Commonwealth of Australia Explanatory Memoranda

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TELECOMMUNICATIONS (REGIONAL BROADBAND SCHEME) CHARGE BILL 2017

                                         2016-2017-2018

            THE PARLIAMENT OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA

                               HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

TELECOMMUNICATIONS (REGIONAL BROADBAND SCHEME) CHARGE BILL 2017

                 SUPPLEMENTARY EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

                     Amendment to be moved on behalf of the Government
 Clause 19 of the Telecommunications (Regional Broadband Scheme) Charge Bill 2017
 (RBS Bill) provides the disallowance procedure applying to determinations made by the
 Minister, as legislative instruments, under subclauses 12(4) or 16(8). Subclause 12(4) allows
 the Minister to determine a single specified amount to be the base component of the charge,
 and subclause 16(8) allows the Minister to determine a single specified amount to be the
 administrative cost component of the charge. The disallowance procedure currently provides
 that section 42 of the Legislation Act 2003 does not apply to these determinations. In Scrutiny
 Digest 8 of 2017 tabled in the Senate on 9 August 2017, the Senate Standing Committee for
 the Scrutiny of Bills criticised this approach. In its report about the RBS Bill and the
 Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Competition and Consumer) Bill 2017 tabled
 in the Senate on 6 September 2017, the Senate Environment and Communications Legislation
 Committee also criticised this approach and recommended that clause 19 of the RBS Bill be
 amended to provide for deemed disallowance in specified circumstances. The amendment
 seeks to address these concerns by inserting into clause 19 of the RBS Bill a new subclause
 that closely reproduces subsection 42(2) of the Legislation Act 2003, although in modified
 form. This Amendment does not have a financial impact.

                                        AMENDMENT

 Amendment (1)
 This Amendment inserts new subclause 19(3A) to ensure that if a notice of motion to disallow
 is given in a House of the Parliament within 15 sitting days after a determination is tabled in
 that House, and at the end of 15 sitting days of that House after the notice of motion has been
 given either: (i) the notice has not been withdrawn and the motion has not been called on; or
 (ii) the motion has been called on, moved and (where relevant) seconded and has not been
 withdrawn or otherwise disposed of, the determination will be taken to have been disallowed.

 This amendment enhances Parliamentary scrutiny of any Ministerial determinations by
 ensuring that where a notice to disallow a determination has been given in a House of
 Parliament, and the motion has not been considered within the 15 sitting days of that House
 after the giving of the notice so that the notice of motion to disallow remains unresolved at the
 end of the disallowance period, the determination will be taken to have been disallowed. In
 this case, the determination will not take effect.

 As subclause 19(3) of the RBS Bill is contrary to section 12 of the Legislation Act 2003, the
 usual commencement arrangement as set out in subsection 12(1) of that Act does not apply to
 these determinations. A determination made under subclauses 12(4) and 16(8) will only take
 effect if, and when, subclause 19(3) of the Bill is satisfied.

                  (Circulated by authority of the Minister for Communications,
                             Senator the Honourable Mitch Fifield)