Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements
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PRIMARY INDUSTRIES (EXCISE) LEVIES AMENDMENT (DEER VELVET) REGULATION 2016 (F2016L00742)
Explanatory Statement
Issued by Authority of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources
Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999
Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment (Deer Velvet) Regulation 2016
Legislative Authority
Section 8 of the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999 (the Levies Act) provides that
the Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters required or permitted by that
Act to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to that Act. The Levies Act provides for levies to be imposed on the products of primary industries, including on deer velvet (commonly known as deer antler).
Purpose
The purpose of the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment (Deer Velvet) Regulation 2016 (the Regulation) is to cease the collection of the statutory levy on deer velvet production by:
* decreasing the rate of levy on deer velvet from one per cent of the sale price to zero per cent of the sale price; and
* decreasing the rate of levy on deer velvet used in producing other goods from one per cent of the declared value to zero per cent of the declared value.
Background
At the request of the deer industry, levies and charges are introduced, administered and collected by the Australian Government. Research and development levies collected from the deer industry are matched by the government and disbursed by the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (the department) to the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC) to fund research and development related to deer farming.
The industry representative organisation for the deer industry, the Deer Industry Association of Australia Limited (DIAA), lodged a submission on 24 April 2015 with the then Minister for Agriculture requesting to cease the collection of the deer velvet levy and export charge, and the live deer export charge.
Impact and Effect
The levy collected from deer velvet production has decreased significantly in recent years and a large proportion was used to cover collection administration costs.
Setting the deer velvet levy rate to zero ceases the collection of the levy on deer velvet for domestic sale. The reduction of the levy to zero would benefit industry by reducing the administrative and financial burden imposed by the regulations.
Rather than removing the levy in its entirety, setting the levy rate to zero provides the industry with the flexibility to consider activating the levy again under current arrangements (for example, who pays the levy and how the levy is collected) if it wished to in the future.
Consultation
The DIAA has consulted with deer velvet levy payers on the proposed amendments via a ballot among active industry participants and published advertisements in three major rural newspapers and the deer industry journal. The department has consulted with the Treasury, the Department of Finance and RIRDC on the proposal. The Office of Best Practice Regulation was also consulted in the preparation of the Regulation (ID 20057).
Details/ Operation
Details of the Regulation are set out in the Attachment A.
Other
The Regulation is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared under section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011. A full statement of compatibility is set out in Attachment B.
The Regulation is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2003.
Attachment A
Details of the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment (Deer Velvet) Regulation 2016
Section 1 - Name
This section provides that the name of the name of the Regulation is the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment (Deer Velvet) Regulation 2016.
Section 2 - Commencement
This section provides for the Regulation to commence on 1 July 2016.
Section 3 - Authority
This section provides that the Regulation is made under the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999.
Section 4 - Schedules
This section provides that the Regulation 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
Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Regulations 1999
Item 1 amends an incorrect cross-reference to paragraph 4(1)(a) of Schedule 8 to the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999.
Item 2 reduces the rate of levy on sale of deer velvet from 1% of the percentage of its sale value to 0%.
Item 3 reduces the rate of levy on deer velvet used in producing other goods from 1% of its declared value to 0%.
Attachment B
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment (Deer Velvet) Regulation 2016
This Legislative Instrument 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 Legislative Instrument
The purpose of the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment (Deer Velvet) Regulation 2016 is to cease the collection of the statutory levy on deer velvet production by reducing the rate of levy to zero. For deer velvet for sale and deer velvet used to produce other goods, the levy will be reduced from 1% of the declared or sale value to 0% of the value.
Human rights implications
This Legislative Instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.
Conclusion
This Legislative Instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.
The Hon. Barnaby Joyce MP
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources