Commonwealth of Australia Explanatory Memoranda

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NATIONAL VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING REGULATOR (CHARGES) AMENDMENT (ANNUAL REGISTRATION CHARGE) BILL 2017

                             2016-2017




  THE PARLIAMENT OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA




                  HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES




National Vocational Education and Training
 Regulator (Charges) Amendment (Annual
      Registration Charge) Bill 2017



       SUPPLEMENTARY EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM




     Amendments to be moved on behalf of the Government




(Circulated by the authority of the Assistant Minister for Vocational
         Education and Skills, the Hon Karen Andrews MP)
    National Vocational Education and Training
     Regulator (Charges) Amendment (Annual
          Registration Charge) Bill 2017
                                 OUTLINE

These amendments to the National Vocational Education and Training
Regulator (Charges) Amendment (Annual Registration Charge) Bill 2017 (the
Bill) address concerns raised by the Senate's Standing Committee for the
Scrutiny of Bills in its Scrutiny Digest number 5 of 2017.

The amendments to the Bill provide that the Minister may determine the
amount of a National VET Regulator annual registration charge (charge), or a
method for working out such an amount. Before making a determination, by
way of a disallowable legislative instrument, the Minister must:

      be satisfied the amount determined will recover no more than the likely
       costs incurred by the National VET Regulator in performing its
       functions
      obtain the Ministerial Council's agreement to the amount of the
       charge, or the method for working out that amount.

In other words, the amendments will ensure the charge as determined by the
Minister (following Ministerial Council approval) does not exceed the likely
costs incurred by the National VET Regulator in performing its statutory
functions based on cost recovery.

Financial Impact

The Bill has no financial impact on the Commonwealth or registered providers
regulated by the National VET Regulator.




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            PROPOSED GOVERNMENT AMENDMENTS
The Government proposes the following amendments to the Bill.

Amendments (1) and (2)

Item 2 of Schedule 1 inserts a new Part 1A into the NVETR (Charges) Act
(National VET Regulator annual registration charge) consisting of new
sections 6A, 6B and 6C.

New section 6B sets out how to determine the National VET Regulator annual
registration charge.

Amendment (1) amends new subsection 6B(1) by omitting the words "a
National VET Regulator annual registration charge (or charges) for a financial
year" and inserting the words "an amount of National VET Regulator annual
registration charge for a financial year, or a method for working out such an
amount,".

The purpose of this amendment is to clarify that the Minister may, in a
legislative instrument, determine an amount of charge for a financial year, or a
method for working out such an amount for a financial year.

New subsection 6B(2) currently provides that, before the Minister makes a
determination, the Minister must obtain the Ministerial Council's agreement to
the amount of the National VET Regulator annual registration charge.

Amendment (2) omits and substitutes new subsection 6B(2) to provide that,
before determining an amount of the charge, or a method for working out the
amount of charge under subsection 6B(1):

      the Minister must be satisfied the determination will result in recovering
       no more than the Commonwealth's likely costs to be incurred by the
       National VET Regulator performing its functions
      the Minister must also obtain the Ministerial Council's agreement to the
       amount of charge, or the method for working out such an amount.

Amendment (2) also replicates, without change, the note to new subsection
6B(2). This note explains that the Ministerial Council's prior agreement is
required for the determination of fees under section 232 of the NVETR Act.

Amendment (3)

Subsection 44(1) of the Legislation Act 2003 provides that the Parliamentary
disallowance process does not apply with respect to legislative instruments
that facilitate the operation of an intergovernmental body or scheme involving
the Commonwealth and one or more States

The effect of amendment (3) is to ensure that subsection 6B(1)
determinations are disallowable by Parliament. This ensures parliamentary

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oversight of the taxation power. The amendment achieves this by providing
that section 42 of the Legislation Act (disallowance) applies to subsection
6B(1) determinations, notwithstanding subsection 44(1) of the Legislation Act.




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