EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

 

Select Legislative Instrument 2008 No. 88

 

Issued by the Authority of the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts

 

National Film and Sound Archive Act 2008

 

National Film and Sound Archive Regulations 2008

 

 

The National Film and Sound Archive Act 2008 (the Act) establishes the NFSA as a body corporate. The Act received Royal Assent on 20 March 2008. Currently the NFSA function is part of the Australian Film Commission. The NFSA will be the Australian Government’s primary agency for collecting, documenting, preserving and providing access to Australia’s screen and sound heritage.

 

Section 43 of the Act provides that the Governor‑General may make regulations prescribing matters required or permitted by that Act to be prescribed, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to that Act.

 

Section 39 of the Act provides that regulations may prescribe limits on the total amounts of money that may be committed by the NFSA in performing its functions. Such a prescription allows for appropriate controls to be set on overall commitments to particular broad categories of funding.

 

The purpose of the proposed Regulations is to set $1 million as the prescribed limit above which the NFSA will require the approval of the Minister to:

·        acquire any property, right or privilege exceeding in amount or value the prescribed amount;

·        dispose of any property, right or privilege exceeding in amount or value the prescribed amount; and

·        to enter into a contract for the construction of a building or to pay an amount exceeding the prescribed limit.

 

Details of the Regulations appear in the Attachment.

 

The Act does not specify any conditions that need to be satisfied before the power to make the proposed Regulations may be exercised.

 

The Regulations are a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.

 

The Regulations will commence on the commencement of subsection 5(1) of the Screen Australia Act (SA Act).

 

Section 2 of the SA Act provides for sections 3 to 45 of that Act to commence on a day to be fixed by Proclamation. It has been proposed that a proclamation be made setting the commencement of those provisions of the SA Act as 1 July 2008. Section 4 of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 allows the Regulations to be made (but not to commence) before sections 3 to 45 of the Act come into operation.

In the Explanatory Statement the following abbreviations are used:

 

Act National Film and Sound Archive Act 2008

 

NFSA National Film and Sound Archive

 

SA Screen Australia

 

ATTACHMENT

 

DETAILS OF THE NATIONAL FILM AND SOUND ARCHIVE REGULATIONS 2008

 

Part 1 – Introductory

 

Regulation 1 – Name of Regulations

 

Regulation 1 provides that the name of the Regulations is the National Film and Sound Archive Regulations 2008.

 

Regulation 2 – Commencement

 

Regulation 2 provides that the Regulations commence on the commencement of subsection 5(1) of the Screen Australia Act 2008.

 

Regulation 3 – Definition

 

Regulation 3 provides that in the Regulations ‘Act’ means the National Film and Sound Archive Act 2008.

 

Regulation 4 – Restrictions on financial transactions

 

Regulation 4 sets the prescribed amount for paragraphs 39(1)(a) to (c) of the Act as $1 million.

 

The prescribed limit will not apply to the investment of money under section 18 of the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997.

 

The proposed amount of $1 million reflects the current prescribed amount set for similar agencies, such as the Australian Film, Television and Radio School and the Australian Film Commission.

 

Consultation

 

A draft of the National Film and Sound Archive Bill 2008 was released for public comment prior to introduction into the Parliament. Consultation was unnecessary for this instrument as it is of a minor nature and is in relation to the internal processes of NFSA only.