Primary Industries Levies and Charges (National Residue Survey Levies) Amendment Regulations 2003 (No. 3)

Primary Industries Levies and Charges (National Residue Survey Levies) Amendment Regulations 2003 (No. 3) 2003 No. 114

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

STATUTORY RULES 2003 No. 114

Issued by Authority of the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

National Residue Survey (Excise) Levy Act 1998

Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999

Primary Industries Levies and Charges (National Residue Survey Levies) Amendment Regulations 2003 (No. 3)

Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment Regulations 2003 (No. 6)

Section 8 of the National Residue Survey (Excise) Levy Act 1998 (the NRS Act) and section 8 of the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999 (the Excise Levies Act) provide that the Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters required or permitted to be prescribed by the Acts, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Acts.

The National Residue Survey implements chemical residue monitoring programs and recovers the costs of the programs from participating industries. These programs form the basis for documentation that enables the Australian Government to certify that raw food products bound for export and domestic consumption are free from significant chemical contamination.

Statutory levies are the preferred mechanism by which primary industries choose to meet the cost of compulsory residue-monitoring programs required for access to international and domestic markets. These levies are collected at the same time, and in the same manner, as other statutory levies such as marketing levies and research and development levies in order to reduce collection costs for industries. This then requires National Residue Survey levy collection arrangements to be consistent with similar portfolio levy legislation.

Clause 1 of Schedule 11 of the NRS Act and subclause 1 (1) of Schedule 2 of the Excise Levies Act impose levies on the slaughter of buffaloes for human consumption.

Levies for National Residue Survey (NRS), research and development (R&D) and Animal Health Australia are set, respectively, by clause 2 of schedule 11 of the NRS Act, and paragraphs 1(2)(a) and 1(2)(b) of schedule 2 of the Excise Levies Act.

The buffalo industry currently pays a total levy on the slaughter of each buffalo of $10.33, with the following components:

•       a National Residue Survey levy of $5.00 per head under Clause 2, Schedule 11 of the National Residue Survey (Excise) Levy Act 1998; and

•       a Research and Development (R&D) levy of $4.60 per head and an Animal Health Australia levy of 73 cents per head under Clause 2, Schedule 2 of the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999.

The purpose of the Regulations is to reduce the rate of National Residue Survey levy on buffalo slaughter from $5.00 per head to $1.00 per head for a period of three years and to increase the R&D levy on buffalo slaughter from $4.60 per head to $8.60 per head for a period of three years. The Animal Health Australia levy would stay the same at 73 cents per head, with no change to the total levy of $10.33 per head.

The Australian Buffalo Industry Council (ABIC) has in place a National Residue Survey Testing Program that underwrites market access requirements into domestic and export markets. Cost recovery for this program is by a statutory levy that has been in place since 1 July 1993.

Funds held by the National Residue Survey have risen in recent times due to the increased slaughter of animals brought about by drought and further de-stocking of surplus animals under disease eradication programs. ABIC has expressed a desire to utilise these levy funds for R&D activities.

The adjustment in the National Residue Survey excise levy rate and the R&D excise levy rate on the slaughter of buffalo would have the effect of depleting the current National Residue Survey reserves and free up money for R&D activities with no actual increase to the total excise levy amount paid by industry.

At the end of this three-year period it would be anticipated that the National Residue Survey Reserve should then stand at a sustainable level of its forecast program cost, and the levies would revert to their present levels.

Details of the proposal were voted on and endorsed by industry members at the ABIC annual general meeting held in February 2003.

Details of the regulations are in the Attachment.

Regulations 1 to 3 and Schedule 1 (imposing the new levy amounts) of the Regulations will commence on 1 July 2003.

Schedule 2 of the Regulations (restoring the old levy amounts) will commence on 1 July 2006.

0304059A-030423A
0304059B-030423A

ATTACHMENT

PRIMARY INDUSTRIES LEVIES AND CHARGES (NATIONAL RESIDUE SURVEY LEVIES) AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2003 (No. 3)

Regulation 1 gives the name of the Regulations as the Primary Industries Levies and Charges (National Residue Survey Levies) Amendment Regulations 2003 (No. 3).

Regulation 2 provides for Regulations 1 to 3 and Schedule 1 to commence on 1 July 2003 and for Schedule 2 to commence on 1 July 2006.

Regulation 3 provides that Schedule l and Schedule 2 amend the Primary Industries Levies and Charges (National Residue Survey Levies) Regulations 1998.

SCHEDULE 1        Amendments commencing on 1 July 2003

Item 1 omits the notes after Regulation 191 of the Primary Industries Levies and Charges (National Residue Survey Levies) Regulations 1998.

Item 2 inserts a new Regulation 192 into the Primary Industries Levies and Charges (National Residue Survey Levies) Regulations 1998 which sets the excise levy rate on the slaughter of buffaloes at $1.00 per head for a period of three years.

SCHEDULE 2        Amendments commencing on 1 July 2006

Item 1 inserts a note at the bottom of Regulation 191 advising the rate of excise levy on the slaughter of buffalo of $5.00 per head under clause 2 of Schedule 11 to the National Residue Survey (Excise) Levy Act 1998.

Item 2 omits Regulation 192.

PRIMARY INDUSTRIES (EXCISE) LEVIES AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2003 (No. 6)

Regulation 1 gives the name of the Regulations as the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment Regulations 2003 (No. 6).

Regulation 2 provides for Regulations 1 to 3 and Schedule 1 to commence on 1 July 2003 and for Schedule 2 to commence on 1 July 2006.

Regulation 3 provides that Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 amend the Primary Industries (Excise) Regulations 1999.

SCHEDULE 1        Amendments commencing on 1 July 2003

Item 1 substitutes the current Schedule 2 of the Primary Industries (Excise) Regulations 1999 and imposes an amount of levy of $8.60 per head for buffaloes for the purposes of paragraph 2 (a) of Schedule 2 to the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999.

SCHEDULE 2        Amendments commencing on 1 July 2006

Item 1 substitutes the Schedule 2 in operation from 1 July 2003 to 1 July 2006 and inserts a note in Schedule 2 advising the arrangements for buffalo slaughter under the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999 and the rate of excise levy on buffalo slaughter under Schedule 11 to the National Residue Survey (Excise) Levy Act 1998.