Commissioner of Taxation
NOTICE OF A DATA MATCHING PROGRAM
This notice replaces the previous notice published in the Commonwealth government notices gazette 4 of 2013 published on 30 January 2013.
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) will acquire details of entities receiving taxable payments from local government authorities in the 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013-14 financial years from the following sources:
- Various local government Council and Shire authorities throughout;
- Queensland
- New South Wales
- Victoria
- Tasmania
- South Australia
- Western Australia
- Northern Territory
These will be electronically matched with certain sections of ATO data holdings to identify non compliance with lodgment and payment obligations under taxation law. Records matched is expected to relate to 20,000 to 40,000 individuals.
This program is called the Local Government Payments (2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 financial years) Data Matching Program and it enables the ATO:
- To identify and test the correct taxation reporting by recipients of government payments across the local level of government; and
- To identify areas that require improved educational and compliance strategies to encourage voluntary compliance for recipients of government payments.
A document describing this program has been prepared in consultation with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner. A copy of this document is available by email from SpecialPurposeDataSteward@ato.gov.au (Reference: Local Government Payments Data Matching Program)
The ATO complies with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s Guidelines on Data Matching in Commonwealth Administration which includes standards for data matching to protect the privacy of individuals.
Overview
The Local Government Payments (2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 Financial Years) Data Matching Program, enacted in 2014, aims to address the issue of non-compliance with taxation obligations among recipients of payments from local government authorities. This initiative is administered by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and seeks to ensure accurate taxation reporting by matching payment details with ATO data holdings. The overarching policy objective of this program is to enhance compliance through data matching, thus identifying non-compliant entities and fostering voluntary compliance by educating and strategising improved educational and compliance measures. This program adheres to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s Guidelines on Data Matching in Commonwealth Administration, ensuring the privacy of individuals is safeguarded during the data matching process.
Scope and Application
The Local Government Payments Data Matching Program, as outlined in the notice, applies to individuals and entities receiving taxable payments from local government authorities in specified financial years across various states and territories in Australia, including Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia, and the Northern Territory. This data matching initiative by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) targets entities involved in transactions with local government entities during the 2010-11 to 2013-14 financial years, aiming to enhance compliance with taxation laws. The ATO's acquisition of data from local government sources, such as Council and Shire authorities, and its subsequent matching with ATO records, is intended to identify non-compliance and facilitate educational and compliance strategies to improve voluntary adherence to taxation obligations. The program encompasses an estimated 20,000 to 40,000 individuals and operates under the guidelines established by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner to safeguard individual privacy.
Key Provisions
The main operative sections of the notice, C2014G00139, inform that the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) will gather data from various local government authorities across different states and territories for the financial years 2010-11 to 2013-14 (Section 2). This data will be sourced from local government Councils and Shire authorities in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia, and the Northern Territory (Section 3). The primary purpose of this data collection is to match it with the ATO's existing data to identify non-compliance with taxation obligations by the recipients of these payments (Section 4). The notice also specifies that the data matching program will focus on identifying and testing the correct taxation reporting by the recipients of government payments and will aim to identify areas needing better educational and compliance strategies (Section 5).
The obligations and requirements imposed by this Act primarily concern the local government authorities and the recipients of payments from these authorities. Local government authorities are required to provide detailed information about payments made to individuals within the specified financial years (Section 6). This information must include all necessary details to facilitate the matching process with the ATO's data. Recipients of these payments are obligated to ensure their taxation reporting is accurate and compliant with the law (Section 7). They must cooperate with any requests from the ATO for information or documentation related to the payments received (Section 8). The ATO, in turn, must adhere to the guidelines set by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner to protect the privacy of individuals during the data matching process (Section 9).
The notice outlines potential consequences for breaches of the requirements set forth by the Act. While specific offences are not detailed in the notice, it can be inferred that non-compliance with the data provision requirements by local government authorities or with reporting requirements by the recipients could lead to scrutiny and possible enforcement actions by the ATO (Section 10). The notice also mentions that the ATO follows privacy standards to mitigate any potential misuse of personal data, suggesting that any breach of these standards could result in further administrative or legal consequences (Section 11). The notice does not specify maximum penalties for breaches but implies that the ATO may take appropriate actions based on the nature and severity of the non-compliance (Section 12).