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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
TASMANIA
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ELECTORAL (Prohibition on Corporate Tobacco
Donations) AMENDMENT BILL 2013
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CONTENTS
1. Short Title
2. Commencement
3. Principal Act
4. Part 5A inserted - Prohibition on Donations from Tobacco Industry
Business Entities
[Bill No. ]
This page is part of the document and is
required for numbering purposes.
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ELECTORAL (Prohibition on Corporate Tobacco Donations)
AMENDMENT BILL 2013
(Brought in by Nicholas James McKim MP)
A BILL FOR
An Act to amend the Electoral Act 2004, to prohibit the making, and acceptance,
of political donations to political parties and, or candidates, from corporate
tobacco industry business entities.
Be it enacted by his Excellency the Governor of Tasmania, by and with the advice and
consent of the Legislative Council and House of Assembly, in Parliament assembled,
as follows:
1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Electoral (Prohibition on Corporate Tobacco
Donations) Amendment Act 2013.
2. Commencement
This Act commences on a day to be proclaimed.
3. Principal Act
In this Act, the Electoral Act 2004 is referred to as the Principal Act.
No. 51 of 2004.
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4. Part 5A inserted
After section 157B of the Principal Act, the following Part is inserted:
PART 5A - PROHIBITION ON DONATIONS FROM TOBACCO
INDUSTRY BUSINESS ENTITIES
157C. Interpretation
In this Part -
close associate of a corporation means each of the following:
(a) a director or officer of the corporation or the
spouse of such a director or officer;
(b) a related body corporate of the corporation;
(c) a person whose voting power in the corporation or
a related body corporate of the corporation is
greater than 20% or the spouse of such a person;
(d) if the corporation or a related body corporate of
the corporation is a stapled entity in relation to a
stapled security, the other stapled entity in relation
to that stapled security;
(e) if the corporation is a trustee, manager or
responsible entity in relation to a trust, a person
who holds more than 20% of the units in the trust
(in the case of a unit trust) or is a beneficiary of
the trust (in the case of a discretionary trust);
entity means -
(a) an incorporated or unincorporated body; or
(b) the trustee of a trust;
gift means any disposition of property made by a person to
another person, otherwise than by will, being a
disposition made without consideration in money or
money's worth or with inadequate consideration, and
includes the provision of a service (other than volunteer
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labour) for no consideration or for inadequate
consideration;
officer has the same meaning as in the Corporations Act
2001 of the Commonwealth;
political donation - see section 157E;
related body corporate has the same meaning as in the
Corporations Act 2001 of the Commonwealth;
spouse of a person includes a person who is in a significant
relationship, within the meaning of the Relationships
Act 2003, with that person;
stapled entity means an entity the interests in which are
traded along with the interests in another entity as
stapled securities and (in the case of a stapled entity
that is a trust) includes any trustee, manager or
responsible entity in relation to the trust;
tobacco industry business entity means a corporation
engaged in a business undertaking that is mainly
concerned with the manufacture, import or sale of
tobacco products, or a person who is a close associate
of such a corporation;
voting power has the same meaning as in the Corporations
Act 2001 of the Commonwealth.
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157D. Political donations by tobacco industry business entities
unlawful
(1) A tobacco industry business entity must not make a
political donation.
Penalty: Fine not exceeding 200 penalty units or
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12
months, or both.
(2) A person must not accept a political donation on behalf
of a tobacco industry business entity.
Penalty: Fine not exceeding 200 penalty units or
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12
months, or both.
(3) A person must not accept a political donation that was
made (wholly or partly) by a person on behalf of a
tobacco industry business entity.
Penalty: Fine not exceeding 200 penalty units or
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12
months, or both.
(4) A tobacco industry business entity must not solicit
another person to make a political donation.
Penalty: Fine not exceeding 200 penalty units or
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12
months, or both.
(5) A person must not solicit another person on behalf of a
tobacco industry business entity to make a political
donation.
Penalty: Fine not exceeding 200 penalty units or
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12
months, or both.
157E. Meaning of political donation
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(1) For the purposes of this Act, a -
political donation is -
(a) a gift made to or for the benefit of a party; or
(b) a gift made to or for the benefit of a Member; or
(c) a gift made to or for the benefit of a candidate or
intending candidate; or
(d) a gift made to or for the benefit of an entity or other
person (not being a party, Member, or candidate or
intending candidate), the whole or part of which was
used or is intended to be used by the entity or person -
(i) to enable the entity or person to make, directly
or indirectly, a political donation; or
(ii) to reimburse the entity or person for making,
directly or indirectly, a political donation.
(2) An amount paid by a person as a contribution, entry fee
or other payment to entitle that person or any other
person to participate in, or otherwise obtain any benefit
from, a fund-raising venture or function organised for the
benefit of a candidate or intending candidate (being an
amount that forms part of the proceeds of the venture or
function) is taken to be a gift for the purposes of this
section.
(3) Subject to section 157G, an annual or other subscription
paid to a party by -
(a) a member of the party; or
(b) a person or entity (including an industrial
organisation) for affiliation with the party -
is taken to be a gift to the party for the purposes of this
section.
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157F. Loans intended as political donations
(1) A loan that, if it had been a gift, would be a political
donation is to be regarded as a political donation for the
purposes of this Part unless the loan is from a financial
institution.
(2) In this section -
financial institution means an entity whose principal
business is the provision of financial services or
financial products, and includes a bank, credit
union, building society or other entity prescribed by
the regulations;
loan means an advance of money, the provision of credit
or any other transaction that in substance effects a
loan of money.
157G. Exception for membership contributions
An annual or other subscription paid to a party by an
individual or an organisation as a member of the party or
for the individual's or organisation's affiliation with the
party is not a political donation for the purposes of this Part
unless it is a political donation that exceeds $1 000 or such
other amount as may be prescribed by the regulations.
157H. Determination by Commission that person not a tobacco
industry business entity
(1) A person who proposes to make a political donation (the
applicant) may apply to the Commission for a
determination by the Commission that the applicant or
another person in respect of whom the applicant is making
the application is not a tobacco industry business entity for
the purposes of this Part.
(2) The Commission -
(a) is authorised to make such a determination if the
Commission is satisfied that it is more likely than not
that the person is not a tobacco industry business
entity; and
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(b) is to make its determination solely on the basis of
information provided by the applicant.
(3) The Commission's determination remains in force for 12
months after it is made but can be revoked by the
Commission at any time by notice in writing to the
applicant.
(4) The Commission's determination is conclusively
presumed to be correct in favour of any person for the
purposes of a political donation that the person makes or
accepts while the determination is in force (even if the
determination is subsequently found to be incorrect).
(5) The Commission's determination is not presumed to be
correct in favour of any person who makes or accepts a
political donation knowing that information provided to
the Commission in connection with the making of the
determination was false or misleading in a material
particular.
(6) The Commission is to maintain a public register of the
determinations made under this section and is to publish
the register on a website maintained by the Commission.
(7) A person who provides information to the Commission in
connection with an application for a determination by the
Commission under this section knowing that the
information is false or misleading in a material particular
is guilty of an offence.
Penalty: Fine not exceeding 200 penalty units or
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or both.
(8) The Commission may establish and publicise policies as to
how the Commission will deal with applications for
determinations under this section.
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157I. Recovery of unlawful donations, &c.
If a person accepts a political donation, loan or indirect
campaign contribution that is unlawful because of this
Part, an amount equal to the amount or value of the
donation, loan or contribution (or double that amount if
that person knew that it was unlawful) is payable by that
person to the State and may be recovered as a debt due to
the Crown from -
(a) in the case of a donation, loan or contribution received
by a party, the party secretary; or
(b) in any other case, the person who received the
donation, loan or contribution or the election agent of
the person.
157J. Liability of directors, &c.
If a body corporate commits an offence against this Part,
each director or other person concerned in the
management of the body corporate is guilty of the offence
and is liable to a penalty not exceeding that prescribed for
the offence if it is proved that the director or other person
-
(a) was in a position to influence the relevant conduct or
omission constituting the offence; or
(b) failed to exercise all due diligence to prevent the
relevant conduct or omission constituting the offence;
or
(c) failed to take all reasonable steps to prevent the
relevant conduct or omission constituting the offence;
or
(d) encouraged or assisted in the commission of the
offence.
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157K. Time within which proceedings must be taken
Proceedings for an offence against a provision of this Part
must be made -
(a) Within 3 years from the time when the matter to which
the proceedings relate arises; or
(b) Within 6 months from the time when the matter to
which the proceedings relate comes to the attention of
the Electoral Commissioner.
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