Superannuation (Government Co-contribution for Low Income Earners) Amendment Regulations 2004 (No. 2) 2004 No. 279
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 2004 No. 279
Issued by authority of the Minister for Revenue and Assistant Treasurer
Superannuation (Government Co-contribution for Low Income Earners) Act 2003
Superannuation (Government Co-contribution for Low Income Earners) Amendment Regulations 2004 (No. 2)
Section 55 of the Superannuation (Government Co-contribution for Low Income Earners) Act 2003 (the Act) provides in part that the Governor-General may make regulations 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 purpose of the Regulations is to amend the Superannuation (Government Co-contribution for Low Income Earners) Regulations 2004 (the Principal Regulations) to support the necessary administration requirements of the Act.
The Act provides a Government superannuation co-contribution that matches eligible personal superannuation contributions made by qualifying employees on or after 1 July 2003.
Subsections 54(1) and 54(2) of the Act provide that the Commissioner of Taxation (the Commissioner) must give the Minister periodic reports, for presentation to the Parliament, containing specified information on various aspects of the working of the Act.
The Regulations set out, for the purposes of subsections 54(1) and 54(2) of the Act, prescribed details about beneficiaries of, and amounts of, Government co-contributions, and prescribed ranges of total income and taxable income to be used in these reports.
These provisions were not previously included in the Principal Regulations as they had been awaiting amendments to the Act that were made in June 2004.
The Regulations also omit a regulation that previously set out the interest rate that applied to late payments of Government co-contributions by the Commissioner for the purposes of paragraphs 12(2)(d), 21(3)(d) and 22(4)(d) of the Act. This interest rate is now specified in those paragraphs following amendments to the Act.
Details of the Regulations are set out in the Attachment.
The Regulations commenced on the date of their notification in the Gazette.
The Office of Regulation Review has advised that a Regulation Impact Statement is not required to be included with the regulations. The regulations are of a minor or machinery of government nature, do not substantially alter existing arrangements, and are not likely to have either a direct, or a substantial indirect, effect on business and are therefore unlikely to restrict competition.
ATTACHMENT
Details of the Superannuation (Government Co-contribution for Low Income Earners) Amendment Regulations 2004 (No. 2)
Regulation 1 specifies the name of the regulations as the Superannuation (Government Co-contribution for Low Income Earners) Amendment Regulations 2004 (No. 2).
Regulation 2 provides that the regulations commence on the date of their notification in the Gazette.
Regulation 3 provides that Schedule 1 amends the Superannuation (Government Co-contribution for Low Income Earners) Regulations 2004 (the Principal Regulations).
Schedule 1- Amendments
Item 1 omits regulation 4 of the Principal Regulations.
Regulation 4 sets out how the interest rate that applied to late payments of Government co-contributions by the Commissioner was determined for the purposes of paragraphs 12(2)(d), 21(3)(d) and 22(4)(d) of the Superannuation (Government Co-contribution for Low Income Earners) Act 2003 (the Act). Determination of this interest rate is now specified in those paragraphs and section 56 of the Act.
Item 2 inserts new regulation 21A into the Principal Regulations after Part 3.
Subsections 54(1) and 54(2) of the Act provide that the Commissioner of Taxation (the Commissioner) must give the Minister reports, for presentation to the Parliament, on various aspects of the working of the Act.
Regulation 21A specifies the details about beneficiaries of, and amounts of, Government co-contributions to be included in these reports.
Subregulations 21A(1) and 21A(2) set out the details to be included in reports to be presented to the Parliament after the end of each quarter and after the end of each financial year respectively.
These details include: the number of recipients of Government co-contributions during the period concerned; the total amount of Government co-contributions made during the period concerned; and, the total amount of Government co-contributions recovered as overpaid amounts during the period concerned. The Commissioner will use determinations of eligibility for Government co-contributions during the relevant period as the basis for these figures.
Subregulation 21A(3) provides that Part 1 of Schedule 7 sets out the ranges of total income under paragraph 54(2)(c) of the Act, to be used in reports presented to the Parliament after the end of each financial year.
Subregulation 21A(4) provides that Part 2 of Schedule 7 sets out the ranges of taxable income under paragraph 54(2)(d) of the Act, to be used in reports presented to the Parliament after the end of each financial year.
Item 3 inserts new Schedule 7 into the Principal Regulations after Schedule 6.
Part 1 of Schedule 7 sets out the ranges of total income under paragraph 54(2)(c) of the Act, to be used in reports presented to the Parliament after the end of each financial year. For each of these ranges of total income the reports will detail the number of beneficiaries of a Government co-contribution (for the financial year) that fall within the range.
Part 2 of Schedule 7 sets out the ranges of taxable income under paragraph 54(2)(d) of the Act, to be used in reports presented to the Parliament after the end of each financial year. For each of these ranges of taxable income the reports will detail the number of people who the Commissioner is satisfied were spouses (at the end of the financial year) of a beneficiary of a Government co-contribution (for the financial year), and who the Commissioner is satisfied has a taxable income that falls within the range.