EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1984 No. 269
Issued by the authority of the Minister for Primary Industry
GRAIN (EXPORT INSPECTION CHARGE) ACT 1979
GRAIN (EXPORT INSPECTION CHARGE) REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT)
The Grain (Export Inspection Charge) Act 1979 provides for the Governor-General to make regulations for the purpose of imposing a charge on wheat, oats, barley and sorghum exported from Australia. The Act provides that regulations may prescribe different rates of charge for different classes of grain provided they do not exceed maximum allowable charges set in the Act.
The Act provides that maximum charges allowable are 33 cents per tonne for bulk grain, 40 cents per tonne for grain in bags and $1.46 per tonne for grain in container system units.
In line with Government policy charges have been determined with a view to maintaining 50% recovery of costs during the remainder of the financial year 1984-85. The new rates reflect the cost of inspecting exported grain and are
based on expected exports and inspection costs in the 1984-85 financial year. The substantial decrease in the rate for bulk grain is due to an expected large increase in exports, while no consequential increase in inspection personnel is expected.
The former and new charges are as follows:
Class of grain | Former charge (¢ per tonne) | Current charge (¢ per tonne) |
|
|
|
Grain in bulk | 16.3 | 9.7 |
Grain in bags | 19.0 | 21.0 |
Grain in a container system unit | 73.0 | 72.0 |
Because of the widespread use of long-term forward contracts in the grain trade, the principle has been established that when new export inspection charges are introduced, grain subsequently shipped under forward contracts written before the new rates were announced is exempt from the higher rate of charge. Therefore, provision has been made for grain in bags shipped under a forward contract written before 28 August 1984, the date on which each exporter was advised of the new charge rates, to be charged at the rate existing when the contract was made.
The Regulations repealed and replaced the Schedule to the Grain (Export Inspection Charge) Regulations to impose revised export inspection charges. The revised charges came into effect on 1 October 1984.
Regulation 3 of the Grain (Export Inspection Charge) Regulations is amended by omitting sub-regulations (2) and (3) as they no longer have any application because the periods specified therein have expired. These sub-regulations provided an exemption from inspection charges for forward contracts written before imposition of charges was originally announced on 29 May 1979, in the case of grain exported within 2 years of the commencement of charges on 1 July 1979.