Commonwealth of Australia Explanatory Memoranda

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SUGAR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES (CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS AND TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS) BILL 2013

                           2010 - 2011 - 2012 - 2013




    THE PARLIAMENT OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA




                       HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES




Sugar Research and Development Services (Consequential Amendments and
                   Transitional Provisions) Bill 2013




          SUPPLEMENTARY EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM




            Amendments to be Moved on Behalf of the Government




 (Circulated by authority of the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry,
                        Senator the Hon. Joseph Ludwig)
AMENDMENTS TO SUGAR RESEARCH AND
DEVELOPMENT SERVICES (CONSEQUENTIAL
AMENDMENTS AND TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS)
BILL 2013
OUTLINE

The Sugar Research and Development Services Bill 2013, the Sugar Research and
Development Services (Consequential Amendments--Excise) Bill 2013 and the
Sugar Research and Development Services (Consequential Amendments and
Transitional Provisions) Bill 2013 provide the mechanism to implement key elements
of reforms to sugar research and development (R&D) arrangements.

Under the reforms, the Sugar Research and Development Corporation (SRDC) and
BSES Limited will be wound-up and their assets and R&D functions, along with the
research coordination activities of Sugar Research Limited, transferred to the industry
owned company, Sugar Research Australia Limited (SRA). SRA is a company limited
by guarantee operating under the Corporations Act 2001.

The industry owned company will be funded by a statutory levy of 70 cents per tonne
of sugar cane that is processed, or sold for processing, to be paid equally (35 cents per
tonne each) by growing and milling businesses. The new levy will replace the existing
sugar R&D statutory levy of 14 cents per tonne and incorporate existing voluntary
contributions that fund the industry owned BSES Limited.

Section 55 of the Constitution states that laws imposing taxation shall deal only with
the imposition of taxation, and any provision therein dealing with any other matter
shall be of no effect.

As the Sugar Research and Development Services (Consequential Amendments and
Transitional Provisions) Bill 2013 includes provisions that relate to imposition and
collection of the sugar cane levy and matters arising from the transition to a new
industry services body, amendments are required to ensure that the bill does not
contravene section 55 of the Constitution.

The government amendments separate those provisions relating to imposition of the
levy, including the change in the levy rate, from those relating to collection and
transitional matters, by removing the imposition provisions from this bill. They are
now included in the Sugar Research and Development Services (Consequential
Amendments--Excise) Bill 2013.

This will ensure the provisions relating to collection and transitional matters have full
effect. The policy and provisions are unchanged.

FINANCIAL IMPACT STATEMENT

There will no financial impacts from these amendments.




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AMENDMENTS TO SUGAR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
SERVICES (CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS AND
TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS) BILL 2013

NOTES ON AMENDMENTS

Amendment 1
This amendment omits the heading referring to the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies
Act 1999. All amendments of that Act are now contained in the Sugar Research and
Development Services (Consequential Amendments--Excise) Bill 2013.

Amendment 2
This amendment omits items 1 to 12 of Schedule 1, Part 1 of the bill which deal with
the imposition of the levy and the increase in the levy rate. These provisions are
included under items 1 to 12 of Schedule 1 of the Sugar Research and Development
Services (Consequential Amendments--Excise) Bill 2013.
Amendment 3
This amendment omits the heading referring to the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies
Regulations 1999. All amendments of these regulations are now contained in the
Sugar Research and Development Services (Consequential Amendments--Excise)
Bill 2013.
Amendment 4
This amendment omits items 13 and 14 of Schedule 1, Part 1 of the bill.

Item 13 repeals Clause 2 of Schedule 24 to the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies
Regulations 1999 which sets the levy rate at 14 cents per tonne. Item 14 repeals Part 6
of Schedule 27 to the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Regulations 1999. This part
is no longer required as it relates to a levy for retail-packaged sugar which ceased to
have effect from 30 November 2006.

These provisions are included under item 13 of Schedule 1 of the Sugar Research and
Development Services (Consequential Amendments--Excise) Bill 2013.




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