David Bushby (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

asked the Minister representing the Treasurer, upon notice, on 1 November 2012:

For each department and agency under the Financial Management and Accountability Act1997 and each Commonwealth authority under the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997 within the Minister's portfolio:

(1) How many Australian Public Service full-time equivalent staff are engaged by each department, agency and authority in relation to the: (a) creation; (b) administration or management; and (c) enforcement of new or existing Acts of Parliament, legislative instruments and quasi-regulation.

(2) What and how many: (a) compliance requirements; (b) industry guidelines; (c) best practice procedures; (d) codes of conduct; and (e) any other industrial manuals/documents, have been created since December 2007.

(3) Was an Annual Regulatory Plan completed for each of the 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12, and 2012-13 financial years, and will a plan be completed for the 2013-14 financial year.

(4) For the 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12, and 2012-13 financial years: (a) how many pieces of regulation, including Acts of Parliament, legislative instruments and quasi-regulation, were included in each Annual Regulatory Plan; and (b) were the same, more or fewer pieces of regulation passed as anticipated in each Annual Regulatory Plan: (i) if more, which pieces of regulation were passed in addition to the plan, and (i) if fewer, which pieces of regulation were not passed and why were they not passed.

(5) Does each department, agency and authority assess the total costs associated with its regulatory measures; if so: (a) what is the total: (i) direct, and (ii) indirect, regulatory cost burden that each department, agency and authority imposes on the non-government sector; and (b) how much regulatory cost has each department, agency and authority: (i) imposed, and (ii) removed, from the non-government sector since August 2010.

(6) Does each department, agency and authority impose a cost-recovery scheme on the non-government sector; if so: (a) what are the cost-recovery programs; (b) what fees are currently being imposed; and (c) in each case, by how much have these fees increased since August 2010.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Treasurer has provided the following answer to the honourable senator's question:

(1) Given the very broad nature of the question attempting to answer this question would cause unreasonable diversion of resources.

(2) Given the very broad nature of the question attempting to answer this question would cause unreasonable diversion of resources.

(3) Annual Regulatory Plans are managed within the Finance and Deregulation, please refer to the response provided by the Minister for Finance and Deregulation to question 2469.

(4) Annual Regulatory Plans are managed within the Finance and Deregulation, please refer to the response provided by the Minister for Finance and Deregulation to question 2469.

(5) Annual Regulatory Plans are managed within the Finance and Deregulation, please refer to the response provided by the Minister for Finance and Deregulation to question 2469.

(6) The following link details the current guidance on cost recovery:

http://www.finance.gov.au/financial-framework/financial-management-policy-guidance/cost-recovery.html

In relation to annual reporting, in accordance with Finance Circular 2005/09 all agencies with significant cost recovery arrangements need to prepare Cost Recovery Impact Statements (CRIS) when:

Only when a CRIS is prepared are agencies required to report annually. Under this circumstance, agencies need to separately identify all cost recovery revenues in notes to financial statements – to be published in portfolio budget statements and annual reports consistent with the Finance Minister's Orders.