House of Representatives

Explanatory Memorandum

(Circulated by authority of the Attorney-General, Senator the Hon George Brandis QC)

General outline

The main purposes of this Bill are to correct technical errors that have occurred in Acts as a result of drafting and clerical mistakes and to repeal spent and obsolete provisions and Acts (which will result in the repeal of 17 spent Acts).

This Bill also contains amendments to:

(a)

remove specific references in Acts to Ministers and to replace them with generic, more robust, references and reduce the need for Orders under section 19B or 19BA of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 to be made and read in conjunction with the Acts (see Schedule 3); and

(b)

modernise language and to make other technical amendments in certain legislation (see Schedules 4 and 5); and

(c)

make amendments consequential on amendments to the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 (see Schedules 6 to 8) which enable the repeal of redundant provisions.

The corrections and repeals are desirable in order to improve the quality of the text of Commonwealth legislation and to reduce the regulatory burden by making the statute book clearer and more efficient to use. They facilitate the publication of consolidated versions of Acts by the Commonwealth and by private publishers of legislation.

None of the corrections makes any change to the substance of the law.

Financial impact statement

This Bill will have no financial impact.

Statement of compatibility with human rights

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

Statute Law Revision Bill (No. 1) 2014

This Bill is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Overview of the Bill

The main purposes of this Bill are to correct technical errors that have occurred in Acts as a result of drafting and clerical mistakes and to repeal spent or obsolete provisions and Acts.

The corrections and repeals are desirable in order to improve the quality of the text of Commonwealth legislation and, in particular, to facilitate the publication of consolidated versions of Acts by the Commonwealth and by private publishers of legislation.

None of the corrections makes any change to the substance of the law.

Human rights implications

The amendments make technical corrections and technical improvements to legislation. They also repeal spent and obsolete provisions and Acts. The amendments improve the ease of administration of legislation and reduce the regulatory burden by making the statute book clearer and more efficient to use. They do not engage any human rights issues.

Conclusion

The Bill is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011, as it does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms or alter any human rights safeguards currently in place.

Senator the Hon George Brandis QC, Attorney-General

Notes on clauses

Clause 1 - Short title

1 Clause 1 provides for the Act to be cited as the Statute Law Revision Act (No. 1) 2014.

Clause 2 - Commencement

2 Subclause 2(1) provides that each provision of the Act specified in column 1 of the table set out in the subclause 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.

3 The note at the end of the table explains that the table relates only to the provisions of the Act as originally enacted. The table will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of the Act.

4 Subclause 2(2) provides that any information in column 3 of the table is not part of the Act. It also clarifies that information may be inserted in column 3, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of the Act.

5 Most items in Schedule 1 to the Bill correct errors in principal Acts. All items in the Schedule commence 28 days after this Act receives the Royal Assent. This is because the "slip rule" will have been applied to each error since the enactment of the erroneous provision. This means that the text of the law will have been taken to have been correct, despite the error.

6 Current Commonwealth drafting practice is to avoid retrospective commencement where practicable. Given the application of the "slip rule", it is appropriate for these amendments to commence soon after Royal Assent. The amendments ensure that the text of the law accords with how it would be interpreted.

7 Other items in Schedule 1 to the Bill relate to removals of redundant text and it is appropriate that these items commence on the 28th day after the day this Act receives the Royal Assent because they do not change the substantive content of the law.

8 The items in Schedule 2 to the Bill relate to misdescribed or redundant amendments, or to errors or redundant text, contained in amending Acts. The commencement of items dealing with misdescribed amendments, or amendments where the location of the amendment is unclear, is tied to the time specified in the amending Act for the commencement of the amendment or text being corrected.

9 Schedule 3 to the Bill amends a number of Acts to ensure that Commonwealth Ministers are consistently mentioned by reference to the administration of identified legislation rather than by name. The Schedule is to commence 28 days after this Act receives the Royal Assent.

10 Schedules 4 to 8 to the Bill make amendments and repeals consequential on amendments to the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 and to update terminology in accordance with current drafting practice. The Schedules are to commence 28 days after this Act receives the Royal Assent.

11 Schedule 9 to the Bill repeals spent and obsolete provisions of Acts. The Schedule is to commence 28 days after this Act receives the Royal Assent.

12 Schedule 10 to the Bill repeals spent and obsolete Acts and makes consequential amendments to other Acts. The Schedule is to commence 28 days after this Act receives the Royal Assent.

Clause 3 - Schedule(s)

13 Clause 3 provides that each Act specified in a Schedule to the Act is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule and any other item in a Schedule has effect according to its terms. This is a technical provision to give operational effect to the amendments contained in the Schedules.

Schedule 1 - Amendments of principal Acts

14 The items in this Schedule amend errors contained in principal Acts.

Item 1

15 Paragraph 21-2(c) of the Aged Care Act 1997 contains an error as it refers to "Approval of Care Recipient Principles". However, there is no other reference in the Act to "Approval of Care Recipient Principles", only to "Approval of Care Recipients Principles" made by the Minister under section 96-1 of the Act. Item 1 omits the non-existent concept and substitutes the correct one.

Item 2

16 The A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Act 1999 contains two provisions numbered section 84A. Item 2 renumbers the section 84A that was substituted for an earlier section 84E by item 7 of Schedule 1 to the Family Assistance Legislation Amendment (Child Care Rebate) Act 2011.

Item 3

17 Paragraph 108(2)(dba) of the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) (Administration) Act 1999 contains an incorrect cross-reference as it refers to a decision under subsection 218RA(1A) of the Act not to pay enrolment advance. However, there is no such provision. The correct provision to refer to is subsection 219RA(1A) of the Act, as it deals with decisions relating to payment of enrolment advance. Item 3 corrects the cross-reference.

Item 4

18 Subparagraph 1(2)(e)(iii) of Schedule 1 to the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 contains a grammatical error as it refers to "a designated service provided in the course of, or in relation to... trade or commerce within a Territory, between a State or Territory or between 2 Territories". The use of "State or Territory" rather than "State and a Territory" is clearly a grammatical error as trade or commerce cannot occur "between a State" or "between a Territory". It occurs between two things, a State and a Territory. Item 4 corrects that grammatical error.

Item 5

19 Subparagraph 14(2)(b)(iii) of the AusCheck Act 2007 contains a punctuation error as it refers to "security." rather than "security;". Item 5 corrects that punctuation error.

Item 6

20 Subsection 40(2) of the Australian Film, Television and Radio School Act 1973 contains a citation error as it refers to the "Lands Acquisition Act 1955". The error occurred when the Lands Acquisition Act 1955 was repealed by the Lands Acquisition (Repeal and Consequential Provisions) Act 1989, which commenced at the same time as the Lands Acquisition Act 1989 and proposed to replace references throughout the Statute Book to the Lands Acquisition Act 1955 with references to the Lands Acquisition Act 1989. It did not amend the reference in the Australian Film, Television and Radio School Act 1973 to the Lands Acquisition Act 1955. Item 6 fixes the citation.

Items 7 and 8

21 Items 7 and 8 are related. Section 46 of the Australian Film, Television and Radio School Act 1973 contains citation errors as it refers to the "Air Accidents (Commonwealth Liability) Act 1963". The error occurred when the short title of the Air Accidents (Commonwealth Liability) Act 1963 was changed (by the Air Accidents (Commonwealth Government Liability) Amendment Act 1978) to the Air Accidents (Commonwealth Government Liability) Act 1963 and amendments were made across the Statute Book changing references to the short title of the Act. However, a consequential change was not made to the references in section 46 of the Australian Film, Television and Radio School Act 1973. Items 7 and 8 fix the citations.

Item 9

22 Item 9 repeals the redundant heading to Part 8 of Schedule 4 to the Broadcasting Services Act 1992. That Part used to consist of clause 60D. Clause 60D was repealed by item 11 of Schedule 1 to the Broadcasting Legislation Amendment (Convergence Review and Other Measures) Act 2013, but the heading was not repealed by that Act even though all the content of the Part had been repealed.

Item 10

23 Section 1 of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Act 1998 provides for the Act to be cited in a manner that is inconsistent with the name of the relevant treaty. Item 10 corrects the inconsistency.

Items 11 and 12

24 Items 11 and 12 are related. Section 135AEC of the Copyright Act 1968 contains errors as it refers to "goods". However, section 135AEC actually concerns "copies". The errors arose as a result of transcription errors when cloning the provision from some trademark provisions. Items 11 and 12 omit the non-existent concept and substitute the correct one.

Item 13

25 Paragraph (a) of the definition of special resolution in section 700-1 of the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 contains an incorrect cross-reference as it refers to "paragraph 201-35(c)" of the Act. However, there is no such provision. The correct provision to refer to is paragraph 201-35(1)(c) of the Act, as paragraph (a) of the definition of special resolution mentions a resolution of which notice has been set out and paragraph 201-35(1)(c) is about setting out notice of intentions to propose special resolutions. Item 13 corrects the cross-reference.

Item 14

26 Section 3M of the Crimes Act 1914 covers compensation for damage to equipment that occurs as a result of it being operated as mentioned in section 3K, 3L or 3LAA of that Act. Equipment that is electronic or not electronic could be operated under subsection 3K(4). However, the heading to section 3M only mentions electronic equipment. Item 14 makes an amendment to the heading to better indicate the contents of the section.

Item 15

27 Section 3Q of the Crimes Act 1914 covers provision of a receipt for things seized under a warrant or moved under subsection 3K(2) of the Act. However, the heading to section 3Q does not mention receipts for things that are moved. Item 15 makes an amendment to the heading to better indicate the contents of the section.

Item 16

28 Paragraph 14(2)(b) of Schedule 1 to the Crimes at Sea Act 2000 contains an incorrect cross-reference as it refers to "subsection 7(2)" of the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006. However, that provision does not exist. The correct provision to refer to is subsection 8(2) of that Act as the cross-reference is intended to refer readers to provisions that give meaning to the term "Coral Sea area". Subsection 8(2) of that Act does give the appropriate meaning, and no other provisions of that Act do. Item 16 corrects the cross-reference.

Item 17

29 The definition of threat in section 271.1 of the Criminal Code contains an incorrect cross-reference as it refers to "section 271.1A" of the Code when indicating the section that defines the meaning of threat for Division 270 of the Code. However, section 271.1A is about the wrong topic (the definition of exploitation). The correct provision to refer to is section 270.1A of the Code, as that provision contains the definition of threat for the purposes of Division 270 of the Code. Item 17 corrects the cross-reference.

Item 18

30 Paragraph 269L(3)(a) of the Customs Act 1901 contains an incorrect cross-reference as it refers to Customs tariff classifications notified by the CEO in the Gazette under section 296K of the Act. However, there is no such section. The correct provision to refer to is section 269K of the Act, as the requirement for the CEO to notify in the Gazette is contained in that section. Item 18 corrects the cross-reference.

Item 19

31 Subparagraph 269ZHD(5)(e)(ii) of the Customs Act 1901 contains an incorrect cross-reference as it refers to a longer period that the Minister may allow under section 296ZHI of the Act for placing a statement of essential facts on the public record. However, there is no such section. The correct provision to refer to is section 269ZHI of the Act, as the Minister is empowered under that section to extend that period. Item 19 corrects the cross-reference.

Item 20

32 Paragraph 58KA(1)(b) of the Defence Act 1903 contains an error as it refers to the "President" of the Defence Force Remuneration Tribunal incorrectly as the "Chairman". That title is incorrect as amendments were made by the Industrial Relations and other Legislation Amendment Act 1993 to replace the title of "Chairman" with "President". The reference in paragraph 58KA(1)(b) of the Defence Act 1903 was missed. Item 20 corrects the reference to that title.

Item 21

33 The definition of conviction in subsection 4(1) of the Defence Force Discipline Appeals Act 1955 is not located in its appropriate alphabetical position. Item 21 corrects that error.

Item 22

34 Paragraph 131AA(3)(b) of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 contains a grammatical error as it refers to a Minister not being required to provide "a copy of so much of a document as in the public domain" rather than "...as is in...". Item 22 corrects that grammatical error.

Item 23

35 Subsection 282(3) of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 refers to "making or implementing threat abatement plan" rather than "making or implementing a threat abatement plan". Item 23 corrects that grammatical error.

Item 24

36 Table item 10C of subsection 391(3) of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 contains a grammatical error as it refers to "referred to section" rather than "referred to in section". Item 24 corrects that grammatical error.

Items 25 and 26

37 Items 25 and 26 and 28 to 33 are related. The Fair Work Act 2009 contains a definition of FWC m ember but the majority of references in the Act are to "FWC Member". Item 25 repeals that definition, item 26 substitutes an identical definition, but of the term FWC M ember, and items 28 to 33 change the references to "FWC member" to "FWC Member".

Item 27

38 Paragraph (a) of the definition of premises in section 12 of the Fair Work Act 2009 contains a punctuation error as a comma is missing between the words "aircraft" and "ship". Item 27 corrects that punctuation error.

Items 28 to 33

39 Items 25 and 26 and 28 to 33 are related. The Fair Work Act 2009 contains a definition of FWC m ember but the majority of references in the Act are to "FWC Member". Item 25 repeals that definition, item 26 substitutes an identical definition, but of the term FWC M ember, and items 28 to 33 change the references to "FWC member" to "FWC Member".

Items 34 and 35

40 Items 34 and 35 are related. The Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 contains a definition of FWC m ember in section 6 but the majority of references in the Act are to "FWC Member". Item 34 repeals that definition and item 35 substitutes an identical definition, but of the term FWC M ember.

Item 36

41 The heading to subclause 5(5) of Schedule 1 to the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 contains an error as it refers to a body incorrectly as the "FWA" (Fair Work Australia). That title is incorrect as section 575 of the Fair Work Act 2009 continued that body in existence as the "FWC" (Fair Work Commission). Item 36 corrects the reference to that title.

Item 37

42 Paragraph (a) of the note to subsection 20(2) of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia Act 1999 contains an incorrect cross-reference as it refers to "section 94 of the Family Law Act 1975". However, that provision is about the wrong topic. The note is intended to refer readers to provisions of other Acts that relate to appeals from the Federal Circuit Court of Australia. However, since the amendment of the Family Law Act 1975 by the Federal Magistrates (Consequential Amendments) Act 1999 that section has concerned appeals to the Family Court from courts other than the Federal Circuit Court. The correct provision to refer to is section 94AAA of the Family Law Act 1975, as it concerns appeals to the Family Court from the Federal Circuit Court. Item 37 corrects the cross-reference.

Item 38

43 Section 128 of the First Home Saver Accounts Act 2008 contains a typographical error as the italicisation of the Act name (Bankruptcy Act 1966) has mistakenly been extended to some surrounding words (116 of the). Item 38 corrects that typographical error.

Item 39

44 Paragraph 59L(2)(a) of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 contains a spelling error as it refers to "commiting" rather than "committing". Item 39 corrects that spelling error.

Item 40

45 Item 40 repeals the definition of nursing home patient in subsection 3(1) of the Health and Other Services (Compensation) Act 1995. The term "nursing home patient" is redundant as it is not used in that Act.

Item 41

46 Item 41 removes a duplication of the word "the" in paragraph 32(1)(b) of the Health and Other Services (Compensation) Act 1995 that resulted from an amendment made by item 31 of Schedule 1 to the Health Legislation Amendment Act (No. 1) 2003.

Item 42

47 Paragraph 42(1)(e) of the Health and Other Services (Compensation) Act 1995 contains a reference to subsection 59(1) of the National Health Act 1953. However, that subsection was repealed by item 39 of Schedule 3 to the Aged Care Amendment Act 2011. Item 42 removes the redundant reference.

Item 43

48 Subsection 16A(5) of the Health Insurance Act 1973 contains an incorrect cross-reference as it refers to "paragraph (4)(b)" of section 16A of that Act. However, that paragraph is about the wrong topic (requests being made in accordance with regulations). The correct provision to refer to is subparagraph 16A(4)(a)(ii) of that Act, as it deals with the right topic (requests made otherwise than in writing and confirmed in writing within a period). Item 43 corrects the cross-reference.

Item 44

49 The note to subsection 19CC(1) of the Health Insurance Act 1973 provides signposts to relevant definitions of professional service. However, that note has become out-of-date as the definition of professional service in section 19AA is not relied on for the purposes of section 19AB as suggested by the note. The note is also redundant as the provisions themselves make clear the meaning of professional service. Item 44 repeals the redundant note.

Item 45

50 Item 45 omits a duplication of the phrase "(including each holder of an extension of such a certificate)" in subsection 14(2) of the Industrial Chemicals (Notification and Assessment) Act 1989 that resulted from an amendment made by item 36 of Schedule 1 to the Industrial Chemicals (Notification and Assessment) Amendment Act 1997. The amendment specified the phrase should be inserted after "chemical" in subsection 14(2) but did not specify which of the two occurrences in the subsection it should be inserted after. It was inserted after both. However, the insertion after the first occurrence resulted in nonsensical text ("Not less than 28 days before including the chemical (including each holder of an extension of such a certificate) in the Inventory...". Item 45 removes the redundant reference.

Items 46 and 47

51 Items 46 and 47 are related. The form of certificate of judgment referred to in section 65 of the Judiciary Act 1903 and set out in the Schedule to the Act provides for years from 1900 to 1999 to be entered as the years in which judgments were obtained and in which certificates were given. Items 46 and 47 update the form of certificate of judgment to refer to years from 2000 to 2099. Item 46 also inserts a space to insert the relevant month.

Item 48

52 Section 7 of the Marriage Act 1961 contains a reference to subsection 4(2) of the Marriage Act 1961. However, section 4 was repealed by Schedule 1 to the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1988. Item 48 removes the redundant reference.

Items 49 and 50

53 Items 49 and 50 are related. Subsection 140XG(1) and paragraphs 140XH(a) and (b) of the Migration Act 1958 contain incorrect cross-references as they refer to paragraphs 140XC(d) and 140XC(e) of the Act respectively. However, paragraphs 140XC(d) and 140XC(e) were renumbered as "140XC(1)(d)" and "140XC(1)(e)" by item 16 of Schedule 6 to the Migration Amendment (Temporary Sponsored Visas) Act 2013. Items 49 and 50 correct the cross-references.

Item 51

54 The note to subsection 248(1) of the National Health Reform Act 2011 contains a grammatical error as it refers to "when such a law imposes a duty of the Funding Body or an officer of the Commonwealth" rather than "... duty on the Funding Body...". Item 51 corrects that grammatical error.

Item 52

55 Subsection 313(3) of the Navigation Act 2012 contains an incorrect cross-reference as it refers to "section 332" of that Act. However, that provision is about the wrong topic (physical elements of offences). The correct provision to refer to is section 334 of the Act, as it deals with the right topic (decisions of the Minister not to exempt a vessel or a class of vessel) and is also referred to in paragraph 313(1)(zg) of the Navigation Act 2012 for that same reason. Item 52 corrects the cross-reference.

Item 53

56 Paragraph 36(1)(c) of the Patents Act 1990 contains a punctuation error as it refers to "probabilitie s,," rather than "probabilitie s,". Item 53 corrects that punctuation error.

Item 54

57 Subsection 57(5) of the Patents Act 1990 is not located in its appropriate numerical position. Item 54 corrects that error.

Items 55 and 56

58 Items 55 and 56 are related. Section 36 of the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 contains errors as it refers to "goods" and "documents". However, section 36 actually concerns "negotiable instruments" and "investment instruments". The errors arose as a result of transcription errors when cloning the provision from section 35 of that Act. Items 55 and 56 omit the non-existent concepts and substitute the correct ones.

Item 57

59 The Schedule to the Public Order (Protection of Persons and Property) Act 1971 contains a citation error as it refers to sections 62, 63, 64, 65, 66 and 77 of "The Criminal Code" of Queensland. However, it is correct to refer to "the Criminal Code", due to subsection 2(2) of the Criminal Code Act 1899 (Qld), which states that the Code may be cited as "the Criminal Code". Item 57 fixes the citation.

Item 58

60 Item 76 of Schedule 1 to the Public Service Amendment Act 2013 amended section 23 of the Public Service Act 1999 to give a power to the Public Service Commissioner that was formerly given to the Public Service Minister. Doing so left the Public Service Minister with no functions or powers under section 23 of the Public Service Act 1999. However, the Public Service Amendment Act 2013 did not make a consequential amendment to subsection 78(3) of the Public Service Act 1999 to remove a reference to the Public Service Minister's powers or functions under section 23. Item 58 omits the redundant reference.

Item 59

61 Paragraph 7(5B)(a) of the Remuneration Tribunal Act 1973 contains a typographical error as it refers to "a Federal Court" rather than "a federal court". Other similar provisions of the Act (including subsection 20(4) which is intended to affect the meaning of paragraph 7(5B)(a)) refer to "a federal court". Item 59 corrects that typographical error.

Item 60

62 Paragraph (b) of the definition of protected information in subsection 79A(1) of the Reserve Bank Act 1959 contains a citation error as it refers to "related (within the meaning of the Corporations Law)". However, it is correct to instead refer to the Corporations Act 2001 due to the repeal of the Corporations Law by the Corporations (Repeals, Consequentials and Transitionals) Act 2001 and replacement of the relevant provisions of that Law with relevant provisions of the Corporations Act 2001. Item 60 fixes the citation.

Item 61

63 Paragraph 144B(2)(b) of the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 contains an error as it refers to a body incorrectly using the acronym "MRCA". The body being referred to is the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission. The correct acronym for that body under section 141 of the Act is "MRCC". Item 61 corrects the reference to that title.

Item 62

64 Step 4 of the method statement in Point 1068-A1 of the Social Security Act 1991 contains an incorrect cross-reference as it requires that a step in working out the rate of benefit is to "Add up the amounts obtained in Steps 1 to 4: the result is called the maximum payment rate". However, the amounts are obtained in the proceeding steps 1 to 3, not in step 4 itself and it is a grammatical error to capitalise the first letter of "Steps". So step 4 should clearly refer to "steps 1 to 3". Item 62 corrects the cross-reference and grammatical error.

Items 63 and 64

65 Items 63 and 64 are related. Item 63 repeals the redundant definition of employee in subsection 3(1) of the Student Assistance Act 1973. That definition is redundant as that Act contains no substantive provision that relies on that definition. Item 64 repeals subsection 3(3) of that Act, which purports to extend the class of people who are included within the definition of employee for the purposes of the Act. However, as the definition of employee is redundant, subsection 3(3) is also redundant.

Items 65 and 66

66 Items 65 and 66 are related. Item 65 repeals the redundant note 4 to section 352 of the Student Assistance Act 1973. Item 66 repeals the redundant note 4 to subsection 357(1) of that Act. Those notes are redundant as they refer to section 298 of that Act. However, section 298 of that Act was repealed by the Social Security Legislation Amendment (Youth Allowance Consequential and Related Measures) Act 1998.

Items 67 to 69

67 Items 67 to 69 are related. Subsections 13(4) to (7) of the Superannuation Act 2005 contain incorrect cross-references as they refer to declarations under paragraph 13(1)(b) of the Act. However, declarations are not made under that paragraph. Declarations used to be made under that paragraph but, following amendments of section 13, they are now made under subparagraph 13(1)(a)(ii). Items 67 to 69 correct the cross-references.

Item 70

68 Subsection 105(5A) of the Telecommunications Act 1997 contains a reference to Part 15 of the Act. However, that Part was repealed by item 52 of Schedule 1 to the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Amendment Act 2007. Item 70 omits the redundant reference.

Item 71

69 Paragraph 13B(2)(b) of the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986 contains an incorrect cross-reference as it refers to "section 13AD" of the Act. However, there is no such provision. The correct provision to refer to is section 13AC of the Act, as paragraph 13B(2)(b) refers to "the date that an application for the determination in respect of the reinstated pensioner was lodged" under a particular section and section 13AC concerns the lodgement of those applications. Item 71 corrects the cross-reference.

Schedule 2 - Amendment of amending Acts

70 The items in this Schedule relate to misdescribed or redundant amendments, or to errors or redundant text, contained in amending Acts.

Item 1

71 Item 3 of Schedule 3 to the Customs Amendment (Anti-dumping Improvements) Act (No. 3) 2012 purported to amend subsection 296T(1) of the Customs Act 1901 to repeal the definition of selected exporter. However, the amendment was misdescribed as there is no such subsection and the item should have amended subsection 269T(1) of the Customs Act 1901. Item 1 corrects the misdescription.

Items 2 and 3

72 Items 2 and 3 are related. Item 79 of Schedule 2 to the Education Services for Overseas Students Legislation Amendment (Tuition Protection Service and Other Measures) Act 2012 purported to amend Part 8 of the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 to insert a Division 1A before Division 1. However, the amendment was misdescribed as Part 8 contains no Divisions. Item 2 corrects this misdescription. Item 3 removes the redundant Division heading that item 79 purported to insert.

Item 4

73 Item 21 of Schedule 1 to the Family Assistance and Other Legislation Amendment (Schoolkids Bonus Budget Measures) Act 2012 purported to amend subsection 5H(8) of the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986 to add a paragraph (zzh) at the end. However, the amendment was misdescribed as the form of amendment used caused confusion about whether the paragraph should be placed before or after a note at the end of that subsection. Item 4 corrects the misdescription.

Item 5

74 Item 21 of Schedule 6 to the Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Raising the Bar) Act 2012 purported to amend "subsection 136A" of the Designs Act 2003 to insert the words "(if any)" after the words "of the Designs Office". However, the amendment was misdescribed as both subsections 136A(1) and (2) contain the words "of the Designs Office" and the item did not describe which subsection to amend. The amendment was actually intended to amend both subsections. Item 5 corrects the misdescription.

Item 6

75 Item 6 corrects some typographical errors in the headings to the commencement table in subsection 2(1) of the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Amendment (Compliance Measures No. 2) Act 2013. The column 1 headings were missing and the column 2 headings were in the wrong location. Item 7

76 Item 8 of Schedule 1 to the Statute Law Revision Act 2012 purported to fix a supposed error in paragraph 11(1)(a) of the Aged Care (Bond Security) Act 2006. However, before the commencement of that item, parallel quality control processes within the Attorney-General's Department identified that the supposed error appeared only in the consolidated version of the law, not in the law as enacted by Parliament. The incorrect text of the consolidation was corrected. This meant that the item was redundant, could not make its amendment as the text it purported to amend did not exist in the form it operated on and was therefore misdescribed. Item 7 repeals the misdescribed item.

Schedule 3 - Amendments relating to Ministers

77 This Schedule continues work substantially done by the Statute Law Revision Act 2011 and the Statute Law Revision Act 2012.

78 It contains amendments updating references in Acts to Ministers to reflect current drafting practice.

79 Current drafting practice is to ensure that:

(a)

wherever possible, if the intention is to refer to the Minister who administers a provision, or the Department administered by that Minister, provisions refer simply to "the Minister", or to "the Department", and rely on section 19A of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901; and

(b)

various Commonwealth Ministers (other than the Prime Minister, the Attorney-General and the Treasurer) are consistently mentioned by reference to the administration of identified legislation rather than by name; and

(c)

various Departments of State (other than the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, the Attorney-General's Department and the Treasury) are consistently mentioned by reference to the Minister administering identified legislation or a particular matter rather than by name; and

(d)

it is clear that Ministers, rather than Departments, administer Acts.

80 There are currently a number of references to specific Ministers in Commonwealth Acts (for example, the Minister for Finance). Whenever there is no longer a particular Minister or Department, or the title of a Minister or Department is changed under the Administrative Arrangements Order, the Governor-General needs to make an order under section 19B or 19BA of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 so that any now incorrect references to Ministers and Departments in Acts can be read correctly. This means that users of Acts have to read the Acts in conjunction with these orders.

81 Items 1 to 4 amend various Acts consistent with current drafting practice. In particular, item 1 remakes the definition of Veterans' Affairs Minister in the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 to specify that it means the Minister administering the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986, rather than the Minister administering section 1 of that Act. Current drafting practice is not to use the approach of referring to section 1 of particular Acts.

82 Items 5 and 6 make provision for transitional provisions to ensure that the amendments made by this Schedule do not result in any unintended consequences.

Schedule 4 - Terminology changes

83 The items in this Schedule contain minor changes to expressions to ensure the provisions accord with current Commonwealth drafting practice.

Part 1 - Chairman and Deputy Chairman

84 Section 12 of the Archives Act 1983 requires the Minister to appoint a Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the National Archives of Australia Advisory Council. Current Commonwealth drafting practice is to refer to the titles of Chair and Deputy Chair. Items 1 to 6 of Part 1 amend the Act to refer to the office of Chair and Deputy Chair of the Council. Item 7 changes references in various provisions of that Act from "Chairman" to "Chair". Item 8 is a saving provision which provides that the current Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Council continue to hold office as the Chair and Deputy Chair of the Council. Section 18B of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 will enable the Chair and Deputy Chair to be referred to by a range of chair titles.

85 Subparagraph 40(1)(e)(ii) of the Bankruptcy Act 1966 refers to the chairman of a meeting. Current Commonwealth drafting practice is to refer to the chair of a meeting. That practice is followed in other provisions of the Act, including subparagraph 40(1)(f)(ii). Item 9 amends subparagraph 40(1)(e)(ii) to refer to the chair of a meeting.

Part 2 - Electronic mail and e-mail

86 The items in Part 2 change references to "electronic mail" or "e-mail" to "email" to accord with current Commonwealth drafting practice. Section 15AC of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 (changes to style not to affect meaning) ensures that the change does not affect the meaning of the provisions.

Part 3 - Facsimile

87 The items in Part 3 change various usages of "facsimile" to "fax" to accord with current Commonwealth drafting practice. Section 15AC of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 (changes to style not to affect meaning) ensures that the change does not affect the meaning of the provisions. Item 87 is a transitional provision which ensures that various certificates continue to have effect after commencement even if they continue to refer to "facsimile" rather than "fax".

Part 4 - Trademark

88 The items in Part 4 change the expression "trademark" to "trade mark" to accord with current Commonwealth drafting practice. This change also reflects the use of "trade marks" in paragraph 51(xviii) of the Constitution.

Schedule 5 - Legislative Assemblies

89 The items in this Schedule amend various provisions of Commonwealth Acts that incorrectly refer to "the Legislative Assembly for the Northern Territory". As subsection 13(1) of the Northern Territory (Self-Government) Act 1978 establishes a Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory, these items amend those references so that they use "of" rather than "for".

Schedule 6 - Acting Appointments

Part 1 - Automatic Acting

90 The items in Part 1 amend various provisions of Commonwealth Acts providing for a person to automatically act in a position. The amendments remove two sorts of provisions. Firstly, provisions providing that anything done by or in relation to a person purporting to so act is not invalid merely because the occasion to act had not arisen or had ceased. Secondly, provisions providing that while the person is acting in the position the person has and may exercise all the powers and must perform all the functions and duties of the holder of the office and that Acts apply in relation to the person as if the person were the holder of the office. Those provisions are redundant as section 33A of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 now deals with these matters. Notes have been included to refer to that section.

Part 2 - Other Appointments

91 The items in Part 2 amend section 256 of the National Health Reform Act 2011 to remove a subsection providing that anything done by or in relation to a person purporting to act under an appointment is not invalid merely because of various matters. That provision is redundant as section 33AB of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 now deals with this. A note has been included under the relevant provision referring to the general acting appointment rules in sections 33AB and 33A of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.

Part 3 - Saving

92 Item 23 in Part 3 is a saving provision which provides certainty that the amendments made by this Schedule do not affect the validity of an appointment that was made under an Act, before the commencement of that item, and that was in force immediately before that commencement.

Schedule 7 - Removal of redundant Chairman and Deputy Chairman provisions

93 The items in this Schedule remove various provisions of Commonwealth Acts providing for titles by which a Chairperson or Deputy Chairperson may be referred to. Those provisions are redundant as section 18B of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 provides for the different chair or deputy chair titles by which a Chairperson or Deputy Chairperson may be referred to.

Schedule 8 - Removal of redundant definitions

94 Most of the items in this Schedule remove definitions of acting SES employee, SES employee, APS employee, calendar month, calendar year, financial year and penalty unit from various Acts. Those definitions are redundant since section 2B of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 has definitions of those expressions that apply across all Acts.

95 Item 23 repeals the definition of faxed copy in section 4 of the International Criminal Court Act 2002 as it is defined as meaning "a copy of a document obtained or sent by fax", which does not add to its dictionary and ordinary meanings.

96 Item 24 repeals the definition of fax in section 4 of the International War Crimes Tribunals Act 1995 as it is defined as meaning "a copy of a document obtained or sent by facsimile transmission", which does not add to its dictionary and ordinary meanings.

97 Item 30 repeals the definition of facsimile copy in subsection 3(1) of the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act 1987 as that definition is not used elsewhere in that Act.

98 Item 31 repeals the definition of fax in subsection 3(1) of the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act 1987 as it is defined as meaning "facsimile transmission", which does not add to its dictionary and ordinary meanings.

99 Items 44 and 45 work together to remove a redundant definition of penalty unit from the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989. Item 44 removes a signpost from subsection 3(1) of the Act, that directs readers to the definition located in section 42YB.

Schedule 9 - Spent and obsolete provisions

Part 1 - Spent repeals and amendments

100 Some older principal Acts on the statute book contain provisions repealing and amending other Acts. Those provisions are now obsolete. To reduce the length of those principal Acts and to make the publishing and use of those principal Acts more efficient, most of the items in this Part repeal those obsolete provisions and make minor consequential amendments.

Item 1

101 Item 1 repeals items 1 to 10 of Schedule 2 to the Crimes at Sea Act 2000, which amended various Acts. As those amendments have taken effect, those provisions are obsolete.

Item 2

102 Item 2 repeals Part 3 of the Data-matching Program (Assistance and Tax) Act 1990, which amended the Privacy Act 1988. As those amendments have taken effect, that Part is obsolete.

Items 3 and 4

103 Items 3 and 4 repeal Part 3 of, and Schedules 1 and 2 to, the Health Insurance Commission (Reform and Separation of Functions) Act 1997. Most of those items amended various Acts and regulations. Those amendments have taken effect and therefore are obsolete. Items 31 to 34 and 73 to 80 of Schedule 1 and items 4 to 6 of Schedule 2 to the Health Insurance Commission (Reform and Separation of Functions) Act 1997 are of a transitional nature. Those provisions are now spent and therefore they are repealed by these items.

Items 5 and 6

104 Items 5 and 6 repeal Part 3 of, and Schedules 2 to 4 to, the Hearing Services and AGHS Reform Act 1997, which amended various Acts. As those amendments have taken effect, those provisions are obsolete.

Item 7

105 Item 7 repeals Part 10 of the Military Superannuation and Benefits Act 1991, which amended the Defence Force Retirement and Death Benefits Act 1973. As those amendments have taken effect, that Part is obsolete.

Part 2 - Spent provisions

106 This Part amends and repeals non-amending provisions that have been sunsetted or otherwise ceased to have effect.

Items 8 to 17

107 Items 8 to 17 are related. Sections 72.20 and 72.21 of the Criminal Code commenced in 2007. Section 72.20 is spent as under subsection 72.20(3) a Minister could only issue an authorisation regarding plastic explosives on the condition that they be destroyed or made permanently ineffective within three years of the commencement of section 72.20. Therefore, it is now impossible for a Minister to issue an authorisation under section 72.20. Section 72.21 is also spent as subsection 72.21(5) provided that the section ceased to have effect at the end of 6 months after commencement. So sections 72.20 and 72.21 and cross-references to them are redundant and are repealed by these related items. Item 12 also remakes subsection 72.19(1) to omit a paragraph in order to remove the cross-references.

Item 18

108 Item 18 repeals subsection 9(2) of the Health and Other Services (Compensation) Act 1995. That relates only to nursing home benefit that was payable under provisions of the National Health Act 1953 repealed by item 39 of Schedule 3 to the Aged Care Amendment Act 2011.

Item 19

109 Section 89 of the Wheat Export Marketing Act 2008 provided for a review to occur by 1 January 2010 with a report of the review to be given to the Minister before 1 July 2010. The review has occurred and the report has been given to the Minister, so the section is now spent. Item 19 repeals the section.

Schedule 10 - Spent Acts

Part 1 - Rate correction Acts

110 The items in this Part repeal spent rate correction Acts.

Items 1 and 2

111 Items 1 and 2 repeal the National Residue Survey Customs Levy Rate Correction (Lamb Exports) Act 2004 and the National Residue Survey Excise Levy Rate Correction (Lamb Transactions) Act 2004. The National Residue Survey Customs Levy Rate Correction (Lamb Exports) Act 2004 corrected the rate of National Residue Survey Customs Levy on an export of lambs during the period starting on 1 July 2000 and ending immediately before 30 May 2003 if the value of the lambs was more than $75 per head. The National Residue Survey Excise Levy Rate Correction (Lamb Transactions) Act 2004 corrected the rate of National Residue Survey Excise Levy on a sale of lambs during the period starting on 1 July 2000 and ending immediately before 30 May 2003 if the sale price of the lambs was more than $75 per head. Those Acts have no further operation and are obsolete as the relevant period ended in 2003, all of the levy has been collected and there are no disputes.

Item 3

112 Item 3 is a saving provision. Item 3 makes it clear that, even though this Part repeals Acts, any acts or things that the Acts made, or took to be, lawful, valid or effectual still are, or are taken to be lawful, valid or effectual after the repeal of those Acts.

Part 2 - Validation Acts

113 The items in this Part repeal spent validation Acts.

Item 4

114 The Dried Vine Fruits (Rate of Primary Industry (Customs) Charge) Validation Act 2001 was an Act to validate certain regulations in the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Amendment Regulations 2000 (No. 1) that purported to fix retrospectively the rate of the primary industry (customs) charge on dried vine fruits. However, those Regulations were repealed by item 435 of the table in Schedule 1 to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (Spent and Redundant Instruments) Repeal Regulation 2013. Therefore, the Dried Vine Fruits (Rate of Primary Industry (Customs) Charge) Validation Act 2001 is spent. Item 4 repeals it.

Item 5

115 The Dried Vine Fruits (Rate of Primary Industry (Excise) Levy) Validation Act 2001 was an Act to validate certain regulations that purported to fix retrospectively the rate of the primary industry (excise) levy on dried vine fruits. The regulations were provisions of the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment Regulations 2000 (No. 3) and of the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Amendment Regulations 2000 (No. 2). However, those Regulations were repealed by items 495 and 596 of the table in Schedule 1 to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (Spent and Redundant Instruments) Repeal Regulation 2013. Therefore, the Dried Vine Fruits (Rate of Primary Industry (Excise) Levy) Validation Act 2001 is spent. Item 5 repeals it.

Part 3 - Other Acts

116 The items in this Part repeal other spent Acts.

Items 6 and 7

117 Items 6 and 7 are related. Item 7 repeals the Ballast Water Research and Development Funding Levy Collection Act 1998 (the collection Act). That Act provided for the collection of the levy imposed by the Ballast Water Research and Development Funding Levy Act 1998 (the levy Act). The collection Act has no further operation and is spent as section 14 of it provides that it ceased to have effect on a day fixed by Proclamation and Gazette 2000, No. GN 22 provided 30 June 2000 as the day that it ceased to have effect.

118 Item 6 repeals the levy Act. That Act imposed a levy on certain ships to provide funding for the Strategic Ballast Water Research and Development Program developed by the Australian Ballast Water Management Advisory Council. Once the collection Act ceased to have effect the levy Act also became obsolete. This is because the Act (under section 5) only imposed levy payable in respect of a ship in accordance with the collection Act.

Item 8

119 Items 8 and 17 are related. Items 8 and 17 repeal the Independent Schools (Loans Guarantee) Act 1969 and the Non-government Schools (Loans Guarantee) Act 1977. Those Acts provided a Commonwealth guarantee for loans for approved capital expenditure for independent schools in the States and Territories. Those Acts are no longer used and are obsolete. The Australian Education Act 2013 covers, amongst other things, capital expenditure for non-government schools in the States and Territories.

Items 9 to 11

120 Items 9 to 11 are related. They repeal the Judicial Appointment (Fiji) Act 1971, the Judicial Appointment (Western Samoa) Act 1980 and the Judiciary (Diplomatic Representation) Act 1977. They were enacted to allow the appointment of particular judges to various other positions. As the judges have all since died, and the Acts have no broader application, they are now spent. Items 9 to 11 repeal the Acts.

Item 12

121 Item 12 repeals the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games (Indicia and Images) Protection Act 2005. That Act provided for the regulation of the use for commercial purposes of indicia and images associated with the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games. That Act has no further operation and is spent as section 47 of the Act provides that it ceased to have effect on 30 June 2006.

Items 13 to 16

122 Items 13 to 16 are related. Following the Port Arthur shootings in April 1996 the Australasian Police Ministers Council agreed to nationwide gun control measures. A significant element of these measures was an amnesty and compensation scheme for owners of semiautomatic firearms. It was agreed that people who surrendered firearms during the amnesty period would be compensated and the Commonwealth would pay the cost of the compensation scheme. The National Firearms Program Implementation Act 1996 contains the original appropriation allowing the Commonwealth to make payments to the States and Territories for implementing the amnesty. The National Firearms Program Implementation Act 1997 extended compensation to certain automatic weapons not covered by the May 1996 Police Ministers Agreement and the National Firearms Program Implementation Act 1998 related specifically to Norfolk Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island.

123 All payments to the States and Territories have been finalised and no further payments will be made under these Acts.

124 The National Handgun Buyback Act 2003 appropriates Commonwealth funds for the purpose of the national handgun buyback which commenced on 1 July 2003. The payments were to implement the Commonwealth's commitment to the implementation of the Council of Australian Governments' handgun reforms by removing from the community those hand guns that were not used in genuine sports shooting. Under the buyback, sporting shooters and dealers who surrendered prohibited handguns, parts and related accessories received compensation.

125 The appropriation was specifically to reimburse the States and Territories for payments made by them to compensate persons for their surrender of handguns, handgun parts, and accessories, and other payments made in connection with the handgun buyback or with the Council of Australian Governments handgun reforms.

126 The buyback period concluded on different dates for the States and Territories, with the final period concluding on 30 June 2004 for Western Australia. All payments under the Act have been made to the States and Territories and no further payments will be made.

127 Therefore the Acts are spent and items 13 to 16 repeal them.

Item 17

128 Items 8 and 17 repeal the Independent Schools (Loans Guarantee) Act 1969 and the Non-government Schools (Loans Guarantee) Act 1977. Those Acts provided a Commonwealth guarantee for loans for approved capital expenditure for independent schools in the States and Territories. Those Acts have no further operation and are obsolete. The Australian Education Act 2013 covers, amongst other things, capital expenditure for non-government schools in the States and Territories.

Item 18

129 Item 18 repeals the Repatriation Institutions (Transfer) Act 1992. That Act related to the transfer of repatriation institutions and to the staff of transferred institutions. That Act has no further operation and is obsolete as the Commonwealth has not had any residual liabilities to the States under that Act since 2009.