Legislation (Recovery Plans) Sunset-altering Declaration 2017

Administered by Attorney-General's Department

Legislation au F2017L00282 Not in force Legislative Instrument

Legislation content

Legislation (Recovery Plans) Sunset-altering Declaration 2017

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Issued by the Attorney‑General in compliance with section 15G of the Legislation Act 2003

 

INTRODUCTION

This declaration was made under subsection 51A(1) of the Legislation Act 2003 and is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act. The declaration is subject to the disallowance provisions of the Legislation Act.

OUTLINE

The purpose of the sunsetting provisions of the Legislation Act is to ensure that legislative instruments are kept up to date and only remain in force for so long as they are needed.

Section 51A enables the Attorney-General to align the sunsetting dates of two or more instruments by declaration. The instruments will then all cease to be in force on the day specified in the declaration instead of the scheduled sunsetting day of each instrument.

This allows instruments to continue to be in force for a further but limited period of time when they would otherwise sunset, or to sunset earlier than the originally scheduled sunsetting day. The purpose of such alignment is to facilitate more efficient and effective review processes by enabling a single thematic review into the fitness-for-purpose of all instruments relevant to a particular industry or theme.

This reduces the administrative burden and legislative inconsistencies that can arise from independently reviewing and remaking related legislative instruments at different times.

PROCESS BEFORE CERTIFICATE WAS MADE

Regulatory impact analysis

Sunset-altering declarations are machinery of government instruments, and are therefore not subject to the regulatory impact assessment requirements set out by the Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR). The OBPR reference for this standing exemption is ID 19486.

Statement of compatibility with human rights obligations

Before this declaration was made, its impact on human rights was assessed using tools and guidance published by the Attorney‑General’s Department. It is fully compatible with human rights as defined in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Consultation before making

Before this declaration was issued, the Attorney‑General considered the general obligation to consult imposed by section 17 of the Legislation Act. In preparing the application for this declaration, the Department of the Environment and Energy consulted with the Attorney-General’s Department. The Regulatory Reform Division in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet was also provided with a copy of the application. 

As this declaration does not itself significantly alter the existing arrangements of any other agency, further consultation at this stage of the review process was unnecessary.

Statutory preconditions relevant to this declaration

If the Attorney-General is satisfied that the statutory conditions in section 51A of the Legislation Act are met, the sunsetting day of two or more legislative instruments can be aligned by means of a declaration made under that section. The statutory conditions are that:

         all the instruments to be reviewed would (in the absence of a declaration under section 51A) be subject to sunsetting 

         all the instruments to be reviewed are or will be the subject of a single review, and

         the making of the declaration will facilitate the undertaking of the review and the implementation of its findings. 

In terms of process, the Legislation Act requires:

         the responsible rule maker to apply to the Attorney-General

         the Attorney-General to be satisfied of the statutory conditions, and

         the Attorney-General to make the declaration, which is a legislative instrument and subject to disallowance.

More information

Further details regarding this declaration are set out in Attachment A.

A copy of each instrument which is the subject of this declaration, and which will now sunset on 1 April 2022, is available on the Federal Register of Legislationhttp://www.comlaw.gov.au.


ATTACHMENT A

NOTES ON THE DECLARATION           

Section 1 Name

This section provides for the declaration to be named the Legislation (Recovery Plans) Sunset‑altering Declaration 2017. The declaration may be cited by that name.

Section 2  Commencement

This section provides for the declaration to commence on the day after it is registered.

Section 3 Authority

This section provides that the declaration is made under subsection 51A(1) of the Legislation Act 2003. 

Section 4 Repeal of recovery plans to facilitate review etc.

This section provides that the instruments listed in Schedule 1 are repealed on 1 April 2022.

This is the aligned sunsetting day for those instruments, which would otherwise have sunset between 1 April 2017 and 1 April 2021.

For the purpose of clarity, this section includes a statement that the legal requirements in the Legislation Act are met – that is, that these instruments would otherwise be repealed by section 50 of the Legislation Act, that they are or will be the subject of a single review, and that the declaration facilitates the undertaking of the review and the implementation of its findings.

Section 5 Repeal of this instrument

This section provides that the declaration is repealed on 2 April 2022, which is the day after the aligned sunsetting day. This ensures that the declaration remains in force only for as long as it is needed.

Schedule 1 Repeal of recovery plans

This Schedule lists the 39 instruments that have had their sunsetting dates aligned to 1 April 2022 to facilitate their thematic review.

 

 

 

Overview

The Legislation (Recovery Plans) Sunset-altering Declaration 2017 was introduced to address the need for efficient and effective review processes for legislative instruments that would otherwise sunset at different times. This was enacted under the authority of subsection 51A(1) of the Legislation Act 2003 by the Attorney-General, ensuring alignment of sunsetting dates for multiple instruments to facilitate their thematic review. The primary objective of this legislation is to streamline the review processes and reduce administrative burden and legislative inconsistencies that arise from independently reviewing and remaking related legislative instruments. This was achieved through a single review of the relevant instruments, rather than separate reviews for each instrument. The legislation was subject to a statement of compatibility with human rights and appropriate consultation processes were followed before its issuance, ensuring that it met the statutory conditions for alignment and was fully compatible with human rights obligations.

Scope and Application

The Legislation (Recovery Plans) Sunset-altering Declaration 2017 applies to a specific set of legislative instruments, namely the recovery plans listed in Schedule 1 of the declaration, which are to be repealed on 1 April 2022. The purpose of this declaration is to align the sunsetting dates of these instruments, ensuring they cease to be in force on the same day, which in this case is 1 April 2022. This alignment is intended to facilitate a single thematic review of these instruments, thereby reducing administrative burden and legislative inconsistencies that might arise from independently reviewing and remaking related instruments at different times. The declaration is a legislative instrument made under the authority of subsection 51A(1) of the Legislation Act 2003, and it is subject to disallowance provisions. The declaration itself will be repealed on 2 April 2022, ensuring it remains in force only for as long as necessary.

Key Provisions

The Legislation (Recovery Plans) Sunset-altering Declaration 2017 contains several key sections that outline its purpose and provisions. Section 1 names the declaration and Section 2 states that it commences on the day after it is registered. Section 3 provides the authority under which the declaration is made, which is subsection 51A(1) of the Legislation Act 2003. Section 4 repeals the specified recovery plans to facilitate their review, with the aligned sunsetting date being 1 April 2022, and Section 5 states that the declaration itself will be repealed on 2 April 2022. The obligations imposed by the Act on the parties or entities it governs include the requirement for the responsible rule maker to apply to the Attorney-General for a declaration to be made. The Attorney-General must then be satisfied that the statutory conditions in section 51A of the Legislation Act are met, which include that all the instruments to be reviewed would be subject to sunsetting, that they are or will be the subject of a single review, and that the making of the declaration will facilitate the undertaking of the review and the implementation of its findings. Under the Act, there are no specific offences, penalties, or civil/criminal consequences for breach of the declaration. However, the declaration is a legislative instrument and is subject to disallowance under the Legislation Act. If disallowed, the declaration will cease to have effect on the day it is disallowed.

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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.