explanatory statement

Issued by the Minister for Finance

Superannuation Act 2005

Declaration under subsection 8(3)

The Superannuation Act 2005 (the Act) makes provision for, and in relation to, the Public Sector Superannuation Accumulation Plan (PSSAP) for Australian Government employees and for certain other employees.

Persons eligible to contribute under the Act include persons who are Commonwealth employees, and persons who are employed by an "approved authority". In accordance with the meaning of "approved authority" in section 8 of the Act, an approved authority includes an authority or other body declared by the Minister to be an approved authority for the purposes of the Act, being an authority or body of a kind described in the definition.

A consolidated list of bodies that have been declared by the Minister to be approved authorities for the purposes of the Act is contained in the Superannuation (PSSAP) Approved Authority Inclusion Declaration 2008 (the Principal Declaration).

The purpose of the Superannuation (PSSAP) Approved Authority Inclusion Amendment Declaration 2015 (No. 1) (the Declaration) is to amend the Principal Declaration by including Australian Hearing Services (AHS) in the list of bodies declared by the Minister to be approved authorities for the purposes of the Act.

Under subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901, where an Act confers a power to make, grant or issue any instrument of a legislative or administrative character (including rules, regulations or by-laws), the power shall be construed as including a power exercisable in the like manner and subject to the like conditions (if any) to repeal, rescind, revoke, amend, or vary any such instrument.

Before 1 July 1997, AHS employees were employed under the then Public Service Act 1922, and therefore eligible for Commonwealth Superannuation Scheme (CSS) and Public Sector Superannuation Scheme (PSS) membership. As part of a restructuring of AHS, the Hearing Services and AGHS Reform Act 1997 included amendments to the Hearing Services Act 1991, including a change to provisions providing for the employment of staff. As a result, since 1 July 1997, AHS has employed staff in its own right, rather than on behalf of the Commonwealth. However, there was no policy intention that AHS employees’ superannuation arrangements be affected by this change, and its employees have continued to be treated as eligible for CSS and PSS membership. Likewise, from the establishment of the PSSAP on 1 July 2005, AHS employees have been treated as eligible for PSSAP membership.

To give effect to the policy outcome which was always intended in relation to AHS staff, the Declaration prescribes AHS as an approved authority and therefore makes employees of AHS eligible for PSSAP membership from the date of the instrument’s commencement. The AHS employees who were treated as eligible for the period from 1 July 2005 up until the commencement of the Declaration are declared to be eligible under the Superannuation (PSSAP) Membership Eligibility (Inclusion) Amendment Declaration 2015 (No. 1).

AHS was consulted on the amendments contained in the Declaration.

The Declaration commences on the day after it is registered.

The Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) assessed that the changes do not require a Regulation Impact Statement as they are machinery of government and do not substantially alter existing arrangements (OBPR ID: ID 18516).

The Declaration is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (LI Act).  Although section 44 of the LIA Act exempts superannuation instruments from disallowance, the Declaration is subject to disallowance in accordance with subsection 8(6) of the Act.

The details of the Declaration are explained in Attachment A.  A Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights is at Attachment B.

Attachment A

Superannuation (PSSAP) APPROVED AUTHORITY INCLUSION Amendment Declaration 2015 (no. 1)

Section 1 – Name of Declaration

This section provides that the name of the Declaration is the Superannuation (PSSAP) Approved Authority Inclusion Amendment Declaration 2015 (No. 1).

Section 2 – Commencement

This section provides for the Declaration to commence on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.

Section 3 – Amendment of Superannuation (PSS) Approved Authority Inclusion Declaration 1995

This section provides that Schedule 1 of the Declaration amends the Superannuation (PSSAP) Approved Authority Inclusion Declaration 2008 (the Principal Declaration).

Schedule 1 – Amendments

Item 1 amends the Principal Declaration by amending Schedule 1 to that Declaration to include Australian Hearing Services in the list of bodies that are approved authorities for the purposes of the Superannuation Act 2005.

ATTACHMENT B