Commonwealth Numbered Acts

COAL MINING INDUSTRY (LONG SERVICE LEAVE) PAYROLL LEVY COLLECTION ACT 1992 No. 61 of 1992 - SECT 14

14.(1) In this section:

"officer" means a person:

   (a)  who is or has been appointed or employed by the Commonwealth; or

   (b)  to whom powers or functions have been delegated by the Commissioner of
        Taxation; and who, because of the appointment or employment or in the
        course of the employment, or because of, or in the course of the
        exercise of powers or the performance of functions under, the
        delegation, as the case may be, may acquire or has acquired
        information with respect to the affairs of any other person disclosed
        or obtained under or for the purposes of this Act.

(2) For the purposes of this section, a person who, although not appointed or
employed by the Commonwealth, performs services for the Commonwealth is taken
to be employed by the Commonwealth.

(3) Subject to subsection (5), a person who is or has been an officer must
not, except for the purposes of this Act or in the performance of the person's
duties as an officer, directly or indirectly:

   (a)  make a record of any information with respect to the affairs of a
        second person; or

   (b)  divulge or communicate to a second person any information with respect
        to the affairs of a third person; being information disclosed or
        obtained under or for the purposes of this Act and acquired by the
        person because of the person's appointment or employment by the
        Commonwealth or in the course of such employment, or because of the
        delegation to the person of powers or functions by the Commissioner of
        Taxation or in the course of the exercise of such powers or the
        performance of such functions, as the case may be. Penalty: $10,000 or
        imprisonment for 2 years, or both.

(4) Except when it is necessary to do so for the purpose of carrying into
effect the provisions of a taxation law, a person who is or has been an
officer is not required:

   (a)  to produce in court any document made or given under or for the
        purposes of this Act; or

   (b)  to divulge or communicate to a court a matter or thing with respect to
        information disclosed or obtained under or for the purposes of this
        Act; being a document or information acquired by the person because of
        the person's appointment or employment by the Commonwealth or in the
        course of such employment, or because of the delegation to the person
        of powers or functions by the Commissioner of Taxation, or in the
        course of the exercise of such powers or the performance of such
        functions, as the case may be.

(5) Nothing in subsection (3) prohibits the Commissioner of Taxation, a Second
Commissioner of Taxation, a Deputy Commissioner of Taxation, or a person
authorised by any of them, from communicating any information to a person
performing, as an officer, duties in relation to a taxation law, for the
purpose of enabling the person to perform those duties.

(6) For the purposes of subsection (3), an officer is taken to have
communicated information to another person in contravention of that subsection
if:

   (a)  the officer communicates that information to any Minister of State of
        the Commonwealth, any Minister of the Crown of a State, any Minister
        for the Australian Capital Territory or any Minister of the Northern
        Territory; and

   (b)  the information was acquired by the officer otherwise than for the
        purposes of Part II of the Taxation Administration Act 1953.

(7) An officer must, if and when required by the Commissioner of Taxation, a
Second Commissioner of Taxation or a Deputy Commissioner of Taxation to do so,
make an oath or declaration, in a manner and form specified by the
Commissioner of Taxation by writing, to maintain secrecy in conformity with
the provisions of this section.