EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
BOUNTY (PHOTOGRAPHIC FILM) REGULATIONS
STATUTORY RULES 1989 NO. 415
ISSUED BY THE AUTHORITY OF THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR FINANCE FOR AND ON BEHALF OF THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR INDUSTRY, TECHNOLOGY AND COMMERCE
Section 32 of the Bounty (Photographic Film) Act 1989 (the Act) provides that
“(1) The Governor-General may make regulations not inconsistent with this Act prescribing all matters:
(a) permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or
(b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.”
Section 16 of the Act provides in part that
“…. (5) The regulations may prescribe conditions to be met by an applicant for registration under this section, including, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, a condition requiring the applicant to be a person included in a specified class of persons.
…..
(7) The regulations may prescribe conditions to be complied with by a person registered under this section in connection with the production of, or sensitising or finishing operations in respect of, bountiable photographic film of a particular kind.
….”
The Act was passed by the Senate on 14 December 1989 and is to be submitted for the Royal Assent prior to the attached Minute which recommends the making of these Statutory Rules, which will prescribe conditions to be met by a person applying for registration under the Act.
The registration conditions prescribed in the regulations are explained in greater detail in the Attachment hereto.
ATTACHMENT
Proposed Bounty (Photographic Film) Regulations
Regulation 1 provides that the Regulations may be cited as the Bounty (Photographic Film) Regulations.
Regulation 2 defines a number of words and expressions used in the Regulations.
“agreement” is defined as a Photographic Industry Development Agreement entered into in accordance with subregulation 4(1);
• the requirement to enter into an agreement is one of the registration conditions with which a registered person must comply to maintain registration status;
“the Act” means the Bounty (Photographic Film) Act 1989;
“strip” is defined as a strip of bountiable photographic film, 35 millimetres in width, that is spooled into a 35 millimetre cassette in the course of finishing operations;
• it is a registration condition that a registered person have the capacity to finish 80 million “strips” - as to which see paragraph 3(a);
Regulation 3 prescribes conditions which an applicant must meet to be eligible for initial registration under the Act.
Paragraph 3(a) provides that an applicant for registration must possess production facilities and technical and management skills required to finish 80 million strips of film per year;
• ”strip” is defined in regulation 2;
Paragraph 3(b) provides that an applicant must employ at least 400 persons in relevant activities in respect of bountiable photographic film;
• ”relevant activity” is defined in subsection 4(1) of the Act as being any activity that is a part of the sensitizing operations, or of the finishing operations, undertaken in the course of the production of bountiable photographic film. Likewise, the terms “finishing operations” and “sensitizing operations” are also defined in that subsection.
Regulation 4 prescribes conditions which a registered person must
ATTACHMENT
comply with during the bounty period, as follows:
Paragraph 4(1)(a) provides that a registered person must enter into a Photographic Industry Development Agreement with the Commonwealth prior to 1 July 1990.
• subregulation 4(2) specifies the detail which must be included in an agreement.
Paragraph 4(1)(b) provides that the registered person maintain a finishing capacity of 6 million square metres for the whole of the five-year bounty period, using the facilities prescribed in paragraph 3(1)(a).
Paragraph 4(1)(c) provides that a registered person must employ at least 400 persons in sensitizing and finishing operations for the first three years of the bounty period.
Paragraph 4(1)(d) provides that a registered person must employ at least 200 persons in finishing operations for the final two years of the bounty period.
Paragraph 4(1)(e) provides that where, on entering into a Photographic Industry Development Agreement, a person has a sole right to produce or distribute bountiable photographic film, that right is maintained without diminution for the whole of the five-year bounty period.
Paragraph 4(1)(f) provides that a registered person must satisfy the Comptroller (or an officer appointed by the Comptroller) that, in accordance with the Photographic Industry Development Agreement entered into in accordance with paragraph 4(1)(a) above, the person has planned improvements in productivity in relation to award restructuring, inventory management, management of running expenses, and production efficiencies.
• subsection 4(1) of the Customs Act 1901 provides that the term “officer” means “officer of Customs”, which is itself defined as a person employed by the Australian Customs Service, or appointed by the Comptroller.
Paragraph 4(1)(g) provides that a registered person must satisfy the Comptroller that any amounts of bounty or advances on account of bounty is invested in Australia for the purposes of improving or enlarging the person’s capacity to produce bountiable photographic film.
Subregulation 4(2) specifies the details which must be included in a Photographic Industry Development Agreement made in accordance with paragraph 4(1)(a).
ATTACHMENT
Paragraph 4(2)fa) provides that a registered person must provide information of the person’s level of activity, at the time the agreement is entered into, concerning that person’s production or supply of bountiable photographic film produced in Australia, as a proportion of the production of bountiable photographic film worldwide.
Paragraph 4(2)(b) provides that a registered person must provide information concerning the person’s business objectives, in relation to that person’s production of bountiable photographic film, for the entire 5 year period to which the Act applies, and the person’s strategies for achieving those objectives.
Paragraph 4(2)(c) provides that a registered person must provide information concerning the person’s plans in respect of numbers of employees, investment within Australia, research and development, and production output for the entire 5 year period to which the Act applies.
Paragraph 4(2)(c) provides that a registered person must provide information concerning the person’s plans in respect of the use to be made of bounty or advances on account of bounty that are paid to the person.
Subregulation 4(3) defines an expression used in regulation 4.
“award restructuring” means implementing an award made under the Industrial Relations Act 1988 concerning the production of bountiable photographic film.