Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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TELEVISION LICENCE FEES REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT) 1992 NO. 448

Statutory Rules 1992 No. 448

Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Transport and Communications

Television Licence Fees Act 1964

Television Licence Fees Regulations (Amendment)

Section 8 of the Television Licence Fees Act 1964 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations for the purposes of the Act. Subsection 5(2) of the Act provides that the regulations may make provision for rebates of fees payable by commercial television licensees.

There are four equalisation Approved Markets (AMs) in eastern Australia. The aggregation of licence areas to create the AMs occurred in AM-C southern NSW in December 1989, in AM-A Queensland in December 1990, and in AM-B northern NSW and AM-D Victoria in December 1991. Although not included in an AM, most Tasmanian viewers are scheduled to have access to an additional commercial television service through the aggregation of the two existing licence areas in the State in April 1994.

The Television Licence Fees Regulations (Statutory Rules 1990 No.3) (the Regulations), as amended by the Television Licence Fees Regulations (Amendment) (Statutory Rules 1991 No.79), provide for payment of rebates of licence fees to regional commercial television licensees in aggregated markets. The rebates are intended to assist licensees with the capital costs of service extension and other costs imposed on them by the television equalisation program.

The Regulations provide for two rebate schemes which apply so that eligible licensees receive a rebate of whichever is the greater amount to which they are entitled under either scheme. Rebate Scheme A (regulations 3 and 4) allows rebates of fees over four years of 100%, 75%, 50%. and 25% respectively. Rebate Scheme B (regulations 5 and 6) allows eligible licensees a 100% rebate over six years, capped to $1.6 million per annum, with the capacity for a credit where the rebate is less than $1.6 million to be carried forward beyond the initial six years.

The amending Regulations:

(a)       clarify the operation of the rebate credit system in Rebate Scheme B;

(b)       clarify the situation relating to consolidated licences (that is, two or more licences that have been amalgamated into one licence) and extend Rebate Scheme

B to Tasmania (with the applicable rebate cap set at half that applying in the mainland AMs to reflect the smaller population and consequent smaller revenues and licence fees payable by the Tasmanian licensees);

(c)       provide retrospective eligibility for former licensees in an AM whose licence area has not been extended but have subsequently consolidated the licence with another licence in the AM;

(d)       provide retrospective eligibility for a licensee for which the formal extension of licence area has been delayed;

(e)       provide for administrative review of decisions to withhold rebates; and

(f)       make necessary changes to take account of the repeal of the Broadcasting Act 1942 and the enactment of the Broadcasting services Act 1992 and the Broadcasting Services (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 1992.

Amendments (a), (b) and (f) above are technical amendments or correct drafting anomalies. Amendments (c) and (d) retrospectively correct oversights in the previous scheme which rendered certain licensees ineligible for rebates, which was contrary to the policy intention. These amendments confer benefits on the affected licensees and do not prejudice any person other than the Commonwealth. Amendment (e) follows advice from the Senate Standing Committee an Regulations and Ordinances that administrative review of Ministerial discretions in the Regulations would be appropriate.

Details of the amendments are attached.

The amending Regulations commenced upon gazettal.

ATTACHMENT

DETAILS OF AMENDMENTS

Regulation 1 - Amendment

Regulation 1 provides that the Television Licence Fees Regulations are amended by the amendments. The amendments commence an gazettal.

Regulation 2 - Regulation 2 (Interpretation)

Regulation 2 inserts new definitions in principal regulation 2 to provide interpretation of terms in the amendments, and to reflect the repeal of the Broadcasting Act 1942 and enactment of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 and the Broadcasting Services (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 1992.

Regulation 3 - Regulation 3 (Rebate Scheme A)

Regulation 3 substitutes new subregulations 3(1) and (2) and subparagraph 3(3)(a)(ii) to clarify application of Rebate Scheme A to consolidated licences.

Conditions of eligibility for rebates are not otherwise altered. These conditions (subregulation 3(1)) are that: the licensee has notified a claim to the relevant authority; the Minister has directed an extension of the licensee's licence area; the licence has not been in force for more than four years since the direction (that is, rebates are limited to four years); and the licensee is complying with the relevant implementation plan.

The enactment of the Broadcasting Services (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 1992 is also reflected.

Regulation 4 - Regulation 4 (Rebate Scheme A - certain consolidated licences)

Regulation 4 substitutes new subregulation 4(1) such that there is no distinction, for the purposes of eligibility for rebates under Rebate Scheme A, between consolidated licences where one of the former licence's licence area has been extended, and consolidated licences whose licence area is extended without any of the former licences, licence areas having been extended.

The enactment of the Broadcasting Services (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 1992 is also reflected.

Regulation 5 - Regulation 5 (Rebate Scheme B)

Regulation 5 substitutes new subregulations 5(1), (2), (3) and (4).

New subregulation 5(1) clarifies eligibility of licences for rebates under Rebate Scheme B consistent with the clarification of rebate eligibility in regulation 3 in relation to Rebate Scheme A. There is no other alteration to existing conditions of eligibility.

New subregulation 5(2) extends Rebate Scheme B to Tasmanian licensees so that these licensees are eligible if the licensee has notified a claim to the relevant authority; the Minister has extended the licensee's licence area; and the licensee is complying with the relevant implementation plan.

New subregulation 5(3) provides for the operation of rebates and credits in the first 6 years of Rebate Scheme B. In this period, an eligible licensee is to receive a rebate of 100% of fees if the fee is less than the standard maximum annual rebate ($1.6m for mainland licensees or $800,000 for Tasmanian licensees); the standard maximum annual rebate if the fees are greater than the standard maximum annual rebate; or if the fee is greater than the standard maximum annual rebate, the standard maximum annual rebate plus any unused credits or the amount of the fee, whichever is the lesser.

New subregulation 5(4) provides that no rebates are payable after the sixth year of rebates unless there are unused credits, in which case the applicable rebate is the lesser amount equal to the fee or the credit.

Subregulations 5.2, 5.3 and 5.4 are technical amendments to subregulation 5(5) to maintain consistent language and to reflect the enactment of the Broadcasting Services (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 1992.

Regulation 6 - Regulation 6 (Rebate Scheme B - certain consolidated licences)

Regulation 6 substitutes new subregulations 6(1) to (4) to further clarify application of Rebate Scheme B in relation to consolidated licences.

New subregulation 6(1) sets the same conditions of eligibility for rebates for consolidated licences as apply to other licensees.

New subregulation 6(2) provides that the period of eligibility for rebates for consolidated licensees is calculated with reference to the period former licences constituting the consolidated licence had been eligible for rebates under subregulation 6(1). This limits the period of eligibility for consolidated licences to six years (plus any applicable carryover of credits) from the date of the first rebate paid to a former licence.

New subregulations 6(3) and (4) mirror new subregulations 5(3) and (4).

Regulation 7 - New regulations 7, 8, 9 and 10

Regulation 7 inserts new regulations 7, 8, 9 and 10.

New regulation 7 provides a clarified mechanism for calculation, and application of an unused credit amount under Rebate Scheme B, without altering existing entitlements.

New regulation 8 provides retrospective eligibility for rebates under both Rebate Scheme A and Rebate Scheme B for the holder of a consolidated licence where one of the former licences, now part of the consolidated licence, has not been required to extend its licence area.

New regulation 9 provides retrospective eligibility for a rebate of fees due on 1 January 1992 to licensees who had not had their licence areas extended at that time but the licence areas were extended before 30 June 1992.

New Regulation 10 provides for administrative review, under the Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975, of a decision by the Minister to withhold payment of a rebate.

New subregulation 10(1) provides the criteria in regard to which the Minister may withhold a rebate.

New subregulation 10(2) provides for an application to be made to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal for review of a decision by the Minister under subregulation 10(1).

New subregulation 10(3) provides for the Minister to provide statements to licensees, affected by a direction under new subregulation 10(1), that application may be made to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal for review of the direction, and that a statement of reasons may be requested under section 28 of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975.

New subregulation 10(4) provides that the validity of a direction under new subregulation 10(1) is not affected by a failure to comply with new subregulation 10(3).

New subregulation 10(5) provides that the Minister is not required to consider the application of subregulation 10(1) in relation to a payment of rebate.