HORSE DISEASE RESPONSE LEVY (CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS) BILL 2011

2010-2011

The Parliament of the

Commonwealth of Australia

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Presented and read a first time

Horse Disease Response Levy

(Consequential Amendments) Bill 2011

No. , 2011

(Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry)

A Bill for an Act to make amendments relating to

the enactment of Acts for the imposition and

collection of horse disease response levy, and for

related purposes

i Horse Disease Response Levy (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2011 No. , 2011

Contents

1 Short

title

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2 Commencement

.................................................................................

3 Schedule(s)

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Schedule 1--Amendments

Australian Animal Health Council (Live-stock Industries) Funding Act

1996

Horse Disease Response Levy (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2011 No. , 2011 1

A Bill for an Act to make amendments relating to

the enactment of Acts for the imposition and

collection of horse disease response levy, and for

related purposes

The Parliament of Australia enacts:

1 Short title

This Act may be cited as the Horse Disease Response Levy

(Consequential Amendments) Act 2011.

2 Commencement

(1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table

commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with

column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect

according to its terms.

2 Horse Disease Response Levy (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2011 No. , 2011

Commencement information

Column 1

Column 2

Column 3

Provision(s)

Commencement

Date/Details

1. Sections 1 to 3

and anything in

this Act not

elsewhere covered

by this table

The day this Act receives the Royal Assent.

2. Schedule 1

The later of:

(a) the start of the day after this Act receives

the Royal Assent; and

(b) the commencement of section 3 of the

Horse Disease Response Levy Collection

Act 2011.

However, the provision(s) do not commence

at all if the event mentioned in paragraph (b)

does not occur.

Note:

This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally

enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of

this Act.

(2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act.

Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it

may be edited, in any published version of this Act.

3 Schedule(s)

Each Act that is specified in a Schedule to this Act is amended or

repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule

concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this Act has effect

according to its terms.

Amendments Schedule 1

Horse Disease Response Levy (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2011 No. , 2011 3

Schedule 1--Amendments

Australian Animal Health Council (Live-stock Industries)

Funding Act 1996

1 Section 3

Insert:

horse disease response levy means levy imposed by the Horse

Disease Response Levy Act 2011.

2 After section 4

Insert:

4A Transfer of funds relating to horse disease response levy to

Australian Animal Health Council

Commonwealth payment to Australian Animal Health Council

(1) The Commonwealth is to make a payment (the Commonwealth

payment) to the Australian Animal Health Council of an amount

equal to the sum of the following amounts less the

Commonwealth's costs in collecting or recovering those amounts

and in administering this subsection:

(a) horse disease response levy collected or received by the

Commonwealth;

(b) amounts of penalty paid under section 7 of the Horse Disease

Response Levy Collection Act 2011 in relation to a failure to

pay horse disease response levy by the time it became due for

payment.

Condition on Commonwealth payment

(2) The Commonwealth payment is subject to the condition that the

Australian Animal Health Council apply the payment in

accordance with this section.

Schedule 1 Amendments

4 Horse Disease Response Levy (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2011 No. , 2011

First priority for applying Commonwealth payment

(3) As first priority, the Australian Animal Health Council is to apply

the Commonwealth payment in meeting, or reimbursing the

Council for meeting, costs the Council incurs:

(a) in receiving and applying the payment in accordance with

this section; and

(b) before or in the financial year in which the payment is made.

Second priority for applying Commonwealth payment

(4) As second priority, the Australian Animal Health Council is to

apply the Commonwealth payment in making to the

Commonwealth a payment (the Council payment) as follows,

depending on whether, when the Commonwealth payment was

made, a non-government body concerned with the horse industry

was party to the EADR agreement:

(a) if such a body was party to the agreement--the Council

payment is on behalf of the body for the purpose of

discharging a liability of the body to the Commonwealth that

arises under the EADR agreement;

(b) if there was not such a body party to the agreement--the

Council payment is made within 28 days after the

Commonwealth payment was made and equals so much of

the payment to the Council as the Council has not applied

under subsection (3).

Third priority for applying Commonwealth payment

(5) As third priority, the Australian Animal Health Council is to apply

the Commonwealth payment in:

(a) making a payment to an organisation that is concerned with

research and development relevant to the horse industry; or

(b) taking measures relating to the promotion or maintenance of

the health of horses.

(6) The Australian Animal Health Council is to apply the

Commonwealth payment under subsection (5) only:

(a) on request by a non-government body that is a party to the

EADR agreement and is concerned with the horse industry;

and

(b) in the way that that body requests.

Amendments Schedule 1

Horse Disease Response Levy (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2011 No. , 2011 5

Applying for lower priority if higher priority cannot be met

(7) The Australian Animal Health Council may apply the

Commonwealth payment in accordance with a lower priority if the

Council cannot apply the payment in accordance with a higher

priority. For this purpose, a priority set out in a later subsection is

lower than a priority set out in an earlier subsection.

Setting off Council payment to Commonwealth

(8) The Commonwealth may set off an amount payable to it under

paragraph (4)(b) against a payment the Commonwealth must make

under subsection (1).

Note:

The heading to section 4 is altered by adding at the end "--levies and charges other

than horse disease response levy".

3 Section 5

After "section 4", insert "or 4A".

4 At the end of the Act

Add:

7 Treatment of refunds relating to horse disease response levy

(1) This section applies if:

(a) a person pays an amount of horse disease response levy or of

penalty for failure to pay horse disease response levy by the

time it became due for payment; and

(b) the Commonwealth refunds the amount (the refunded

amount) to the person.

Note:

For example, the Commonwealth might refund an amount because the

person paid too much levy or penalty.

Act applies as if the refunded amount had never been paid

(2) The other sections of this Act apply, and are taken always to have

applied, as if the refunded amount had never been paid to the

Commonwealth.

Note:

This may, for example, lead to a result provided for in subsection (3),

(4) or (5).

Schedule 1 Amendments

6 Horse Disease Response Levy (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2011 No. , 2011

Liability of Council to repay overpayment

(3) Each payment under subsection 4A(1) that exceeds the amount it

should have been because of subsection (2) of this section is

subject to the condition that:

(a) the excess is a debt due by the Australian Animal Health

Council to the Commonwealth; and

(b) the Australian Animal Health Council comply with

subsection (5) of this section (if applicable).

Note:

Some or all of this debt may be discharged if the Commonwealth

expects it will not be able to set this debt off against future payments

under subsection 4A(1), and if past payments under that subsection

have already been applied. See subsections (5) and (6) of this section.

Setting off this liability against future payments

(4) The Commonwealth may set off the excess against an amount that

is payable to the Australian Animal Health Council under

subsection 4A(1).

Reduced liability to repay if future payments cease

(5)

If:

(a) the Secretary of the Department gives written notice to the

Australian Animal Health Council that the Secretary expects

the Commonwealth will not be able to set off under

subsection (4) a specified amount of the excess; and

(b) the Australian Animal Health Council is yet to fully apply

one or more Commonwealth payments described in

section 4A;

the Australian Animal Health Council must, before applying those

Commonwealth payments in accordance with the third priority in

that section, apply those Commonwealth payments in paying the

Commonwealth as much as possible of that specified amount.

(6) The debt is discharged by this subsection to the extent of the

difference (if any) between:

(a) the amount specified in a notice described in

paragraph (5)(a); and

(b) the amount (if any) paid to the Commonwealth under

subsection (5) by the Australian Animal Health Council in

connection with the notice.

Amendments Schedule 1

Horse Disease Response Levy (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2011 No. , 2011 7

Note:

A set-off under subsection (4) of an amount of the excess, or a

payment to the Commonwealth under subsection (5), also discharges

the debt to the extent of that amount or payment.

(7) Section 4A has effect subject to subsections (3) and (5) of this

section.

Note:

The heading to section 6 is altered by adding at the end "not relating to horse disease

response levy".

Commonwealth of Australia Bills

HORSE DISEASE RESPONSE LEVY (CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS) BILL 2011