EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1982 NO. 390
PUBLIC SERVICE REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT)
Issued with the authority of the Public Service Board
Paragraph 97(1)(j) of the Public Service Act 1922 provides that the Public Service Board may, with the approval of the Governor-General, make regulations prescribing the allowances which may be paid to officers or employees.
Regulation 97C of the Public Service Regulations provides for the payment of an allowance in circumstances where officers and employees are obliged to meet high domestic electricity charges. The allowance, payable, in respect of a quarterly, two-monthly or monthly charging period, is the amount by which the unit charges paid by the officer or employee exceed the contribution prescribed by the regulation.
The officer contribution scales prescribed by the regulation have been constructed so that an allowance is payable if the charge exceeds the mean of the capital city charges for the equivalent amount of electricity by more than 50 per cent.
These statutory rules, made as the result of a review conducted by the Public Service Board, implement increases in the officer’s or employee’s contribution, in recognition of increased electricity charges generally, so that the policy basis of the allowance may be maintained.