Explanatory Statement
Social Security (Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment) Determination 2014 (No. 1)
The Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment (the AGDRP) provides an immediate, one-off payment to Australians adversely affected by a major disaster.
Section 1061K of the Social Security Act 1991 (the Act) specifies the qualification criteria for the AGDRP. One of the qualification criteria requires a person to be “adversely affected by a major disaster”.
Subsection 1061L(1) of the Act provides that, for the purposes of the Act, “a person is adversely affected by a major disaster if the person is affected by the disaster in a way determined by the Minister in relation to the disaster”.
Subsection 1061L(2) of the Act provides that the “Minister may determine in writing, in relation to a major disaster, the circumstances in which persons are to be taken to be adversely affected by the disaster”.
Section 36 of the Act empowers the Minister to determine in writing that an event is a “major disaster” if the Minister is satisfied that an event is a disaster that has such a significant impact on individuals that a Commonwealth Government response is required.
The Minister has made a declaration under section 36 of the Act that applies to the bushfires that commenced on 12 January 2014 and continued on 13 January 2014 in the state of Western Australia and affected the Local Government Area of Mundaring.
The Social Security (Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment) Determination 2014 (No. 1) (Determination (No. 1)) gives effect to the declaration referred to above and sets out the circumstances in which a person is to be regarded as “adversely affected” by the bushfires that affected Western Australia.
Section 1 of Determination (No. 1) specifies the name of the determination.
Section 2 of Determination (No. 1) provides that it commences on the date it is signed.
Section 3 of Determination (No. 1) contains definitions relevant to Determination (No. 1).
Section 4 of Determination (No. 1) provides that for the purposes of subsection 1061L(2) of the Act, a person is adversely affected by a major disaster mentioned in Schedule 1 if the person is affected in the way mentioned in Schedule 2.
Schedule 1 to Determination (No. 1) applies to the bushfires that commenced on 12 January 2014 and continued on 13 January 2014 in the state of Western Australia and affected the Local Government Area of Mundaring.
Schedule 2 to Determination (No. 1) provides four circumstances where a person is adversely affected by the major disaster referred to in Schedule 1.
The first circumstance is where the person is seriously injured as a direct result of the major disaster.
The second circumstance is where a person is an immediate family member of an Australian who is killed as a direct result of the major disaster.
The third circumstance is where the person’s principal place of residence has been destroyed or has sustained major damage as a direct result of the major disaster.
A fourth circumstance occurs where a person is the principal carer of a child and any of the three situations specified referred to above apply to that child.
What constitutes “Act”, “destroyed”, “immediate family member”, “major damage”, and “seriously injured” is defined in section 3 of Determination (No. 1).
Subsection 1061L(3) of the Act provides that a determination under section 1061L is a legislative instrument.
This instrument is not subject to disallowance by the Parliament (subsection 1061L(3) of the Act provides that section 42 of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 does not apply to the determination).
Formal consultation has not been undertaken as Determination (No. 1) was required as a matter of urgency.
Overview
The Social Security (Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment) Determination 2014 (No. 1) was introduced by the Australian Government in response to the urgent need to provide financial assistance to individuals adversely affected by a major disaster, specifically the bushfires that occurred in Western Australia on 12 and 13 January 2014. The determination provides a legislative framework for the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment (AGDRP), a one-off payment intended to offer immediate relief to those impacted. Enacted under the Social Security Act 1991, the policy objective is to ensure that affected individuals receive timely support, thereby aiding their recovery process. The Minister, empowered by section 36 of the Act, declared these bushfires a "major disaster," necessitating a Commonwealth Government response, and subsequently, the determination was made to specify the criteria for adversely affected individuals to qualify for the AGDRP.
Scope and Application
The Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment (AGDRP) is a provision within the Social Security Act 1991, which provides a one-off payment to Australians adversely affected by a major disaster. The Act applies to individuals who have been adversely affected by a major disaster as determined by the Minister, with a specific focus on those impacted by the bushfires in Western Australia from 12 to 13 January 2014 in the Local Government Area of Mundaring. The Act defines specific circumstances under which a person can be considered adversely affected, including being seriously injured, being an immediate family member of someone killed, having a principal place of residence destroyed or sustaining major damage, or being the principal carer of a child affected by these circumstances. The Social Security (Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment) Determination 2014 (No. 1) elaborates on these definitions and conditions, providing clarity on the application of the AGDRP in this context. This determination, which was enacted without formal consultation due to the urgent nature of the disaster, sets out the specific criteria and operational details for the payment and is not subject to disallowance by the Parliament.
Key Provisions
The Social Security (Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment) Determination 2014 (No. 1) lays out the specific circumstances under which an individual can be considered adversely affected by a major disaster, as outlined in Section 1061K of the Social Security Act 1991 (the Act). The key operative section here is Section 4 of the Determination, which aligns with Subsection 1061L(2) of the Act, detailing the conditions under which a person qualifies for the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment (AGDRP). Specifically, Schedule 2 lists four scenarios that qualify an individual as adversely affected: serious injury as a direct result of the disaster, being an immediate family member of someone killed by the disaster, having a principal place of residence destroyed or significantly damaged, and being the principal carer of a child affected by any of the above conditions.
The Act imposes obligations on both the Minister and the affected individuals. The Minister, under Section 36 of the Act, is tasked with declaring an event as a major disaster if it significantly impacts individuals requiring a Commonwealth response. Additionally, the Minister, as per Subsection 1061L(2), has the authority to determine the specific circumstances under which a person is considered adversely affected. For the individuals, the obligation lies in providing necessary information and evidence to substantiate their claim of being adversely affected by the disaster, as detailed in Schedule 2 of the Determination.
The legislation also outlines consequences for breaches, although specific penalties are not detailed within the Act or the Determination. Typically, under Australian law, breaches of such legislative instruments can lead to civil or criminal penalties, depending on the nature and severity of the breach. Civil penalties might include fines, while criminal penalties could involve imprisonment, reflecting the seriousness of providing false information in the context of disaster recovery payments. The absence of explicit penalties in this text might suggest that the general provisions of the Social Security Act or other relevant legislation would apply.