Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

[Index] [Search] [Download] [Related Items] [Help]

DIESEL AND ALTERNATIVE FUELS GRANTS SCHEME AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2000 (NO. 2) 2000 NO. 318

STATUTORY RULES 2000 No. 318

Issued by the Authority of the Assistant Treasurer

Diesel and Alternative Fuels Grants Scheme Act 1999

Diesel and Alternative Fuels Grants Scheme Amendment Regulations 2000 (No. 2)

Section 63 of the Diesel and Alternative Fuels Grants Scheme Act 1999 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters required to give effect to the Act.

The Act introduces a grant for certain road transport in order to provide a reduction in the cost of diesel fuel for the transport fleet in rural and regional Australia. The grant will be available from 1 July 2000 until 30 June 2002 for the use of diesel fuel and alternative fuels, where the fuel is used in carrying on an enterprise. The grant will be available for these fuels for all on road use in vehicles weighing 20 tonnes or more and, with certain restrictions, for vehicles weighing 4.5 tonnes to 20 tonnes used for transporting goods or passengers.

The provisions of the Act apply to the Diesel and Alternative Fuels Grant Scheme. The Act provides a standard administrative framework in line with other grants and benefits administered by the Commissioner of Taxation.

Further authority for the Regulations is contained in the following provisions of the Act:

*       Section 5 provides that 'emergency vehicle' means a vehicle that is specified in the Regulations to be an emergency vehicle, or that is in a class of vehicles that are specified in the Regulations to be emergency vehicles; and

*       Paragraph 11 (1)(b) of the Act provides for the establishment of the grant rates applicable to diesel and alternative fuels.

The purpose of the Regulations is to define emergency vehicles and correct an error in the current Regulations where the grant rate for compressed natural gas is expressed in litres rather than cubic metres.

The Regulations:

*       define emergency vehicles to be certain vehicles operated by police, ambulance, firefighting services and emergency response or search and rescue vehicles that are designed and permanently fitted out for the purpose of emergency response or search and rescue and that have external markings that identify the vehicle to be of that kind. Emergency vehicles will also include other emergency vehicles operated by the Commonwealth, State or Territory or a Commonwealth, State or Territory authority (Regulations 3 and 3 B); and

*       correct an error in the current Regulation so that the amount payable for compressed natural gas is expressed in cubic metres rather than litres (Subregulation 7(1A))

Regulations 3 and 3B are remade provisions of Regulations 3 and 3B of the Diesel and Alternative Fuels Grants Scheme Amendment Regulations 2000 (No. 1) which were to have commenced on 28 June 2000. The regulations have been remade because of timing issues related to the passage of enabling legislation.

The Regulations commenced on 28 June 2000. Because the purpose of the Regulations is to extend the circumstances in which grants and benefits may be paid by the Commonwealth, it is possible to re-make the provisions with retrospective effect. The proposed Regulations will thus not be in breech of S48 (2) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 which provides that:

'A regulation, or a provision of regulations, has no effect if, apart from this subsection, it would take effect before the date of notification and as a result:

(a) the rights of a person (other than the Commonwealth or an authority of the Commonwealth) as at the date of notification would be affected so as to disadvantage that person'.