EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Select Legislative Instrument No. 132, 2014
Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Finance
ComSuper Act 2011
ComSuper Regulation 2014
Pursuant to section 27 of ComSuper Act 2011 (the Act), the Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Act.
The Act established ComSuper, which is a statutory agency for the purposes of the Public Service Act 1999, consisting of a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and staff.
Under subsection 8(1) of the Act, the main function of the CEO of ComSuper (assisted by ComSuper staff) is to provide administrative services to the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation (CSC) in relation to the superannuation schemes CSC administers, including the Public Sector Superannuation Accumulation Plan (PSSAP).
Subsection 8(3) of the Act provides that when providing administrative services to CSC, the CEO is subject to any directions issued by CSC and must endeavour to act in accordance with policies and standards determined by CSC.
Subsection 8(6) of the Act provides that, in relation to the PSSAP, subsections 8(1) and 8(3) of the Act have effect subject to such modifications and may cease to have effect, as prescribed by regulations.
CSC is a corporate Commonwealth entity established in 2011 under the Governance of Australian Government Superannuation Schemes Act 2011. CSC is the trustee of the main Commonwealth civilian and military superannuation schemes, including the PSSAP and is also responsible for their general administration.
The purpose of the ComSuper Regulation 2014 (the Regulation) is to cease the CEO of ComSuper’s function of providing administrative services to CSC with respect to the PSSAP. The CEO of ComSuper’s functions under the Act with respect to the other superannuation schemes CSC administers remain unaffected.
Since February 2012, the CEO of ComSuper has provided most administration services to CSC in relation to the PSSAP through an outsource agreement with the Superannuation Administration Corporation, trading as Pillar Administration (Pillar).
The changes made by this Regulation will allow CSC to take over direct management of the outsourced PSSAP administration arrangements with Pillar.
A Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights is included in Attachment A. Details of the Regulation are included in Attachment B.
The Act does not impose any conditions that need to be satisfied before the power to make the Regulation may be exercised. The Regulation is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
Consultation
In relation to section 17 of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003, the affected parties (CSC and ComSuper) were consulted. However no broader consultation was conducted as the Regulation is of a minor or machinery nature.
Regulation Impact Statement
The Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) assessed that the changes made by the Regulation appear to be machinery and will have nil or low impacts. As such no further analysis in the form of a Regulation Impact Statement was required (OBPR Reference ID 17292).
The Regulation commences on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.
Authority: Section 27 of the ComSuper Act 2011
ATTACHMENT B
Details of the ComSuper Regulation 2014
Section 1 – Name of Regulation
This section provides that the title of the Regulation is the ComSuper Regulation 2014 (the Regulation).
Section 2 – Commencement
This section provides for the Regulation to commence on the day after it is registered.
Section 3 – Authority
This section states that the Regulation is made under the ComSuper Act 2011 (the Act).
Section 4 –Definitions
This section sets out definitions of expressions that are relied on in other provisions throughout the Regulation.
Section 5 – Cessation of the CEO’s function in relation to the PSSAP
This section provides that, in relation to the PSSAP, the CEO’s functions and requirements under subsections 8(1) and 8(3) of the Act will cease at the end of 3 December 2014.
The effect of this section is that after 3 December 2014, the CEO of ComSuper will no longer provide administrative services to CSC in the performance of CSC’s functions in relation to the PSSAP.
Overview
The ComSuper Regulation 2014 was enacted to amend the ComSuper Act 2011, addressing a specific administrative gap in the provision of services for the Public Sector Superannuation Accumulation Plan (PSSAP). This regulation was issued by the Minister for Finance under the authority of section 27 of the ComSuper Act 2011, which allows for the creation of regulations necessary for carrying out or giving effect to the Act. The primary policy objective behind this regulation is to facilitate the transition of PSSAP administrative services from the CEO of ComSuper to the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation (CSC), thereby streamlining the management of the PSSAP. Since February 2012, ComSuper had been outsourcing most of the administrative services for the PSSAP to Pillar Administration, a private entity. However, this regulation marks the cessation of ComSuper's role in this capacity, effective from 3 December 2014, allowing CSC to take over direct management of the PSSAP administration arrangements.
Scope and Application
The ComSuper Act 2011 establishes ComSuper, a statutory agency within the Public Service Act 1999 framework, and outlines the functions of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ComSuper. The Act applies to the CEO and staff of ComSuper who provide administrative services to the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation (CSC), a corporate Commonwealth entity responsible for administering various superannuation schemes including the Public Sector Superannuation Accumulation Plan (PSSAP). The ComSuper Regulation 2014, made pursuant to section 27 of the Act, modifies the CEO’s role by ceasing their administrative services to CSC for the PSSAP, effective from 3 December 2014. This regulatory change allows CSC to directly manage the outsourced PSSAP administration arrangements with Pillar Administration. The regulation does not apply to the CEO's functions concerning other superannuation schemes administered by CSC. The geographic reach of the Act and its regulations is within the Commonwealth jurisdiction, and there are no specified exclusions or exemptions in the provided text. The regulation is a legislative instrument under the Legislative Instruments Act 2003, and it was developed following consultation with affected parties, CSC and ComSuper, but no broader consultation was conducted due to its minor or machinery nature.
Key Provisions
The ComSuper Regulation 2014 (the Regulation) is a legislative instrument made under section 27 of the ComSuper Act 2011 (the Act). The primary provision of the Regulation is section 5, which specifies that the Chief Executive Officer's (CEO) function of providing administrative services to the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation (CSC) in relation to the Public Sector Superannuation Accumulation Plan (PSSAP) will cease at the end of 3 December 2014. This means that from 4 December 2014, the CEO of ComSuper will no longer be responsible for the administrative services related to the PSSAP, thereby transferring this responsibility to CSC. The Act and the Regulation clarify that this change does not affect the CEO’s functions concerning other superannuation schemes administered by CSC.
The Regulation imposes specific obligations on the parties it governs. Primarily, it requires the CEO of ComSuper to cease providing administrative services to CSC in relation to the PSSAP as of 4 December 2014. This cessation is to allow CSC to assume direct management of the PSSAP administration arrangements with Pillar Administration, the entity previously contracted by ComSuper for this purpose. The Regulation ensures that this change in responsibility is clearly delineated and effective from the specified date.
There are no explicit offences, penalties, or civil/criminal consequences detailed in the Regulation for breach of its provisions. The Regulation is primarily a machinery instrument, designed to facilitate the transfer of administrative duties from ComSuper to CSC with respect to the PSSAP. However, it is implicit that any failure to comply with the Regulation's requirements could be subject to legal scrutiny and potential remedies under the ComSuper Act 2011 or other relevant laws. The Office of Best Practice Regulation assessed that the changes made by the Regulation are of a minor nature and will have nil or low impacts, thus no further regulatory impact analysis was conducted. The Regulation's commencement is set for the day after its registration on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.