Commonwealth of Australia Explanatory Memoranda

[Index] [Search] [Download] [Bill] [Help]

PETROLEUM AND OTHER FUELS REPORTING BILL 2017

                      2016-2017




  THE PARLIAMENT OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA




              HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES




   PETROLEUM AND OTHER FUELS REPORTING BILL 2017

PETROLEUM AND OTHER FUELS REPORTING (CONSEQUENTIAL
  AMENDMENTS AND TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS) BILL 2017




     ADDENDUM TO THE EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
             PETROLEUM AND OTHER FUELS REPORTING BILL 2017

The purpose of this addendum is to provide additional material to the Explanatory Memorandum to
the Petroleum and Other Fuels Reporting Bill 2017. This addendum responds to concerns raised by
the Senate Standing Committee for the Scrutiny of Bills in Scrutiny Digest No. 6, dated
14 June 2017.

NOTES ON CLAUSES

Clause 34 - Appointment of authorised persons

After paragraph 163 on page 30, insert the following paragraphs:

       "The power to appoint any Departmental employee as an authorised person would not
       be limited to Senior Executive Service officers as it may be appropriate in certain
       circumstances to appoint APS-level employees to carry out specific compliance
       monitoring functions. It is common practice for compliance monitoring to be
       undertaken by such employees and with appropriate training, guidance and direction
       they can effectively and appropriately exercise these kinds of delegated powers."

       "The power to appoint consultants and contractors would be provided as it may be
       appropriate in certain circumstances to appoint them as authorised persons. For
       example, the required technical expertise for a particular type of audit may not be
       available within the Department and it may be unduly expensive to engage such
       expertise on a full-time ongoing basis. This is especially the case if the auditing will be
       undertaken intermittently or in remote locations such as offshore oil rigs."

After paragraph 164 on page 30, insert the following paragraph:

       "The determination of what knowledge or experience is relevant to the proper exercise
       of authorised persons' powers would be left to the Secretary. The skills required to
       monitor compliance with one aspect of the reporting obligations may be very different
       to those required to monitor compliance with others. To avoid creating a cumbersome
       and prescriptive list of potentially relevant types of knowledge and experience, the Bill
       leaves the determination of what is relevant to the Secretary. It would be open to the
       Secretary to issue a direction to an authorised person limiting the types of monitoring
       they undertake."

After paragraph 166 on page 31, insert the following paragraph:

       "Authorised persons are entrusted persons and accordingly subject to the prohibition on
       the unauthorised recording, use or disclosure of protected information provided at
       clause 20."



           (Circulated by authority of the Minister for the Environment and Energy,
                                the Hon. Josh Frydenberg MP)




                                                2