Fourth Division.

“(2) In the case of the illness, absence, suspension or vacation of office of any representative appointed under the last preceding sub‑regulation, or where the Board is of opinion that, by reason of his being personally interested in or affected by any matter which is the subject of appeal, it is undesirable that he should act as a member of the Appeal Board, the Board of Commissioners may appoint another officer of the same Division to act temporarily in his stead.

“(3) If the proceedings of an Appeal Board are not completed at the time of election of the first divisional representatives, the divisional representative sitting on the Board shall be regarded as holding office in respect of the particular appeal until the proceedings are completed.

Returning Officer.

“140. The Commonwealth Electoral Officer in each State shall be the Returning Officer for the State for the purpose of elections held under this Part.

Dates for nominations and elections.

“141. (1) In the election of a Divisional Representative, held under this Part, the Returning Officer shall, subject to the concurrence of the Board, fix—

(a) the last date for the receipt of nominations (in this Part referred to as ‘nomination day’); and (5) the date for the close of the poll (in this Part referred to as ‘polling day’),

and shall notify those dates in two consecutive weekly issues of the Gazette.

“(2) Polling day shall be three calendar months after nomination day, and the hour for the close of the Poll shall be 12 o’clock noon.

Qualification of voters.

“141a. (1) Every person who, fourteen days before nomination day—

(a) is an officer of the Third or the Fourth Division of the Public Service; and

(b) has furnished a specimen of his signature to the Chief Officer of his Department for the purpose of this Part,

shall be entitled to vote at the election of the Representative of the Division in which he is included, in respect of the State in which he is permanently stationed.

“(2) In the case of the first election held under this Part, where, owing to remoteness of location, illness, or authorized absence from, duty of an officer, the Chief Officer is satisfied that it was impracticable for that officer to furnish a specimen signature fourteen days before nomination day, the Chief Officer may accept the signature from the officer at a date not later than the day immediately preceding polling day, and in that case the officer shall be deemed to have complied with the requirement of the last preceding sub‑regulation in relation to furnishing his signature.

List of voters and record of signatures.

“141b. (1) The Chief Officer of each Department shall cause to be prepared and transmitted to the Returning Officer so as to reach him before noon on nomination day—

(a) a separate list (in duplicate), certified by him, containing the names of all officers of his Department permanently stationed in the State who fourteen days before nomination day were included in—

(i) the Third Division; and

(ii) the Fourth Division,

and setting out therein the Branch in which the officer is employed and his official address; and

(b) a specimen signature of each officer, upon a card approved by the Board:

Provided that, in the case of the first election held under this Part, where the Chief Officer has not been furnished with the specimen signature of an officer fourteen days before nomination day, and he accepts the signature of that officer at a later date as provided in the last preceding regulation, he shall forthwith forward it to the Returning Officer.

Nominations.

“141c. (1) No person shall be eligible for nomination unless he is an officer of the Division and permanently stationed in the State in respect of which he seeks election and is entitled to vote at the election.

“(2) Nominations shall be lodged with the Returning Officer on or after the date of the first publication of the notification in the Gazette fixing nomination day and before 12 o’clock noon on nomination day.

“(3) A nomination shall—

(a) name the candidate for election, the office held by him, and the Department in which he is employed; and

(b) be signed by not less than twenty persons qualified to be voters in the election for the Division in the State for which the candidate is nominated, and shall be in accordance with the following form:—

Commonwealth of Australia.  State of............

Nomination of Divisional Representative for the.............Division of the Commonwealth Public Service in the said State.

To

The Returning Officer for the State of…............

We, the undersigned officers of the..................Division, qualified to be voters in the election of the Divisional Representative for the said Division of the Commonwealth Public Service in the State of................, do hereby nominate here insert the Christian name or names in full and the surname of the candidate, the office held by him, and the Department in which he is employed) for  election as Divisional Representative for the above‑mentioned Division in the said State.

Dated the …………….............day of………………..............19 .

Signature of Nominator. Office held by Nominator. Department in which Nominator Employed.

I.,..................., of.........................., being an officer of the.......................................Division of the Commonwealth Public Service stationed in the State of............, consent to the above nomination, and to act if elected, and declare that I am qualified under the Public Service Regulations to be elected as Divisional Representative for the said State.

.................................................

Signature of Candidate.

Witness.........................

Address...........................

N. B.—The candidate’s consent to the nomination and his declaration of qualification may be on a separate paper and in any form, but if given on the nomination paper in the above form their sufficiency shall not be questioned.

A nomination must be signed by not less than twenty persons qualified to be voters in the election for which the candidate is nominated, and must be lodged with the Returning Officer on or after the date of the first publication of the notification in the Gazette fixing nomination day and before 12 o’clock noon on nomination day.

Certain officers ineligible for nomination.

“141d. The Commonwealth Electoral Officer of a State and the Divisional Returning Officer of an Electoral Division of a State shall not be eligible for nomination or election as a Divisional Representative.

Proceedings after nomination.

“141e. (1) In the event of one candidate only being nominated he shall be declared elected, but if more than one candidate is nominated the Returning Officer shall proceed to take a poll.

“(2) Where more than one candidate is nominated the Returning Officer for the State shall, within fourteen days after nomination day, send to the Chief Officer, or if there be no Chief Officer in the State then to some officer of his Department in the State whom the Chief Officer appoints for the purpose—

(a) one ballot‑paper, initialed by the Returning Officer or by an Assistant Returning Officer appointed under this Part; and

(b) one ballot‑paper envelop (addressed to the Returning Officer), in the form approved by the Board,

for each officer whose name appears on the list furnished to the Returning Officer pursuant to regulation 141b of these Regulations, together with the duplicate of that list.

“(3) Each ballot‑paper and ballot‑paper envelope shall be enclosed by the Returning Officer in a covering envelope which shall be fastened, and addressed to the officer for whom it is intended.

“(4) The Chief Officer or any officer appointed by him shall forthwith cause to be delivered, or sent, by post where necessary, the envelopes containing the ballot‑papers and ballot‑paper envelopes, to the officers to whom they are addressed.

“(5) If, through inadvertence, the name of an officer has been omitted from the list prepared pursuant to regulation 141b of these Regulations, the officer may apply, through the Chief Officer (or his representative in the State), to the Returning Officer for a ballot‑paper. If the officer is entitled to vote the Chief Officer or his representative shall indorse the fact on the application and transmit the application to the Returning Officer who shall thereupon enter the name on the list and issue a ballot‑paper to the officer.

Form of ballot‑paper.

Returning Officer’s Initials.

“141f. The ballot‑paper shall be in accordance with the following form, and the voter shall record his vote in the manner set out therein:—

Commonwealth of Australia. State of............

Commonwealth Public Service……………………….Division.

Election of Divisional Representative for the above‑mentioned Division in the said State.

Ballot‑paper.

Directions to Voter. The voter shall mark his vote on this ballot‑paper by placing the number 1 in the square opposite the name of the candidate for whom he votes as his first preference; and must give contingent votes for all the remaining candidates by placing the numbers 2, 3, 4, (and so on, as the case requires) in the squares opposite their names, so as to indicate the order of his preference for them, and shall fold the ballot‑paper so that the vote cannot be seen, place the ballot‑paper in the envelope addressed to the Returning Officer, fasten the envelope, sign his name on the outside of the envelope in the space provided for the purpose and send the envelope by, post or otherwise to the Returning Officer so as to reach him not later than 12 o’clock noon on the............day of............19.

Candidates.

.........................................................................................................

.........................................................................................................

.........................................................................................................

Custody of ballot‑paper, and scrutiny.

“141g. (1). The Returning Officer shall, in respect of each election, preserve in his custody a locked and sealed ballot‑box, in which he shall forthwith place all envelopes containing ballot‑papers received by him up to the close of the poll.

“(2) Forthwith after the hour appointed for the close of the poll, the Returning Officer, in the presence of an Assistant Returning Officer appointed under this Part and such authorized scrutineers as may attend, shall—

(a) open each ballot‑box and produce unopened all envelopes containing ballot‑papers received up to the hour of the close of the poll;

(b) compare the signature of the officer on the envelope containing his ballot‑paper with the signature of the same officer on the card furnished to the Returning Officer by the Chief Officer, and if satisfied that the signatures agree, accept the ballot‑paper for further scrutiny, but if not so satisfied disallow the ballot‑paper without opening the envelope; and

(c) proceed with the scrutiny as nearly as practicable, mutatis mutandis, in accordance with the provisions of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918‑1922 and the regulations thereunder relating to postal voting in a House of Representatives election:

Provided that if on any count two or more candidates have an equal number of votes and one of them has to be excluded, or if in the final count two candidates have an equal number of votes, it shall be decided by lot, in such manner as the Returning Officer determines, which candidate shall be excluded or elected as the case requires.

Allowance or rejection of ballot‑papers.

“141h. The provisions of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918‑1922 and the regulations thereunder relating to the allowance and admission, and disallowance and rejection of postal ballot‑papers in an election of a member of the House of Representatives shall, in so far as they are applicable, mutatis mutandis, be applied to the election of a Divisional Representative:

Provided that, the envelopes, from which ballot‑papers are withdrawn for scrutiny, shall forthwith be forwarded in a sealed parcel to the Public Service Inspector for the State, and retained by him and dealt with in accordance with regulation 141x of these Regulations.

Scrutineers.

“141i. (1) Each candidate may appoint one scrutineer to represent him at the scrutiny.

“(2) All the proceedings at the scrutiny shall be open to the inspection of the scrutineers.

Declaration of poll.

“141j. At the conclusion of the scrutiny the Returning Officer shall inform the Board of the name of the candidate who is elected. The result of the poll shall be declared by the Board by notification in the Gazette.

Forfeiture of office

“141k. A Divisional Representative shall forfeit his office as Divisional Representative if he ceases to be employed in the Division or in the State for which he was elected or appointed as Representative.

By‑elections.

“141l. If a vacancy in the office of Divisional Representative occurs in any State before the expiration of the period for which the representative was elected, the Board may, where it deems it desirable so to do, notify the Returning Officer who shall, as expeditiously as practicable, obtain from each Chief Officer a list of officers in the Division and permanently stationed in the State, as at the date of the occurrence of the vacancy, together with the cards bearing their specimen signatures, and proceed to hold a by‑election to fill the vacancy for the unexpired portion of the term of the vacating officer.

Disputed elections.

“141m. (1) In the event of an election being disputed the person declared to be elected shall hold the office until the dispute is determined as provided in this Part.

“(2) The validity of an election may be disputed by a candidate in the election by a petition addressed to the Board.

“(3) Every petition disputing an election shall—

(a) set out clearly and fully the facts relied upon to invalidate the election;

(b) be signed by the candidate disputing the election; and

(c) be lodged with the Public Service Inspector of the State within 14 days after the declaration of the result of the election, within which period a copy of the petition shall be served by the petitioner upon the candidate declared elected.

Reference to Disputes Committee.

“141n. (1) The Public Service Inspector shall forthwith transmit the petition to the Board. If the Board is of opinion from the statement of facts relied upon by the petitioner that there is reasonable ground for investigation, the Board may refer the matter to the Disputes Committee but otherwise shall dismiss the petition.

“(2) The Disputes Committee shall consist of the Public Service Inspector of the State, the Returning Officer, and an officer of the Division appointed by the Board and stationed in the State, in respect of which the election was held, one of whom shall be appointed by the Board as Chairman.

Powers of Disputes Committee.

“141o.(1) The Disputes Committee shall have power—

(a) to adjourn;

(b) to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of documents;

(c) to grant to any party to the petition leave to inspect the lists and signatures of the officers supplied to the Returning Officer, and other documents used at or in connexion with the election, and to take extracts from those lists and documents;

(d) to examine witnesses on oath;

(e) to inquire into the identity of voters and whether their votes were improperly admitted or rejected assuming the list furnished by the Chief Officer to the Returning Officer to be correct, but the committee shall not inquire into the correctness of the list;

(f) to examine ballot‑papers and ballot‑paper envelopes and, if satisfied that there are good grounds for so doing, recommend the admission or rejection of any ballot‑paper.

“(2) The Disputes Committee shall furnish the Board with the evidence taken by it and with a report as to its finding.

Powers of the Board.

“141p. (1) The Board shall, upon the receipt of the Report of the Disputes Committee, decide the petition, and for this purpose shall have the following powers:—

(a) To admit or reject any ballot‑paper;

(b) To declare that any person who was returned as elected was not duly elected;

(c) To declare any candidate duly elected who was not returned as elected;

(d) To declare any election absolutely void;

(e) To dismiss or uphold the petition in whole or in part;

(f) If the Board is of opinion that the petitioner had no reasonable grounds for the petition and that the petition was frivolous or vexatious, to order the petitioner to pay such sum as the Board thinks fit, but not exceeding the cost of the hearing.

“(2) The Board may, if it thinks fit, refer the matter back to the Disputes Committee for further investigation and report, and the Disputes Committee shall thereupon investigate and report accordingly.

“(3) The Board may exercise all or any of its powers under this regulation on such grounds as the Board in its discretion thinks just and sufficient.

“(4) Effect shall be given to the decision of the Board as follows:—

(a) if any person returned is declared not to have been duly elected he shall cease to hold office as Divisional Representative;

(b) if any person not returned is declared to have been duly elected he shall take office accordingly; and

(c) if any election is declared absolutely void a new election shall be held.

“(5) All decisions of the Board shall be final and conclusive and without appeal.

“(6) No election shall be avoided on account of the error of or omission by any officer which did not affect the result of the election:

Provided that where any person entitled to vote was, on account of the error of or omission by any officer, prevented from voting

 

in any election, no evidence shall be admitted, for the purpose of determining whether the error of or omission by the officer did or did not affect the result of the election, of the way in which that person intended to vote at the election.

“(7) Any sum ordered to be paid in pursuance of paragraph (f) of sub‑regulation (1) of this regulation shall be recoverable in the manner prescribed for the recovery of fines for breaches of the Act or Regulations.

Term of office.

“141q. The term for which a Divisional Representative shall hold office shall be three years from the first day of the month following the publication in the Gazette of the result of the election, except where a successor is elected to fill an extraordinary vacancy, in which case the successor shall hold office only for the unexpired portion of the triennium following the general election:

Provided that if the proceedings of an Appeal Board are not completed at the expiry of the term for which the Divisional Representative sitting on the Board was elected or on the occurrence of a vacancy by reason of his promotion to another Division, that Divisional Representative shall be regarded as holding office in respect of the particular appeal until the proceedings are completed.

Sundays and holidays.

“141r. Whenever the day fixed for the doing of any act under this Part falls upon a Sunday or a Public Service holiday the act may be done on the first day following which is not a Sunday or such Public Service holiday.

Assistant Returning Officer.

“141s. The Returning Officer may, if necessary, appoint an officer of the Commonwealth Public Service to perform the duties of an Assistant Returning Officer specified in this Part.

Clerical assistance.

“141t. The Returning Officer shall, on application to the Chief Officer of each Department in the State in which an election is being held, be supplied with such clerical assistance as he requires to enable him to discharge his duties under this Part and that assistance shall as nearly as practicable be in proportion to the numerical strength of the staff under the control of each Chief Officer in the capital city of the State.

Authority to incur expense.

“141u. The Returning Officer may incur such expenditure in printing, postage, advertising, stationery and equipment, as is necessary to enable him to carry out his duties.

Federal Territories.

“141v. For the purposes of this Part the Northern Territory shall be deemed to be part of the State of South Australia; the territories of Papua and New Guinea shall be deemed to be part of the State of Queensland; and the Territory of the Seat of Government, and the Jervis Bay Territory, shall be deemed to be part of the State of New South Wales.

Signatures to be returned to Chief Officer.

“141w. When an election is no longer in question the Returning Officer shall return the cards bearing the signatures of officers to the appropriate Chief Officer to be retained by him for the purpose of future elections.

Preservation of ballot‑papers.

“141x. The ballot‑papers and envelopes used in connexion with an election shall be retained in sealed and indorsed parcels for one month after the declaration of the poll, or, where, an election is disputed, for one month after the determination of the petition, when they shall be destroyed.”

 

Printed and Published for the Government of the Commonwealth of Australia by Albert J. Mullett, Government Printer for the State of Victoria.