Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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NUCLEAR NON-PROLIFERATION (SAFEGUARDS) AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2018 (F2018L01599)

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Select Legislative Instrument No. 62, 2018

Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Foreign Affairs

Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Act 1987

Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Amendment Regulations 2018

Section 74 of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Act 1987 (the Act) provides, in part, that the Governor-General may make regulations, not inconsistent with the Act, prescribing matters required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Act. 

Section 3 of the Nuclear Safeguards (Producers of Uranium Ore Concentrates) Charge Act 1993 imposes a charge on producers of uranium ore concentrates (the charge) under certain circumstances. Section 69A of the Act specifies that the charge is payable on 1 December each year and that the amount of the charge payable by a producer is $500,000 or an amount prescribed by the regulations, whichever is the lesser. The amount of the charge, expressed in cents per kilogram of uranium in the uranium ore concentrate produced, is set in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Regulations 1987 (the Principal Regulations).

The Regulations amend the Principal Regulations the amount of charge payable by a producer of uranium ore concentrates as the lesser of $500,000 or 13.5502 cents per kilogram of uranium in the uranium ore concentrates produced in the previous financial year. Details of the Regulations are attached. The rate is arrived at by apportioning Australian Safeguards and Non-Proliferation Office general expenses to work categories related to regulation of uranium mining and export and will apply to the 2017-18 financial year.

The then Office of Regulation Review advised on 18 January 2006 that as the direct effect on business is minor in nature a Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) is not mandatory, therefore an exception applies. The Office of Regulation Review also advised that subsequent amendments to the charge per kilogram to uranium producers will not require a RIS. The three uranium producers have been consulted on change to the uranium producers charge rate in 2018 and were provided with an opportunity to comment.

This statement of compatibility is prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011. This Legislative Instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms described in the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011. Accordingly, this Legislative Instrument is compatible with human rights.

The Regulation commenced on the day after registration and is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.

ATTACHMENT

Details of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Amendment Regulations 2018

Section 1- Name of the Regulations

This instrument is the Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Amendment Regulations 2018.

Section 2 -  Commencement

             (1)  Each provision of this instrument specified in column 1 of the table 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.

Note:          This table relates only to the provisions of this instrument as originally made. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this instrument.

             (2)  Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this instrument. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this instrument.

Section 3 -  Authority

           Â        This instrument is made under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Act 1987.

Section 4 - Schedules

  Â                 Each instrument that is specified in a Schedule to this instrument is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this instrument has effect according to its terms.

Schedule 1--Amendments

Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Regulations 1987

1  Regulation 6

Omit "For paragraph 69A (2) (b) of the Act", substitute "For the purposes of paragraph 69A(2)(b) of the Act".

2  Paragraph 6(a)

Omit "13.1813", substitute "13.5502".

3  Regulation 7

Repeal the regulation, substitute:

7  Application of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Amendment Regulations 2018

                   The amendment of paragraph 6(a) made by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Amendment Regulations 2018 applies in relation to charge payable in the 2018-19 financial year and later financial years.