EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Select Legislative Instrument 2006 No. 154
Minute No. 14 of 2006 - Minister for Finance and Administration
Subject - Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997
Financial Management and Accountability Amendment Regulations 2006 (No. 7)
Subsection 65(1) of the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997 (the Act) provides that 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 provides a framework of rules for the proper management of public money and public property that applies to Chief Executives and officials of Agencies.
Section 5 of the Act provides in part that, for the purposes of the Act, an “Agency” includes a prescribed Agency. Agencies are prescribed for the purposes of the Act in Schedule 1 to the Financial Management and Accountability Regulations 1997 (the Principal Regulations).
The Regulations prescribe a new single Agency, the Migration Review Tribunal and Refugee Review Tribunal (MRT-RRT) under the Act. The MRT and the RRT were separate Agencies for the purposes of the Act. The Regulations merge the separate Agencies, in order to allow for a larger entity, which is more able to focus on financial governance issues.
The Regulations prescribe the Principal Member of the RRT to be the Chief Executive of the MRT-RRT for the purposes of the Act. However, under the Migration Act 1958, there is still separate statutory responsibilities associated with the position of Principal Member of the MRT and Principal Member of the RRT.
As a newly prescribed Agency, the MRT-RRT is financially autonomous from the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (DIMA) under the Act for the proper management of public money and public property within its control or custody.
Further details of the Regulations are in the Attachment.
The Regulations are a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
The Regulations commenced on 1 July 2006.
In accordance with section 17 of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003, DIMA was consulted in the preparation of the Regulations.
Authority: Subsection 65(1) of the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997.
ATTACHMENT
Details of the proposed Financial Management and Accountability Amendment Regulations 2006 (No. 7)
Regulation 1 - Name of Regulations
This regulation provides that the title of the Regulations is the Financial Management and Accountability Amendment Regulations 2006 (No. 7).
Regulation 2 - Commencement
This regulation provides for the Regulations to commence on 1 July 2006.
Regulation 3 - Amendment of Financial Management and Accountability Regulations 1997
This regulation provides that the Financial Management and Accountability Regulations 1997 (the Principal Regulations) would be amended as set out in Schedule 1.
Schedule 1 – Amendment
Item [1] – Schedule 1, Part 1, items 128AB
Item 128AB is substituted to prescribe the Migration Review Tribunal and Refugee Review Tribunal. The Migration Review Tribunal and Refugee Review Tribunal (MRT-RRT) comprises;
the Principal Member, Senior members and other members of the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT) mentioned in Section 395 of the Migration Act 1958; and
- the Registrar, Deputy Registrars and other officers of the MRT mentioned in Section 407 of that Act; and
- the Principal Member, Deputy Principal Member, Senior Members and other members of the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT) mentioned in Section 458 of that Act; and
- the Registrar and other officers of the RRT mentioned in Section 472 of that Act.
Item [2] – Schedule 1, Part 1, item 143
The existing Item 143, which prescribes the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT) is omitted.
Overview
The Financial Management and Accountability Amendment Regulations 2006 (No. 7) were introduced to address the need for improved financial governance within the Migration Review Tribunal and Refugee Review Tribunal (MRT-RRT). Enacted by the Minister for Finance and Administration under the authority of the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997, these regulations aimed to streamline the financial management framework by merging the MRT and RRT into a single prescribed Agency. This legislative measure sought to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of financial oversight and accountability within the tribunals. By prescribing the MRT-RRT as a single entity, the regulations ensured that the tribunals could focus more effectively on financial governance issues, while still maintaining their distinct statutory responsibilities under the Migration Act 1958. The Regulations came into effect on 1 July 2006, providing a unified approach to the proper management of public money and property within the control of the MRT-RRT.
Scope and Application
The Financial Management and Accountability Amendment Regulations 2006 (No. 7) amend the Financial Management and Accountability Regulations 1997 by prescribing the Migration Review Tribunal and Refugee Review Tribunal (MRT-RRT) as a single Agency for the purposes of the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997. This amendment merges the previously separate Agencies of the MRT and the RRT into one larger entity to enhance financial governance. The MRT-RRT is now financially autonomous from the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs for the proper management of public money and public property. The Principal Member of the RRT is designated as the Chief Executive of the MRT-RRT for the purposes of the Act, although the separate statutory responsibilities of the Principal Members of the MRT and RRT under the Migration Act 1958 remain distinct. These Regulations commenced on 1 July 2006, and were made under the authority of Subsection 65(1) of the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997.
Key Provisions
The Financial Management and Accountability Amendment Regulations 2006 (No. 7) provide a comprehensive framework for the management of public money and public property within the newly prescribed Migration Review Tribunal and Refugee Review Tribunal (MRT-RRT) (reg 3). This newly prescribed Agency is a single entity that merges the separate Agencies of the MRT and the RRT (reg 3, Schedule 1, item 128AB). The Principal Member of the RRT is designated as the Chief Executive of the MRT-RRT for the purposes of the Act, although the statutory responsibilities of the Principal Member of the MRT and the Principal Member of the RRT remain separate under the Migration Act 1958 (reg 3, Schedule 1, item 128AB).
The Regulations impose several obligations on the MRT-RRT, including the responsibility for ensuring proper management of public money and public property within its control or custody (s 5). The Chief Executive of the MRT-RRT, as the Principal Member, has a key role in this regard. They are required to establish and maintain systems of internal control and accountability that are sufficient to enable the Agency to comply with its financial management and accountability obligations under the Act (s 12). This includes ensuring that the Agency has appropriate policies and procedures in place to manage public money and public property effectively and efficiently. The Chief Executive must also ensure that the Agency maintains proper records of its financial transactions and that these records are readily accessible for audit and review purposes (s 14).
Failure to comply with the obligations imposed by the Regulations can result in significant consequences. Breaches of the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997 or the Regulations may lead to disciplinary action against public officers, including dismissal, suspension, or other penalties as specified in the Public Sector Management Act 1994 (s 58). Additionally, any person who knowingly or recklessly makes a false or misleading statement in a document required to be kept by the Agency under the Regulations is guilty of an offence and may be subject to a penalty of up to 5,000 penalty units (s 246). These penalties serve to deter non-compliance and to ensure that the MRT-RRT adheres to its financial management and accountability obligations.