Scott Ludlam (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

asked the Minister representing the Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities, upon notice, on 16 March 2011:

Most recent National Rental Affordability Scheme (NRAS) figures

(1) How many NRAS project incentives have been awarded since the scheme began.

(2) (a) Can a breakdown be provided, by state and territory, of the total approvals so far; and (b) in relation to each state and territory total can the figure be divided into inner metro and outer metro, regional and rural areas.

(3) What is the average time it takes to have applications processed from the time of application to final approval stage.

(4) What percentage of Round 3 applications have been processed to the notification stage.

(5) Can an update be provided on the progress of Round 4.

(6) Why do developers benefit from indexation of the NRAS incentive but recipients of Commonwealth rent assistance do not.

Not for profit housing providers and NRAS

Given that, in order to receive their tax offset or cash grant (for NFPs), NRAS recipients must use the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) Online Funding Management System (FOFMS) to provide information required by the Australian Government about their management of NRAS incentives:

(1) Is FOFMS still a FaHCSIA system, which has as yet not been transferred to the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities (SEWPaC) management.

(2) Has the NRAS team, or anyone else at SEWPaC, requested access to FOFMS.

(3) Can SEWPaC officers make changes to the way that FOFMS operates, for example, the type of information collected.

(4) Has any officer from SEWPaC been able to access information provided by NRAS recipients to FOFMS since the machinery of government changes.

Ministerial representation at the Housing Ministers' Conference of 16 December 2010

(1) Was there a representative from SEWPaC or the Minister's office at the Housing Ministers' Conference.

(2) Was there a representative from SEWPaC or the Minister's office at the meeting of the Housing Ministers' Advisory Committee.

(3) Did either of the abovementioned meetings discuss any matter pertaining to the SEWPaC's portfolio, for example, NRAS or the Housing Supply Council; if not: (a) is there another forum where SEWPaC officers can discuss these issues with their state counterparts; and (b) how is this information shared between FaHCSIA and SEWPaC.

Coordination across Departments following portfolio split

With reference to the split of the Housing portfolio between three ministers and its coordination across two departments:

(1) Can an outline be provided as to what mechanisms are now in place to facilitate communication between people within the SEWPaC and FaHCSIA portfolios, with relation to: (a) interdepartmental meetings; (b) interdepartmental memos; (c) joint seminar series/training days etc; and (d) secondment programs.

(2) What mechanisms are now in place to facilitate communication between people within the SEWPaC, FAHCSIA and the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) portfolios.

(3) Recent changes to NRAS to better facilitate institutional investment were announced at just about the same time as the proposed cuts – is this evidence of a lack of communication between Treasury and SEWPaC.

The transitional safety net to cover charities participating in NRAS

Given that in November 2008 the Government introduced a transitional safety net to cover charities participating in the NRAS, that this safety net amended both charity and tax law to ensure that charitable organisations, such as not-for-profit housing providers, would not have their charitable status jeopardized and lose tax concessions because of their participation in NRAS, and that this safety net was targeted to charitable organisations participating during the establishment phase of the NRAS that is for dwellings built in 2008-09 and 2009-10 and would expire at the end of that establishment phase.

(1) What is current situation for charitable organisations participating in NRAS.

(2) Did the transitional safety net expire as noted; if so, are those charitable organisations currently participating in NRAS in danger of losing their charitable status and loss of valuable tax concessions.

Council of Australian Governments' (COAG) Housing Supply and Affordability Reform agenda

Given that Treasury's brief to the incoming Government (the 'Red Book') warned of Australia's worsening housing affordability, and said this, along with problems of low density living, declining amenity and growing congestion, results from fractured and ineffective governance arrangements, and that the brief advised the incoming Government to enhance the effectiveness of funding to help Australians in housing need, to investigate taxation and planning reforms, and to expedite a National Urban Policy Reform, which includes a Housing Supply and Affordability Reform agenda:

(1) How is the SEWPaC looking at implementing COAG's Housing Supply and Affordability Reform agenda, which as the 'Red Book' advised, includes examining the ways under-utilised government land could be reallocated to affordable housing.

(2) What specific resources within SEWPaC are devoted to the agenda.

(3) Can a description be provided of any interdepartmental groups, or units, training days, or programs that have been specifically set-up between SEWPaC, Treasury and FaHCSIA to progress the agenda.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities has provided the following answer to the honourable senator's question:

Most recent National Rental Affordability Scheme figures

(1) As at 20 April 2011, 23,112 National Rental Affordability Scheme (NRAS) Incentives have been approved.

(2) (a) and (b) The following table provides a breakdown of the total NRAS Incentives approved by state/territory and by region as at 20 April 2011:

(3) In accordance with the National Rental Affordability Scheme Regulations 2008, the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities (DSEWPaC) attempts to notify all applicants of the result of their application within six months of receipt. While we do not maintain statistics on overall average processing times, the majority of applications are fully processed within four months.

(4) DSEWPaC has processed 100 per cent of Round Three applications.

(5) DSEWPaC received 297 applications for 61,133 NRAS Incentives under Round Four. These applications are currently being assessed by the department.

(6) The NRAS Incentive is indexed for all approved participants. Questions about the indexation of Commonwealth Rent Assistance should be directed to the Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) portfolio.

Not for profit housing providers and NRAS

(1) Yes. FaHCSIA continues to host the Online Funding Management System (FOFMS) as it would not be practical or efficient to replace or replicate this major system in DSEWPaC.

(2) Yes. Members of both the NRAS and Housing Affordability Branches within DSEWPaC continue to have access to FOFMS.

(3) Yes. DSEWPaC officers work with FaHCSIA where necessary to make changes to the way FOFMS operates.

(4) Yes. DSEWPaC officers can and do access information provided by NRAS recipients.

Ministerial representation at the Housing Ministers' Conference of 16 December 2010

(1) No. The meeting primarily focused on social housing and homelessness issues which are the responsibility of FaHCSIA.

(2) Yes. The head of DSEWPaC's Housing Supply and Affordability Division attended this meeting on 4 February 2011.

(3) Yes. An update on NRAS was provided at the Housing Ministers' Advisory Committee.

Coordination across Departments following portfolio split

(1) (a) There is regular contact at Deputy Secretary, First Assistant Secretary, and Assistant Secretary level, both bilaterally and through Inter-Departmental Committee meetings.

(b) Relevant documents are shared between agencies (such as policy and meeting papers, and briefs).

(c) DSEWPaC and FaHCSIA SES staff participate in regular discussions on policy and program issues. Where suitable opportunities arise, staff from both departments will participate in joint seminars with guest speakers.

(d) No, but a number of FaHCSIA staff now work in DSEWPaC either on permanent or temporary transfer.

(1) There is regular contact through Inter-Departmental Committee meetings, bilateral meetings and sharing of documents.

(2) No. Treasury and DSEWPaC consult on relevant NRAS matters. The two announcements were communicating different issues. The taxation changes announced had been in train for some time, and are required regardless of the size of the number of NRAS Incentives to be issued.

The transitional safety net to cover charities participating in NRAS

(1) and (2) The High Court Word Investments decision (Commissioner of Taxation of the Commonwealth of Australia v Word Investments Ltd [2008] HCA 55) determined that where an organisation raised funds exclusively for a charitable purpose, the fact that it did so through a commercial enterprise did not preclude it from being a charity. Treasury has advised DSEWPaC that this decision replaced the need for an extension of the temporary safety net that was put in place to provide certainty that charitable Community Housing Organisations would retain their charitable status if participating in NRAS.

Council of Australian Governments' (COAG) Housing Supply and Affordability Reform agenda

(1) COAG's Housing Supply and Affordability Reform Agenda is being progressed through the Housing Supply and Affordability Working Party led by Treasuries and First Ministers' departments. DSEWPaC contributes to this work through a Treasury-led Inter-Department Committee and through the provision of input on the suitability of land for housing to the Land Audit Taskforce.

(2) Senior Executives within the Housing Supply and Affordability Division, and members of the Policy and Land Audit Section in the Division are contributing to the Reform Agenda both through input to the Treasury-led working party, and advice on specific land supply issues.

(3) Treasury is leading an Inter-Departmental Committee to coordinate the whole of government response to the Reform Agenda. DSEWPaC, Treasury and FaHCSIA are members of the Treasury Inter-Departmental Committee.