South Australian Current Acts

[Index] [Table] [Search] [Search this Act] [Notes] [Noteup] [Previous] [Download] [Help]

CITY OF ADELAIDE ACT 1998 - SCHEDULE 1

Schedule 1—Special provisions for elections and polls

Part 1—Preliminary

1—Interaction with Local Government (Elections) Act 1999

        (1)         In this Schedule—

            (a)         Part 2 operates, in relation to the Council and the City of Adelaide in substitution for the provisions of Part 4 of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 ; and

            (b)         Part 3 operates, in relation to the Council and the City of Adelaide, in substitution for the provisions of Part 5 of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 ; and

            (c)         clause 18 operates, in relation to the Council and the City of Adelaide, in substitution for the provisions of section 39 of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 ;

            (d)         clause 19 operates, in relation to the Council and the City of Adelaide, in substitution for the provisions of section 47 of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 ;

            (e)         Part 8 operates, in relation to the Council and the City of Adelaide, in substitution for the provisions of Part 14 of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 .

        (2)         Section 13A(2)(a) of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 does not apply in relation to the Council.

Part 2—Enrolment

2—Qualifications for enrolment

        (1)         Subject to this Schedule 1

            (a)         a natural person of or above the age of majority is entitled to be enrolled on the voters roll for an area or ward if that person—

                  (i)         is enrolled as an elector for the House of Assembly in respect of a place of residence within the area or ward; or

                  (ii)         has lodged the prescribed application with the chief executive officer of the Council, is resident at a place of residence within the area or ward and has been so resident for a continuous period of at least 1 month immediately preceding the date of the application; or

                  (iii)         is a ratepayer in respect of rateable property within the area or ward and is the sole owner of that rateable property; or

                  (iv)         is a ratepayer in respect of rateable property within the area or ward, is the sole occupier of that rateable property, and is not a resident in respect of that rateable property; and

            (b)         a body corporate is entitled to be enrolled on the voters roll for an area or ward if it is a ratepayer in respect of rateable property within the area or ward and is the sole owner or sole occupier of the rateable property; and

            (c)         a group of persons (consisting of natural persons, bodies corporate or partly of natural persons and partly of bodies corporate) is entitled to be enrolled as a group on the voters roll for an area or ward if—

                  (i)         the members of the group are all ratepayers in respect of rateable property within the area or ward; and

                  (ii)         the members of the group are joint owners, owners in common or joint occupiers of the rateable property; and

                  (iii)         at least 1 member of the group (being a natural person of or above the age of majority or a body corporate) is not enrolled on the relevant voters roll under paragraph (a) or (b), and no member of the group is enrolled on the relevant voters roll under paragraph (a)(i) or (ii) as a resident in respect of the rateable property; and

                  (iv)         no member of the group who is an occupier of the rateable property but not an owner is a resident in respect of the rateable property.

        (2)         A natural person is entitled, without application, to provisional enrolment on the voters roll for an area or ward if he or she is provisionally enrolled as an elector for the House of Assembly in respect of a place of residence within the area or ward.

        (3)         No enrolment will be made on the voters roll on the basis of a claim or application received between the time at which rolls for an election or poll close and polling day for the election or poll.

        (4)         If—

            (a)         a person has been enrolled as an elector under subclause (1)(a)(ii) on the basis of residence at a particular place of residence; and

            (b)         the chief executive officer sends a notice to the relevant address asking the elector to indicate whether he or she is still resident at that address; and

            (c)         the chief executive officer receives no reply within 28 days of the date of the notice or receives a reply indicating that the elector is no longer resident at that address,

it may be presumed, for the purposes of the revision of the voters roll, that the elector is not still resident in the area or ward.

        (5)         A group of persons may, on application to the chief executive officer in a form determined by the chief executive officer—

            (a)         nominate a name for the group for the purposes of the voters roll;

            (b)         change the name for the group for the purposes of the voters roll.

        (6)         The chief executive officer may reject an application under subclause (5) if the name is, in the opinion of the chief executive officer, obscene or frivolous.

        (7)         Subject to the adoption of a name under subclause (5), the chief executive officer may determine the name of a group for the purposes of the voters roll.

        (8)         The name of a group must include the word "Group" at the end.

        (9)         For the purposes of subclause (1)(a)(iv) and (c)(iv), the chief executive officer is entitled to assume (in the absence of any information in the hands of the chief executive officer to the contrary) that a ratepayer in respect of rateable property used for residential purposes who is a natural person and who is (or who appears to be) an occupier but not an owner of that rateable property is a resident in respect of that rateable property (and the voters roll may have effect accordingly).

        (10)         A person must not make a statement that is false or misleading in a material particular (whether by reason of the inclusion or omission of any particular) in any information provided under this clause.

Maximum penalty: $10 000.

Note—

1         Subclause (1) does not apply to the Crown (see section 302 of the Local Government Act 1999 ).

3—The voters roll

        (1)         The chief executive officer is responsible for the maintenance of a voters roll for the area.

        (2)         Subject to this clause, the voters roll must set out in relation to each person, body corporate or group enrolled—

            (a)         the full name of the person, body corporate or group; and

            (b)         in the case of a natural person—the address of the person's place of residence; and

            (c)         the address of the place of residence or rateable property (as the case may be) by virtue of which the person, body corporate or group is entitled to be enrolled; and

            (d)         at the option of the person, body corporate or group—an additional address nominated by the person, body corporate or group (in a manner and form determined by the chief executive officer) for the service of postal voting papers under clause 18; and

            (e)         any prescribed particulars.

        (3)         If the chief executive officer is satisfied that the inclusion on the voters roll of the address of the place of residence of a person or the address of a place of residence or rateable property (as the case may be) by virtue of which a person is entitled to be enrolled would place at risk the personal safety of that person, a member of that person's family or any other person, the chief executive officer may suppress the address from the voters roll.

        (4)         If the chief executive officer is satisfied that the address of the place of residence of a person entitled to be enrolled to vote is suppressed from a roll under the Electoral Act 1985 , the chief executive officer must also suppress that address from the voters roll.

        (5)         If an area is divided into wards, the voters roll must differentiate the electors enrolled on the roll according to the wards in respect of which they are entitled to vote.

        (6)         The voters roll must be maintained in a form that allows for the roll to be brought into an up-to-date form (including by the merger of enrolment information for the House of Assembly) within 3 weeks after the supply of relevant information by the Electoral Commissioner under subclause (10).

        (7)         The voters roll must be brought up-to-date whenever an election or poll is to be held so as to reflect entitlements as they exist—

            (a)         in the case of a periodic election—on a day fixed by the returning officer for the close of the roll;

            (b)         in the case of any other election, or a poll—on a day fixed for the close of the roll by the proclamation or notice fixing polling day for the election or poll.

        (8)         A day that falls within the ambit of subclause (7) will be the closing date for the roll.

        (9)         The closing date must not be less than—

            (a)         in the case of the closing date under subclause (7)(a)—13 weeks before polling day for the relevant election;

            (b)         in the case of the closing date under subclause (7)(b)—8 weeks before polling day for the relevant election or poll.

        (10)         The Electoral Commissioner—

            (a)         must, within 7 days after a closing date; and

            (b)         may, at any other time,

supply the chief executive officer with a list of the persons who are, as at the closing date or relevant time, enrolled (including those provisionally enrolled) as electors for the House of Assembly in respect of a place of residence within the area.

        •         A list may be supplied in electronic form, or in another manner agreed between the Electoral Commissioner and the chief executive officer.

        (11)         If the area of the Council is divided into wards, the list supplied under subclause (10) must differentiate the electors according to the wards in relation to which they are enrolled.

        (12)         The Electoral Commissioner is entitled to recover as a debt from the Council a fee of an amount determined by the Electoral Commissioner for the supply of a list under this clause.

        (13)         The voters roll must be brought up-to-date in accordance with the requirements of subclause (7) within 4 weeks after the relevant closing date.

        (13a)         For the purposes of subclause (13), a voters roll will be taken to have been brought up-to-date when copies of the roll are available for public inspection under this clause.

        (14)         The Council must ensure that copies of the roll are available for inspection (without charge) by the public at the principal office of the Council.

        (15)         At any time between the close of nominations and polling day for an election, a nominated candidate for the election is entitled to obtain from the relevant council a copy of the voters roll for the area (and he or she may, during that period, obtain further copies of the voters roll from the Council on payment of the fees fixed by the Council).

        (16)         The chief executive officer must supply the returning officer with sufficient copies of the voters roll, certified by the chief executive officer, for use at an election or poll.

        (17)         The chief executive officer is not responsible to check the accuracy of a list supplied by the Electoral Commissioner under this clause and is entitled to assume that such a list is accurate.

        (18)         The validity of a voters roll is not affected by a misdescription or other error in the roll.

        (19)         A voters roll is conclusive evidence of the entitlement of a person, body corporate or group whose name appears in the roll as an elector to vote at an election or poll at which the roll is used. 1

        (20)         If a copy of the voters roll is provided to a person under this clause, a person who uses that copy of the roll, or information contained in that copy of the roll, for a purpose other than the distribution of matter calculated to affect the result of a local government election or a purpose related to the holding of such an election is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty: $10 000.

Note—

1         Part 3 is also relevant to determining entitlements to vote.

Part 3—Entitlement to vote

4—Entitlement to vote

        (1)         Subject to subclause (2), a natural person who has his or her name on the voters roll used for an election or poll as an elector in his or her own right is entitled to vote at that election or poll.

        (2)         A natural person is not entitled to vote at an election if—

            (a)         he or she was provisionally enrolled; and

            (b)         he or she is not, as at polling day, of or above the age of majority.

        (3)         A natural person is entitled to vote at an election or poll for a body corporate which has its name on the voters roll if—

            (a)         the natural person is an officer of the body corporate; and

            (b)         the natural person is acting on behalf of the body corporate (which may be assumed on the basis of a declaration under clause 18).

        (4)         A natural person is entitled to vote at an election or poll for a group which has its name on the voters roll if—

            (a)         the natural person is a member of the group or an officer of a body corporate that is a member of the group; and

            (b)         the natural person is acting on behalf of the group (which may be assumed on the basis of a declaration under clause 18).

        (5)         A natural person is not entitled to vote under subclause (3) or (4) unless he or she is of or above the age of majority.

        (6)         If the name of a natural person has been omitted in error from a voters roll used for an election or poll, the person is, subject to this Schedule, entitled to vote at the election or poll as if the error had not occurred.

        (7)         If the name of a body corporate has been omitted in error from a voters roll used for an election or poll, a person is, subject to this Schedule, entitled to vote at the election or poll under subclause (3) as if the error had not occurred.

        (8)         If the name of a group has been omitted in error from a voters roll used for an election or poll, a person is, subject to this Schedule, entitled to vote at the election or poll under subclause (4) as if the error had not occurred.

        (9)         A natural person cannot vote at an election or poll for another natural person pursuant to a power of attorney.

        (10)         A natural person may only vote in 1 capacity at an election or poll for the City of Adelaide (but this clause does not prevent a person voting at 2 or more elections for the City of Adelaide held on the same day).

5—Entitlement to stand for election

        (1)         Subject to this Schedule and the Local Government Act 1999 , a person is eligible to be a candidate for election as a member of the Council if—

            (a)         the person is an Australian citizen; and

            (b)         —

                  (i)         the person is an elector for the area; or

                  (ii)         the person is the nominee of a body corporate which has its name on the voters roll for the area; or

                  (iii)         the person is the nominee of a group which has its name on the voters roll for the area; or

                  (iv)         the person's name has been omitted in error from the voters roll for the area, or the person is the nominee of a body corporate or group which has had its name omitted in error from the voters roll for the area (and would be eligible for nomination under subparagraph (ii) or (iii) (as the case may be) were the name on the roll).

        (2)         Subclause (1)(b) operates subject to the following qualifications:

            (a)         a nominee of a body corporate must be an officer of the body corporate;

            (b)         a nominee of a group must be a member of the group, or an officer of a body corporate that is a member of the group;

            (c)         a body corporate or group cannot nominate more than one person for a particular election;

            (d)         a body corporate or group cannot nominate a person who has not attained the age of majority.

        (3)         A person is not eligible to be a candidate for election as a member of the Council if the person—

            (a)         is a member of an Australian Parliament; or

            (b)         is an undischarged bankrupt or is receiving the benefit of a law for the relief of insolvent debtors; or

            (c)         has been sentenced to imprisonment and is, or could on the happening of some contingency become, liable to serve the sentence or the remainder of the sentence; or

            (d)         is an employee of the Council; or

            (e)         is disqualified from election by court order under the Local Government Act 1999 .

        (4)         A person is not eligible to be a candidate for election as a member of the Council if the person—

            (a)         in the case of a supplementary election—is a member of another council; or

            (b)         in the case of any election—is a candidate for election as a member of another council.

Part 7—Special provisions relating to postal voting

18—Issue of postal voting papers

        (1)         The returning officer must, as soon as practicable after the twenty first day before polling day, and in any event not later than 14 days before polling day, issue to every natural person, body corporate or group who or which has his, her or its name on the voters roll used for the purposes of the election or poll postal voting papers consisting of—

            (a)         a ballot paper (or, in an appropriate case, ballot papers) authenticated to the satisfaction of the returning officer; and

            (b)         an opaque envelope bearing a declaration (in a form determined by the Electoral Commissioner), to be completed by the voter, declaring the voter's date of birth and—

                  (i)         that the ballot paper contained in the envelope contains his or her vote; and

                  (ii)         that he or she has not already voted at the election or poll; and

                  (iii)         if the voting papers are issued to a body corporate or group—that he or she is eligible to vote and is acting on behalf of the body corporate or group.

        (2)         The declaration under subclause (1) must appear on a tear-off extension to the envelope flap.

        (3)         An envelope used under subclause (1) must be—

            (a)         a pre-paid post envelope addressed to the returning officer; or

            (b)         accompanied by a pre-paid post envelope addressed to the returning officer,

and must comply with any prescribed requirement.

        (4)         Postal voting papers must also be issued to any person, body corporate or group of persons whose name does not appear on the voters roll but who claims to be entitled to vote at the election or poll and applies to the returning officer for voting papers not later than 5 pm on the seventh day before polling day.

        (5)         Postal voting papers issued under subclause (4) must also include a declaration (in a form determined by the Electoral Commissioner) for the voter to set out the grounds on which an entitlement to vote is claimed.

        (6)         Postal voting papers issued under this clause must be accompanied by an explanatory notice and a set of candidate profiles that comply with the regulations and may be accompanied by other material determined by the returning officer.

        (7)         Postal voting papers may be issued under this clause—

            (a)         by giving them to the prospective voter personally; or

            (b)         by sending them by post—

                  (i)         to a prospective voter at the appropriate address on the voters roll; or

                  (ii)         in the case of a body corporate or group (without limiting any other method of delivery)—to the body corporate or group at an address nominated by the body corporate or group in a manner determined or approved by the returning officer; or

                  (iii)         in the case of a prospective voter whose name and address do not appear on the voters roll—at some other address of which the returning officer has received notice in a manner determined or approved by the returning officer.

        (8)         The returning officer must keep a record of the electors and other persons to whom voting papers are issued under this clause.

        (9)         If postal voting papers are returned because they have not been able to be successfully delivered, the returning officer must retain those voting papers in a secure place. 1

        (10)         The returning officer is not obliged to check the date of birth of a voter, or any other information, provided under this clause (but may do so on a selective, random or other basis determined by the returning officer).

        (11)         A vote may be admitted to the count notwithstanding that the voter's date of birth has not been declared (or accurately declared) under this clause, or that there has been some other formal defect or error on the part of the voter in complying with the requirements of this clause (unless the returning officer is of the opinion that the defect or error is sufficiently significant to warrant the rejection of the vote).

        (12)         The returning officer is not required to issue postal voting papers under this clause with respect to a person who the returning officer has reason to believe has died.

Note—

1         Fresh voting papers may be subsequently issued under section 43 of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 .

19—Arranging postal papers

        (2)         For the purposes of the scrutiny of voting papers for each election or poll, the returning officer will, with the assistance of any other electoral officers who may be present, and in the presence of any scrutineers who may be present—

            (a)         examine the declarations on all envelopes used for voting (and validly returned) and determine which votes are to be accepted for further scrutiny and which rejected from further scrutiny, rejecting unopened—

                  (i)         any envelope that forms part of a set of voting papers that have been cancelled under this Schedule;

                  (ii)         any two or more envelopes where it appears to the returning officer that the voter has acted in more than one capacity at the particular election or poll;

                  (iii)         any envelope where the voter's name does not appear on the voters roll, unless the voter is voting on behalf of a body corporate or group of persons in accordance with this Schedule, or unless the voter's name has been omitted from the roll in error;

                  (iv)         any envelope where the voter is purporting to be voting on behalf of a body corporate or group of persons but the returning officer concludes that the voter is in fact attempting to exercise an unauthorised vote;

                  (v)         any envelope where the signature does not, to the satisfaction of the returning officer, correspond with the signature on the application (if any) of the voter for the relevant voting papers;

            (b)         tear off the extensions to the envelope flaps on the envelopes accepted under paragraph (a);

            (c)         rearrange the envelopes that no longer bear their tear-off extensions so that the anonymity of voters is maintained;

            (d)         remove the ballot papers from those envelopes;

            (e)         if an envelope contains more than one ballot paper and a scrutineer challenges the number of ballot papers contained in the envelope—satisfy himself or herself that the envelope does not contain more ballot papers than the number to which the voter is entitled and, if the returning officer is not so satisfied, return all of those ballot papers to the envelope and reject them from the count;

            (f)         examine the remaining ballot papers and reject any informal ballot papers;

            (g)         arrange all unrejected ballot papers into appropriate parcels for counting.

Part 8—Campaign donations and expenditure

Division 1—Preliminary

22—Interpretation

In this Part—

disposition of property means a conveyance, transfer, assignment, settlement, delivery, payment or other alienation of property, and includes—

            (a)         the allotment of shares in a company; and

            (b)         the creation of a trust in property; and

            (c)         the grant or creation of a lease, mortgage, charge, servitude, licence, power or partnership or any interest in property; and

            (d)         the release, discharge, surrender, forfeiture or abandonment, at law or in equity, of a debt, contract or chose in action or any interest in property; and

            (e)         the exercise by a person of a general power of appointment of property in favour of another person; and

            (f)         a transaction entered into by a person with intent thereby to diminish, directly or indirectly, the value of the person's own property and to increase the value of the property of another person;

electoral advertisement means an advertisement containing electoral material;

electoral material means an advertisement, notice, statement or representation calculated to affect the result of an election or poll;

gift means a disposition of property made by a person to another person, otherwise than by will, being a disposition made without consideration in money or money's worth or with inadequate consideration, and includes the provision of a service (other than volunteer labour) for no consideration or for inadequate consideration;

journal means a newspaper, magazine or other periodical, whether published for sale or for distribution without charge;

property includes money.

Division 2—Returns

23—Returns for candidates

        (1)         A person who is a candidate for election to an office of the Adelaide City Council must furnish to the returning officer, in accordance with the requirements of this Part—

            (a)         at the prescribed times—a campaign donations return under this Division; and

            (b)         within 30 days after the conclusion of the election—a campaign expenditure return under this Division; and

            (c)         within the period applying under clause 24A(1)—a large gifts return under this Division.

        (2)         A return under this Division must be in the form determined by the returning officer and completed and furnished in the manner determined by the returning officer.

        (3)         For the purposes of this clause, the prescribed times for furnishing a campaign donations return are—

            (a)         within 7 days of the end of the period commencing from the start of the disclosure period for the election (within the meaning of clause 24B(a)) and ending—

                  (i)         in the case of a periodic election—21 days after the close of nominations; or

                  (ii)         in any other case—7 days after the close of nominations; and

            (b)         within 30 days after the conclusion of the election.

24—Campaign donations returns

        (1)         Subject to this clause and clause 24B, a campaign donations return for a candidate for election to an office of the Adelaide City Council must set out—

            (a)         the total amount or value of all gifts received by the candidate during the disclosure period; and

            (b)         the number of persons who made those gifts; and

            (c)         the amount or value of each gift; and

            (d)         the date on which each gift was made; and

            (e)         in the case of each gift made on behalf of the members of an unincorporated association—

                  (i)         the name of the association; and

                  (ii)         the names and addresses of the members of the executive committee (however described) of the association; and

            (f)         in the case of each gift purportedly made out of a trust fund or out of the funds of a foundation—

                  (i)         the names and addresses of the trustees of the fund or of the funds of the foundation; and

                  (ii)         the title or other description of the trust fund or the name of the foundation, as the case requires; and

            (g)         in the case of each other gift—the name and address of the person who made the gift.

        (2)         A campaign donations return need not set out any details required by subclause (1) in respect of—

            (a)         a private gift made to the candidate; or

            (b)         a gift if the amount or value of the gift is less than $500; or

            (c)         a gift disclosed in a large gifts return under clause 24A.

        (4)         If no details are required to be included in a return under this clause for a candidate, the return must nevertheless be lodged and must include a statement to the effect that no gifts of a kind required to be disclosed were received.

24A—Large gifts returns

        (1)         If—

            (a)         a candidate for election to an office of the Adelaide City Council receives a gift or gifts from a person during the disclosure period; and

            (b)         the total amount or value of the gift or gifts is more than the prescribed amount,

the candidate must, within the prescribed period, furnish a return to the returning officer.

        (2)         A large gifts return must set out—

            (a)         the amount or value of each gift; and

            (b)         the date on which each gift was made; and

            (c)         —

                  (i)         if the gift or gifts were made on behalf of the members of an unincorporated association—

                        (A)         the name of the association; and

                        (B)         the names and addresses of the members of the executive committee (however described) of the association; or

                  (ii)         if the gift or gifts were purportedly made out of a trust fund or out of the funds of a foundation—

                        (A)         the names and addresses of the trustees of the fund or of the funds of the foundation; and

                        (B)         the title or other description of the trust fund or the name of the foundation, as the case requires; or

                  (iii)         in any other case—the name and address of the person who made the gift or gifts.

        (3)         A large gifts return need not be furnished in respect of a private gift made to the candidate.

24B—Disclosure period etc for returns

For the purposes of clauses 24 and 24A—

            (a)         the disclosure period is the period that commenced—

                  (i)         in relation to a candidate in an election who was a new candidate (other than a candidate referred to in subparagraph (ii))—12 months before polling day for the election; or

                  (ii)         in relation to a candidate in an election who was a new candidate and when they became a candidate in the election was a member of the Council by virtue of having been appointed under the Local Government Act 1999 —on the day on which the person was so appointed as a member of the Council; or

                  (iii)         in relation to a candidate in an election who was not a new candidate—at the end of 21 days after polling day for the last preceding election in which the person was a candidate,

and that ended, in any of the above cases, at the end of 21 days after polling day for the election; and

            (b)         a candidate is a new candidate , in relation to an election, if the person had not been a candidate in the last general election of a council and had not been a candidate at a supplementary election held after the last general election of a council; and

            (c)         2 or more gifts (excluding private gifts) made by the same person to a candidate during the disclosure period are to be treated as 1 gift; and

            (d)         a gift made to a candidate is a private gift if it is made in a private capacity to the candidate for their personal use and the candidate has not used, and will not use, the gift solely or substantially for a purpose related to an election.

25—Campaign expenditure return

        (1)         Subject to this clause, a campaign expenditure return for a candidate for election to an office of the Adelaide City Council must set out details of all campaign expenditure in relation to the election incurred by or with the authority of the candidate.

        (2)         For the purposes of this clause, campaign expenditure, in relation to an election, is expenditure incurred on—

            (a)         the broadcasting of an electoral advertisement relating to the election; or

            (b)         the publishing in a journal of an electoral advertisement relating to the election; or

            (c)         the display at a theatre or other place of entertainment, of an electoral advertisement relating to the election; or

            (d)         the production of an electoral advertisement relating to the election, being an advertisement that is broadcast, published or displayed as mentioned in paragraph (a), (b) or (c); or

            (e)         the production of any material (not being material referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (c)) that is required under section 27 of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 to include the name and address of the author of the material or of the person who is the printer of the material (in the case of printed electoral material); or

            (f)         consultants' or advertising agents' fees in respect of—

                  (i)         services relating to the election; or

                  (ii)         material relating to the election; or

            (g)         the carrying out of an opinion poll, or other research, relating to the election; or

            (h)         the production and distribution of electoral material that is addressed to particular persons or organisations; or

                  (i)         other matters or items of a prescribed kind.

        (3)         If a candidate incurred campaign expenditure of a total amount not exceeding $500 in relation to an election (or incurred no campaign expenditure), the return may be lodged as a "Nil" return.

26—Certain gifts not to be received

        (1)         It is unlawful for a member of the Adelaide City Council to receive a gift made to or for the benefit of the member the amount or value of which is not less than $500 unless—

            (a)         the name and address of the person making the gift are known to the member; or

            (b)         at the time when the gift is made, the person making the gift gives to the member his or her name and address and the member has no grounds to believe that the name and address so given are not the true name and address of the person making the gift.

        (2)         It is unlawful for a candidate in an election, or a person acting on behalf of a candidate in an election, to an office of the Adelaide City Council to receive a gift made to or for the benefit of the candidate the amount or value of which is not less than $500 unless—

            (a)         the name and address of the person making the gift are known to the person receiving the gift; or

            (b)         at the time when the gift is made, the person making the gift gives to the person receiving the gift his or her name and address and the person receiving the gift has no grounds to believe that the name and address so given are not the true name and address of the person making the gift.

        (3)         For the purposes of this clause—

            (a)         a reference to a gift made by a person includes a reference to a gift made on behalf of the members of an unincorporated association;

            (b)         a reference to the name and address of a person making a gift is—

                  (i)         in the case of a gift made on behalf of the members of an unincorporated association—a reference to—

                        (A)         the name of the association; and

                        (B)         the names and addresses of the members of the executive committee (however described) of the association; and

                  (ii)         in the case of a gift purportedly made out of a trust fund or out of the funds of a foundation—a reference to—

                        (A)         the names and addresses of the trustees of the fund or of the funds of the foundation; and

                        (B)         the title or other description of the trust fund or the name of the foundation, as the case requires;

            (c)         a person who is a candidate in an election is to be taken to remain a candidate for 30 days after the polling day for the election;

            (d)         a reference to a candidate in an election includes a reference to a person who is already a member of the Council.

        (4)         If a person receives a gift that, by virtue of this clause, it is unlawful for the person to receive, an amount equal to the amount or value of the gift is payable by that person to the Crown and may be recovered by the Crown as a debt by action, in a court of competent jurisdiction, against the person.

27—Inability to complete returns

If a person who is required to furnish a return under this Division considers that it is impossible to complete the return because he or she is unable to obtain particulars that are required for the preparation of the return, the person may—

            (a)         prepare the return to the extent that it is possible to do so without those particulars; and

            (b)         furnish the return so prepared; and

            (c)         give to the returning officer notice in writing—

                  (i)         identifying the return; and

                  (ii)         stating that the return is incomplete by reason that he or she is unable to obtain certain particulars; and

                  (iii)         identifying those particulars; and

                  (iv)         setting out the reasons why he or she is unable to obtain those particulars; and

                  (v)         if the person believes, on reasonable grounds, that another person whose name and address he or she knows can give those particulars—stating that belief and the reasons for it and the name and address of that other person,

and a person who complies with this clause is not, by reason of the omission of those particulars, to be taken, for the purposes of this Division, to have furnished a return that is incomplete.

28—Amendment of returns

        (1)         A person who has furnished a return under this Division may request the permission of the returning officer to make a specified amendment of the return for the purpose of correcting an error or omission.

        (2)         A request under subclause (1) must—

            (a)         be by notice in writing signed by the person making the request; and

            (b)         be lodged with the returning officer.

        (3)         If—

            (a)         a request has been made under subclause (1); and

            (b)         the returning officer is satisfied that there is an error in, or omission from, the return to which the request relates,

the returning officer must amend the return, or permit the person making the request to amend the return, in accordance with the request.

        (4)         The amendment of a return under this clause does not affect the liability of a person to be convicted of an offence arising out of the furnishing of the return.

29—Offences

        (1)         A person who fails to furnish a return that the person is required to furnish under this Division within the time required by this Division is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty: $10 000.

        (2)         A person who furnishes a return or other information—

            (a)         that the person is required to furnish under this Division; and

            (b)         that contains a statement that is, to the knowledge of the person, false or misleading in a material particular,

is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty: $10 000.

        (3)         A person who furnishes to another person who is required to furnish a return under this Division information—

            (a)         that the person knows is required for the purposes of that return; and

            (b)         that is, to that person's knowledge, false or misleading in a material particular,

is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty: $10 000.

        (4)         An allegation in a complaint that a specified person had not furnished a return of a specified kind as at a specified date will be taken to have been proved in the absence of proof to the contrary.

30—Failure to comply with Division

        (1)         If a person who is required to furnish a return under this Division fails to submit the return within the time required by this Division, the returning officer must as soon as practicable notify the person of that fact.

        (2)         A notification under subclause (1) must be given by letter sent to the person by registered mail.

        (3)         A failure of a person to comply with a provision of this Division in relation to an election does not invalidate that election.

Note—

The office of a member of a council who fails to submit a return may become vacant under Chapter 5 Part 2 of the Local Government Act 1999 .

Division 3—Public access to information

31—Public inspection of returns

        (1)         The returning officer must keep at their principal office each return furnished to the returning officer under Division 2.

        (2)         The returning officer must—

            (a)         in the case of a large gifts return—within the prescribed period after the return is received by the returning officer; and

            (b)         in the case of a campaign donations return required to be furnished at the prescribed time applying under clause 23(3)(a)—within 7 days after that prescribed time; and

            (c)         in the case of a campaign donations return required to be furnished at the prescribed time applying under clause 23(3)(b)—within 8 weeks after that prescribed time; and

            (d)         in any other case—at the end of 8 weeks after the day before which the return was required to be furnished to the returning officer,

make a copy of each return available on a website maintained by the returning officer.

        (5)         The returning officer is only required to keep a return under this clause for a period of 4 years following the election to which the return relates.

32—Restrictions on publication

        (1)         A person must not publish—

            (a)         information derived from a return under Division 2 unless the information constitutes a fair and accurate summary of the information contained in the return and is published in the public interest; or

            (b)         comment on the facts set forth in a return under Division 2 unless the comment is fair and published in the public interest and without malice.

        (2)         If information or comment is published by a person in contravention of subclause (1), the person, and any person who authorised the publication of the information or comment, is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty: $10 000.

Division 4—Related matters

33—Requirement to keep proper records

        (1)         A person must take reasonable steps to keep in his or her possession all records relevant to completing a return under this Part.

Maximum penalty: $5 000.

        (2)         A person must keep a record under subclause (1) for at least 4 years after the date on which the relevant return is required to be furnished to the returning officer under this Part.

Maximum penalty: $5 000.

34—Related matters

        (1)         For the purposes of this Part, the amount or value of a gift consisting of or including a disposition of property other than money is, if the regulations so provide, to be determined in accordance with principles set out or referred to in the regulations.

        (2)         For the purposes of this Part—

            (a)         a body corporate and any other body corporate that is related to the first-mentioned body corporate is to be taken to be the same person; and

            (b)         the question whether a body corporate is related to another body corporate is to be determined in the same manner as under the Corporations Law .

        (3)         For the purposes of this Part, an act performed by a person or committee appointed or formed to assist the campaign of a candidate in an election will be taken to be an act performed by the candidate.



AustLII: Copyright Policy | Disclaimers | Privacy Policy | Feedback