Clean Energy (Consequential Amendments) Act 2011 (132 of 2011)

Schedule 2   Taxation amendments

Part 2   Amendments commencing at the same time as section 3 of the Clean Energy Act 2011 commences

Income Tax Assessment Act 1997

27   At the end of Division 385

Add:

Subdivision 385-J - Refundable tax offset for conservation tillage

385-175 Refundable tax offset for conservation tillage

(1) You are entitled to a*tax offset under this section (the conservation tillage offset ) for an income year in respect of a*depreciating asset if:

(a) the asset is an*eligible no-till seeder; and

(b) the income year is:

(i) the 2012-13 income year; or

(ii) the 2013-14 income year; or

(iii) the 2014-15 income year; and

(c) at a particular time during the income year, you:

(i) start to use the asset to carry on a*primary production business (without previously having the asset*installed ready for use); or

(ii) have the asset installed ready for use to carry on a primary production business; and

(d) at the time mentioned in paragraph (c), you*hold the asset; and

(e) the time mentioned in paragraph (c) is not:

(i) before 1 July 2012; or

(ii) after 30 June 2015; and

(f) the*Agriculture Secretary has issued a Research Participation Certificate to you under section 385-190 for the income year; and

(g) you claim the offset in your*income tax return for the income year.

Note: The conservation tillage offset is a refundable tax offset: see section 67-23.

(2) You are not entitled to the conservation tillage offset if the*depreciating asset has, at any time before the time mentioned in paragraph (1)(c), been used, or*installed ready for use, by:

(a) you; or

(b) any other entity.

385-180 Amount of the conservation tillage offset

The amount of the conservation tillage offset is 15% of the*cost of the*depreciating asset.

385-185 Application for Research Participation Certificate

Application

(1) An entity may apply to the*Agriculture Secretary for the issue of a Research Participation Certificate to the entity for an income year under section 385-190.

Form of application

(2) The application must:

(a) be in writing; and

(b) be in a form approved, in writing, by the*Agriculture Secretary.

385-190 Issue of Research Participation Certificate

(1) The*Agriculture Secretary must issue a written certificate to an entity for an income year if:

(a) the entity has made an application under section 385-185 in relation to the income year; and

(b) the Agriculture Secretary is satisfied that the entity has, at any time during the income year, completed a conservation tillage survey; and

(c) the time mentioned in paragraph (b) is not:

(i) before 1 July 2012; or

(ii) after 30 June 2015.

(2) A certificate under this section is to be known as a Research Participation Certificate .

(3) For the purposes of this section, a conservation tillage survey is a survey:

(a) conducted by the*Agriculture Secretary; and

(b) that relates to:

(i) farming practices; and

(ii) climate change.

(4) For the purposes of this section, an entity completes a conservation tillage survey if the entity:

(a) fills up and supplies, in accordance with the instructions set out in the relevant survey form, the information specified in the survey form; and

(b) gives the filled-up survey form to a person specified in the instructions.

385-195 Notice of refusal to issue Research Participation Certificate

If:

(a) an entity makes an application under section 385-185 for the issue of a Research Participation Certificate to the entity for an income year; and

(b) the*Agriculture Secretary decides not to issue a Research Participation Certificate under section 385-190 to the applicant for the income year;

the Agriculture Secretary must give the applicant written notice of the decision (including reasons for the decision).

385-200 Revocation of Research Participation Certificate

(1) The*Agriculture Secretary may revoke a Research Participation Certificate issued to an entity under section 385-190 if the Agriculture Secretary is satisfied that the issue of the certificate was obtained by fraud or serious misrepresentation.

(2) If the*Agriculture Secretary revokes a Research Participation Certificate under subsection (1), the Agriculture Secretary must give the entity to whom the certificate was issued written notice of the revocation (including reasons for the decision to revoke the certificate).

(3) If a certificate is revoked under subsection (1), it is taken, for the purposes of this Subdivision, never to have been issued.

Note: This means that if an assessment of an entity's income tax is issued on the basis that the entity is entitled to a conservation tillage offset and the Research Participation Certificate is then revoked, the assessment will be amended to take account of the fact that the entity was never entitled to conservation tillage offset: see section 385-220.

(4) Subsection (3) does not apply for the purposes of:

(a) the operation of this section or section 385-210; or

(b) a review by a court or the*AAT of the decision to revoke the Research Participation Certificate.

385-205 Notification relating to Research Participation Certificate

(1) The*Agriculture Secretary must:

(a) give the Commissioner written notice of the issue of a Research Participation Certificate to an entity; and

(b) do so within 30 days after issuing the certificate.

(2) The*Agriculture Secretary must:

(a) give the Commissioner written notice of the revocation of a Research Participation Certificate issued to an entity; and

(b) do so within 30 days after revoking the certificate.

(3) A notice under subsection (1) or (2) must specify:

(a) the income year to which the Research Participation Certificate relates; and

(b) the date of issue of the Research Participation Certificate; and

(c) the name of the entity; and

(d) if the entity has an*ABN - the ABN; and

(e) such other matters (if any) as the*Agriculture Secretary considers should be reported to the Commissioner.

(4) A notice under subsection (1) or (2) must be accompanied by a copy of the Research Participation Certificate concerned.

385-210 Notice of decision or determination

(1) This section applies to a notice of a decision given under section 385-195 (refusal to issue a Research Participation Certificate) or 385-200 (revocation of a Research Participation Certificate).

(2) The notice of the decision or determination is to include the statements set out in subsections (3) and (4).

(3) There must be a statement to the effect that, subject to theAdministrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975, an application may be made to the*AAT, by (or on behalf of) any entity whose interests are affected by the decision or determination, for review of the decision or determination.

(4) There must also be a statement to the effect that a request may be made under section 28 of theAdministrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975 by (or on behalf of) such an entity for a statement:

(a) setting out the findings on material questions of fact; and

(b) referring to the evidence or other material on which those findings were based; and

(c) giving the reasons for the decision or determination;

except where subsection 28(4) of that Act applies.

(5) If the*Agriculture Secretary fails to comply with subsection (3) or (4), that failure does not affect the validity of the decision or determination.

385-215 Review of decisions by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal

Applications may be made to the*AAT for review of:

(a) a decision made by the*Agriculture Secretary to refuse an application for a Research Participation Certificate under section 385-190; or

(b) a decision made by the Agriculture Secretary under section 385-200 to revoke a Research Participation Certificate.

385-220 Amendment of assessments

Section 170 of theIncome Tax Assessment Act 1936 does not prevent the amendment of an assessment for the purposes of giving effect to this Subdivision for an income year if:

(a) a Research Participation Certificate issued to an entity for an income year is revoked under section 385-200 after the time the entity lodged its*income tax return for the income year; and

(b) the amendment is made at any time during the period of 4 years starting immediately after the revocation of the Research Participation Certificate.

Note: Section 170 of that Act specifies the periods within which assessments may be amended.

385-225 Evidentiary certificate

(1) If requested to do so by the Commissioner, the*Agriculture Secretary may, by writing, certify that a specified asset is an*eligible no-till seeder.

(2) In any proceedings arising out of this Subdivision, a certificate under subsection (1) is prima facie evidence of the matter certified.

(3) A document purporting to be a certificate under subsection (1) must, unless the contrary is established, be taken to be such a certificate and to have been properly given.

385-230 Delegation by Agriculture Secretary

The*Agriculture Secretary may, by writing, delegate any or all of his or her functions and powers under this Subdivision to an SES employee, or acting SES employee, in the*Agriculture Department.

Note: The expressions SES employee and acting SES employee are defined in theActs Interpretation Act 1901.

385-235 Eligible no-till seeder

An eligible no-till seeder is a no-till seeder (comprising the combination of cart and tool) that is:

(a) a tine machine fitted with minimum tillage points designed to achieve minimum soil disturbance and less than full cut-out; or

(b) a disc opener with single, double or triple disc blades designed to achieve minimum soil disturbance and less than full cut-out; or

(c) a disc/tine hybrid machine fitted with:

(i) single, double or triple disc blades designed to achieve minimum soil disturbance and less than full cut-out; and

(ii) minimum tillage points designed to achieve minimum soil disturbance and less than full cut-out; or

(d) a disc/blade hybrid machine fitted with:

(i) single, double or triple disc blades designed to achieve minimum soil disturbance and less than full cut-out; and

(ii) blades designed to achieve minimum soil disturbance and less than full cut-out.

For the purposes of paragraph (a) and subparagraph (c)(ii), each of the following points are taken to be minimum tillage points designed to achieve minimum soil disturbance and less than full cut-out:

(e) narrow points;

(f) knife points;

(g) inverted "T" points.