EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued by the Authority of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Regulator
Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Registration Fees) Act 2012
Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Registration Fees) Instrument 2012
The Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Act 2012 requires people to register regulated products and provides offences for supply or commercial use of products that must be registered under that Act. Registration ensures that the GEMS Regulator can identify which products are being sold in Australia, to assist monitor compliance with the Act and ascertain trends in product energy efficiency.
Section 8 of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Registration Fees) Act 2012 permits the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (GEMS) Regulator to specify fees, by legislative instrument, which must be paid when a person applies to register a product under the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Act 2012.
Registration fees will assist the GEMS Regulator to recover a portion of the costs incurred in registering products under and in monitoring compliance with the GEMS legislation. Cost recovery will assist the GEMS Regulator to deliver improved registration and compliance monitoring services, for the benefit of regulated Australian businesses and the Australian public.
The requirements to register products, and pay registration fees, established under the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Act 2012 are consistent with the historical practices of the twenty-year old Equipment Energy Efficiency Program.
The Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Registration Fees) Instrument 2012 specifies the fees for each regulated product class that must be paid when a person applies to register a model of a regulated product.
Consultation
The Australian Government conducted extensive consultation with Australian businesses throughout the development of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Act 2012, as well as consulting with the governments of New Zealand and Australian states and territories, all of which participate in the twenty-year old E3 Program.
Consultation specifically addressed registration fees to recover registration and compliance monitoring costs. Australian businesses provided strong support for fees to recover these costs on the understanding that it would assist the GEMS Regulator to improve registration and compliance monitoring services.
Authority: Section 8 of the
Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Registration Fees) Act 2012
Detailed description of provisions in the Instrument
Part 1 Preliminary
1 Name of instrument
Section 1 establishes the title of the Instrument, the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Registration Fees) Instrument 2012.
2 Commencement
Section 2 sets out the commencement arrangements for the Regulation, which commences on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.
3 Object
Section 3 sets out the object of the Instrument, which is to specify for the purposes of section 8(1) of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Registration Fees) Instrument 2012 the registration fees payable in relation to applications to register a product under the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Act 2012.
4 Interpretation
Subsection 4(1)
Subsection 4 (1) clarifies that unless the contrary intention appears, any words or expressions used in the Instrument have the same meaning as these words or expressions have in the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Act 2012 or the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Registration Fees) Act 2012.
Subsection 4(2)
Subsection 4(2) explains that the generic list of products in column 4 of Schedule 1 is provided for ease of reference only. The registration fees specified in section 5 (and set out in Schedule 1) are specified in relation to models of GEMS products in a product class covered by the GEMS Determinations listed in column 3. It is necessary to refer to the relevant GEMS Determination to assess whether a product is covered by a GEMS Determination.
Part 2 Fees
5 Fees
Section 5 provides that specified registration fees for registration application are set out in Schedule 1 to the Instrument. The table in the Schedule lists four fee bands and specifies which fee band applies to applications to register products covered by a determination made under the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Act 2012. Consistent with paragraph 9(1)(a) of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Registration Fees) Act 2012, the Instrument specifies the amount for each registration fee.
The amount of the fee for each product type reflects the identified costs of registration staff and the registration system, as well as costs incurred in the inspection and monitoring program such as purchasing and testing equipment.
Schedule 1
Column 1 specifies the fee band number. There are four fee bands in total.
Column 2 sets out the fee amount for each fee band.
Column 3 lists the GEMS Determinations that cover the models of GEMS products for which registration fees in the relevant fee band have been specified under section 5.
Column 4 lists the generic name for products that are covered by the GEMS Determinations listed in Column 3. These names are provided for ease of reference only. It is necessary to refer to the GEMS Determinations to assess whether a product is covered by a GEMS Determination.