Dairy Adjustment Amendment Act 1976 (Cth)

DAIRY ADJUSTMENT AMENDMENT ACT 1976

 

No. 77 of 1976

 

An Act to amend the Dairy Adjustment Act 1974.

 

BE IT ENACTED by the Queen, and the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Australia, as follows:–

Short title and citation.

1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Dairy Adjustment Amendment Act 1976.

(2) The Dairy Adjustment Act 1974 is in this Act referred to as the Principal Act.

(3) The Principal Act, as amended by this Act, may be cited as the Dairy Adjustment Act 1974-1976.

Commencement.

2. This Act shall come into operation on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.

Loans for conversion of uneconomic dairy farms to other rural use.

3. Section 11 of the Principal Act is amended by omitting paragraph (c) of sub-section (1) and substituting the following paragraph:—

“(c) where fixtures or personal property (including livestock) used for dairying on an uneconomic dairy farm that is, wholly or in part, being converted to a rural use other than dairying will lose some or all of their or its value to the owner of the farm after the conversion has been effected—the payment by the State or an authority of the State to the owner of the farm of an amount in respect of that loss of value.

4. The Principal Act is amended by inserting in Part II, after section 16, the following sections:—

Carry-on loans.

“16a. (1) The arrangements may provide for the making of loans by the State or an authority of the State to the owners of dairy farms for the purpose of meeting, in the case of a particular farm, the whole or a part of the cost of carrying on the farm during a period of adverse market conditions.

“(2) Where the arrangements make provision in accordance with sub-section (1), the arrangements shall further provide that the assistance specified in that sub-section shall not be given in the case of a particular farm unless the State Minister concerned or the authority of the State is satisfied that—

(a) the dairy farm is for the time being an uneconomic dairy farm but would cease to be an uneconomic dairy farm if satisfactory market conditions were restored; and

(b) the owner to be assisted has been unable to obtain a loan on reasonable terms from normal financial sources for the purpose referred to in sub-section (1).

Payments for loss of value of fixtures and personal property.

“16b. The arrangements may provide that, where—

(a) a rural property, being—

(i) an uneconomic dairy farm; or

(ii) a property a part (being a part less than one-half) of the gross income from which comes from the production of milk and cream and which, if used only for dairying and purposes incidental to dairying, is not reasonably capable of producing a reasonable level of income, being a level ascertained in the manner referred to in section 6,

is to be converted, wholly or in part, to a rural use other than dairying; and

 

(b) fixtures or personal property (including livestock) used on the farm for dairying will lose some or all of their or its value to the owner of the farm after the conversion has been effected,

the State or an authority of the State may make a payment to the owner of the farm in respect of that loss of value.”.

Payments by the Commonwealth.

5. Section 17 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting after the word and figures “1 July 1976”, the words “1 January 1977 or such later date as is fixed by Proclamation”.

6. Section 18 of the Principal Act is repealed and the following section substituted:—

Total amounts available for payment to States.

“18. The total of all payments (including advances) by the Commonwealth in accordance with this Act or in accordance with an Act repealed by this Act shall not exceed—

(a) the amount of $46,500,000; or

(b) if the Parliament appropriates any further amount or amounts for the purposes of this Act—the sum of $46,500,000 and that amount or those amounts,

and the agreements shall be so expressed that they do not provide for payments by the Commonwealth in excess of that first-mentioned amount or that sum, as the case may be.”.

Appropriation.

7. Section 22 of the Principal Act is amended by omitting the figures “$43,000,000” and substituting the figures “$46,500,000”.

Formal amendments.

8. The Principal Act is amended as set out in the Schedule.

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SCHEDULE Section 8

FORMAL AMENDMENTS

1. Section 5 of the Principal Act is amended–

(a) by omitting from sub-section (1) the word “Australia” (first occurring) and substituting the words “The Commonwealth”; and

(b) by omitting from that sub-section the word “Australia” (second occurring) and sub­stituting the words “the Commonwealth”.

2. The following provisions of the Principal Act are amended by omitting the word “Australia” (wherever occurring) and substituting the words “the Commonwealth”:–

Sections 17, 19, 20 and 21.