EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Select Legislative Instrument 2008 No. 198
Issued by Authority of the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991
Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Amendment Regulations 2008 (No. 2)
Section 30 of the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991 (the Act) provides, in part, that the Governor-General may make regulations, not inconsistent with the Act, 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 Australian pasture seed industry funds industry-specific research and development by way of a statutory levy on certain varieties of certified pasture seed. The pasture seed levy was formerly collected under the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection (Pasture Seed) Regulations (the Pasture Seed Regulations).
The Grains Council of Australia (GCA) is the prescribed growers’ organisation under the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999 (the Levies Act) and may make relevant recommendations to the Minister regarding pasture seeds.
The Regulations implement changes requested by the GCA, in consultation with the pasture seed industry, to the pasture seed legislative framework to more closely align it with current industry practices.
The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry has consulted members of the GCA Seed Sub Committee and the Australian Seeds Authority to ensure the amendments reflect the intent of the original pasture seed levy.
The Levies Act imposes levy on pasture seed harvested in Australia and certified under a certification scheme. Previously, the Pasture Seed Regulations defined a certification scheme as a scheme for the testing and certification of seed conducted by State government certifying agencies.
However, structural changes to the industry, including the closure and privatisation of state government certifying agencies, created gaps in the collection of the pasture seed levy. The Pasture Seed Regulations were consequently inconsistent with current industry practices and no longer allowed for the uniform collection of the levy, as the levy could only be collected by certification schemes conducted by State Agencies and not by those conducted by other (private) certification agencies.
The pasture seed levy collection arrangements also differed from those of other primary industry levies as the Pasture Seed Regulations were stand-alone regulations under the Act and other primary industry levies are collected under the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Regulations 1991 (PILCC Regulations).
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These Regulations address these deficiencies. They expand the definition of certification scheme to encompass the variety of contemporary certification schemes which ensures that the pasture seed levy is collected, as originally intended, for all certified seed. In addition, these Regulations repeal the stand-alone Pasture Seed Regulations and prescribe the collection of the pasture seeds levy under Schedule 30 to the PILCC Regulations, thereby ensuring consistency with the legislation of other primary industries levies.
The Regulations are not intended to broaden the imposition of the current pasture seed levy.
The Office of Best Practice Regulation was consulted in the preparation of these Regulations and confirmed that a Regulation Impact Statement was not mandatory (RIS ID No: 8888). The Department of Finance and Deregulation was also consulted and confirmed that a Cost Recovery Impact Statement was not necessary.
The Regulations are a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
The Regulations commence the day after they are registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.
Details of the Regulations are provided in the Attachment.
ATTACHMENT
Details of the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Amendment Regulations 2008 (No. 2)
Regulation 1 - Name of Regulations
This regulation provides for the title of the Regulations to be the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Amendment Regulations 2008 (No. 2).
Regulation 2 - Commencement
This regulation provides for the Regulations to commence on the day after they are registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments (FRLI).
Regulation 3 - Repeal
This regulation provides for the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection (Pasture Seed) Regulations to be repealed.
Regulation 4 – Amendment of Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Regulations 1991
This regulation provides for the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Regulations 1991 to be amended as set out in Schedule 1.
Schedule 1 - Amendment
Item [1]
Schedule 30. This item provides for Schedule 30 to the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Regulations 1991 to be substituted with a new Schedule 30. Previous Schedule 30 consisted only of a note stating that it will deal with pasture seeds.
Schedule 30 – Pasture Seed
Clause 1 - Application
This clause provides for Schedule 30 to be applied to pasture seed.
Clause 2 – Definitions for Schedule 30
This clause defines several terms used throughout the Schedule relevant to the interpretation of its provisions. These terms are certification scheme, certifying organisation, collecting organisation, levy and pasture seed. These terms relate to the new commercially focused seed industry.
Clause 3 – What is a levy year
This clause provides for a levy year, for the purposes of the application of the pasture seed levy, to be set as the financial year.
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Clause 4 – Who is a producer
Subclause 4(1). This subclause provides for pasture seeds to be set as the leviable product for a producer for the purposes of the pasture seed levy.
Subclause 4(2). This subclause provides for the person who was growing the pasture seed immediately before it was harvested to be considered the producer of the pasture seed for the purposes of the levy.
Clause 5 – Collection of levy
This clause requires the producer of pasture seed to pay the levy to the collecting organisation for that particular pasture seed.
Clause 6 – When is levy due for payment
This clause provides that the pasture seed levy is to be paid at the end of the last day on which the return for the quarter must be lodged, or 28 days after the end of the quarter to which it relates.
The note advises that if a producer does not pay a levy by the due date, additional penalties payable to the Commonwealth accrue at the rate of two percent per month, as set out in section 15 of the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991.
Clause 7 – Who must lodge a return
This clause requires the collecting organisation to lodge a return for all pasture seed they have certified under a certification scheme during a quarter.
The note advises that a person must not refuse or fail to lodge a return as required under the Act (unless the person has a reasonable excuse, as defined in subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code). Offences in relation to lodging returns are offences of strict liability, as set out in section 24 of the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991.
Clause 8 – When must a return be lodged
This clause requires a levy return to be lodged (by the collecting organisation) within 28 days after the end of the quarter to which it relates.
Clause 9 – What must be included in a quarterly return
This clause requires the collecting organisation to set out in the return the type or types of pasture seed certified; the total amount of levy payable on all pasture seed certified; the quantity in tonnes of each type of pasture seed certified; and the amount of levy payable on each type of pasture seed certified for each producer, for the quarter the return relates to.
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Clause 10 – What records must be kept
Subclause 10(1). This subclause provides for the producer who obtains certification for their pasture seed to keep records for each quarter, showing the amount of each type of pasture seed certified.
Subclause 10(2). This subclause requires the collecting organisation to keep records (or ensure records are kept) showing for each quarter, the quantity in tonnes and source of each type of leviable pasture seed; the amount of levy payable on the pasture seed certified; and the amount of levy paid on certified pasture seed.