Innovation, Industry, Science, Research and Tertiary Education Portfolio
Annual Regulatory Plan 2012-2013
The Innovation, Industry, Science, Research and Tertiary Education Portfolio Annual Regulatory Plan 2012-2013 provides information on changes to business regulations which occurred during 2011-2012 (Part 1), and activities planned for 2012-2013 that could lead to changes in business regulation (Part 2).
August 2012
PART 1: Changes to business regulationthat occurred during 2011-2012
Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2011
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2011
Description of issue / The Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2011 is a legislative instrument made under the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011. The instrument makes the Provider Registration Standards, the Provider Category Standards, the Provider Course Accreditation Standards and the Qualification Standards which comprise a subset of the Higher Education Standards Framework known as the Threshold Standards.
All providers of higher education in Australia are required to meet the Threshold Standards in order to enter and remain in Australia’s higher education system.
Link to legislative instrument: http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/F2012L00003/Download
Date of effect / The Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2011 was made on 22 December 2011 and took effect from 4 January 2012.
Contact details / Dr Lindsay Heywood
Director
Higher Education Standards Executive
Phone: (03) 8306 2507
Email:
Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011- Determination Of Fees No. 1 Of 2012
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011- Determination of Fees No. 1 of 2012
Description of issue / This Determination is made under section 158 of the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011 and provides the fees that TEQSA may charge for things done in the performance of its functions.
TEQSA operates on a partial cost-recovery basis, consistent with the Australian Government Cost Recovery Guidelines. These Guidelines stipulate that fees should be commensurate with the effort taken to deliver the specified service.
Under the cost recovery approach, the fees charged by TEQSA are for services of direct benefit to higher education providers.
Link to legislative instrument: www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/F2012L00086
Date of effect / The Determination was made on 24 January 2012 and registered on 27 January 2012.
Contact details / Bettina Cooke
Accountability and Parliamentary Liaison
TEQSA
Phone: (03) 8306 2489
Email:
Intellectual Property Legislation Amendment Regulation 2011 (No. 2)
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / Intellectual Property Legislation Amendment Regulation 2011 (No 2).
Description of issue / These Regulations:
· make amendments consequential to amendments to the Acts Interpretation Act 1901
· amend the Trade Marks Regulations 1995 to reflect the Tenth Edition of the Nice Classification
· amend the Patents Regulations 1991 to remove an exception to the general rule for determining when a document is taken to have been provided to a person
· offer greater flexibility to applicants seeking to amend their patent applications.
Date of effect / Some provisions commenced on 27 December 2011, with the remainder commencing on 1 January 2012.
Contact details / Ms Terry Moore
Director, Domestic Policy
IP Australia
Phone: (02) 6283 2632
Email:
Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Raising The Bar) Act 2012
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Raising the Bar) Act 2012
Description of issue / This Act implements reforms to the Australian intellectual property system. The reforms:
· raise patentability standards and increase certainty by giving patent monopolies only where there is full disclosure and genuine inventiveness
· clarify the exemptions to patent infringement by introducing a statutory experimental use exemption and extending the existing regulatory review exemption
· speed up the process for determining applications by streamlining the patent and trade mark opposition processes
· improve the operations of the intellectual property profession by providing a framework for patent and trade mark practices to incorporate and expanding client attorney privilege to include communications with foreign attorneys
· improve protection for trade mark owners by bolstering criminal penalties for trade mark infringement and providing for exemplary damages in civil actions
· improve border protection measures by improving the operation and effectiveness of the current Notice of Objection Scheme for copyright and trade marks owners
· make the intellectual property system easier to use by removing unnecessary procedural hurdles, reducing complexity and extending the jurisdiction of the Federal Magistrates Court to include trade mark and design matters.
Date of effect / Schedule 2 and Schedule 6 of the Act commenced on 16 April 2012. All other provisions in the Act will commence on 15 April 2013.
Contact details / Ms Terry Moore
Director, Domestic Policy
IP Australia
Phone: (02) 6283 2632
Email:
Intellectual Property Legislation Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 1)
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / Intellectual Property Legislation Amendment Regulation 2012 (No.1)
Description of issue / This regulation amends the Patents Regulations 1991(Patent Regulations), Trade Marks Regulations 1995 (Trade Mark Regulations), Designs Regulations 2004 (Design Regulations) and Plant Breeder's Rights Regulations 1994 (Plant Breeder’s Rights Regulations) to:
· implement changes in fees arising from the fee review conducted by IP Australia
· amend the Designs Regulations, the Patents Regulations and the Trade Marks Regulations to enable customers to provide statutory declarations electronically and simplify the requirements for filing a declaration
· amend the Trade Marks Regulations to implement provisions of the Trade Marks Act 1995, as amended by the Personal Property Securities (Consequential Amendments) Act 2009
· update the Designs Regulations, the Patents Regulations and the Trade Marks Regulations to include the Netherlands (including Aruba, Curaçao and Saint Maarten) and Samoa in the list of Convention countries, commencing on 1 July 2012 and
· update the Patents Regulations to reflect changes to the Regulations under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (the PCT Rules) as approved by the International Patent Cooperation Union Assembly (PCT Assembly) at its meeting in September-October 2011.
Date of effect / Some provisions commenced on 1 July 2012, with the remainder to commence on 1 October 2012.
Contact details / Ms Terry Moore
Director, Domestic Policy
IP Australia
Phone: (02) 6283 2632
Email:
Amendments To The National Measurement Regulations 1999
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / National Measurement Amendment Regulations 2011 (No. 1)
Description of issue / The National Measurement Amendment Regulations 2011 amended the National Measurement Regulations 1999 to vary the rate of the fees charged for the examination and certification of patterns of measuring instruments (pattern approval) by the National Measurement Institute. The revised fees reflected the increased cost of providing these services consistent with the requirements of the Australian Government Cost Recovery Guidelines. In addition, minor and machinery amendments were made.
Link to the Regulations:
http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/F2011L01377
Date of effect / The Regulations were made on 30 June 2011 and took effect from 1 July 2011
Contact details / Dr Richard Brittain
National Measurement Institute
Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education
Phone: (02) 8467 3645
Email:
Further Amendments to the National Measurement Regulations 1999
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / National Measurement Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 1)
Description of issue / The National Measurement Amendment Regulation 2012 amended the National Measurement Regulations 1999 to adjust the fees prescribed for the examination and certification of patterns of measuring instruments (pattern approval) by the National Measurement Institute. The revised fees reflected the increased cost of providing these services consistently with the requirements of the Australian Government Cost Recovery Guidelines. It also consolidated the information that specifies which of the three levels of fees apply into the schedule that prescribed the fees.
Link to the Regulations:
http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/F2012L01104
The Regulation was exempt from the need for a Regulation Impact Statement or Business Cost Calculator report as the amendments it made were of a machinery nature.
Date of effect / The Regulation was made on 24 May 2012 and took effect from 1 July 2012
Contact details / Dr Richard Brittain
National Measurement Institute
Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education
Phone: (02) 8467 3645
Email:
Amendments to the National Trade Measurement Regulations 2009
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / National Trade Measurement Amendment Regulations 2011 (No. 1)
Description of issue / The National Trade Measurement Amendment Regulations 2011 amended the National Trade Measurement Regulations 2009 to make minor and machinery changes. These included further consolidating the regulations relating to trade measurement in to this set of regulations.
Link to the Regulations:
http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/F2011L01373
Date of effect / These Regulations were made on 30 June 2011 and took effect from 1 July 2011.
Contact details / Dr Richard Brittain
National Measurement Institute
Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education
Phone: (02) 8467 3645
Email:
Amendments to the Textile, Clothing and Footwear Small Business Program Determination 2005
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / Textile, Clothing and Footwear Small Business Program Determination (Amendment) 2011
Description of issue / This Determination amends the Textile, Clothing and Footwear Small Business Program Determination 2005. Applicants are now required to have had a turnover of not less than $100,000 in the previous year to that in which an application is made. Applicants are also now required to make a cash contribution of at least 25 per cent in respect of eligible expenditure for a project. A number of other minor technical amendments were also made.
The amendment can be found on the ComLaw website at http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/F2011L02691
Date of effect / 12 December 2011.
Contact details / Mr Graeme Phillips
Manufacturing Division
Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education
Phone: 02 6276 1578
Email:
Amendments to the Industry Research and Development Act 1986
Type of entry / Past changeDescription of issue / The Tax Laws Amendment (Research and Development) Act 2011 repealed Part IIIA of the Industry Research and Development Act 1986 and inserted a new Part III. The new Part III of the Industry Research and Development Act 1986 contains administrative rules for the operation of the R&D Tax Incentive.
Date of effect / This Act commenced on 8 September 2011.
Contact details / Tulene McCabe
R&D Tax Section
Innovation Analysis Branch
Innovation Division
Phone: (02) 6213 6187
Email: R&
Industry Research and Development Regulations 2011
Type of entry / Past ChangeTitle / Industry Research and Development Regulations 2011
Description of issue / The Industry Research and Development Regulations 2011 arise from powers provided in Part III of the Industry Research and Development Act 1986.
The Regulations specify: items to be included in approved forms; items to be included in certificates to be issued by Innovation Australia; the types of entity able to apply for an advance finding on behalf of R&D entities; and the criteria and conditions for an entity to be registered as a Research Service Provider.
Date of effect / The Industry Research and Development Regulations 2011 commenced on 26 November 2011.
Contact details / Tulene McCabe
R&D Tax Section
Innovation Analysis Branch
Innovation Division
Phone: (02) 6213 6187
Email: R&
Industry Research and Development Decision-Making Principles 2011
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / Industry Research and Development Decision-Making Principles 2011
Description of issue / The Industry Research and Development Decision-Making Principles 2011 arise from powers provided in Part III of the Industry Research and Development Act 1986.
The Decision Making Principles are to be taken into account by Innovation Australia when considering the following matters: extensions of time; application to vary registered activities; and refusal to make certain findings.
Date of effect / The Industry Research and Development Decision-making Principles 2011 commenced on 2 December 2011.
Contact details / Tulene McCabe
R&D Tax Section
Innovation Analysis Branch
Innovation Division
Phone: (02) 6213 6187
Email: R&
National Business Names Registration Service
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / National business names registration service (under the Business Names Registration Act 2011 and associated legislation and regulations).
Description of issue / The national business names registration service was established under a package of Commonwealth legislation – Business Names Registration Act 2011; Business Names Registration (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Act 2011, and Business Names Registration (Fees) Act 2011 – and associated subordinate legislation.
Prior to the commencement of the national service, each State/Territory was responsible for registering business names in its own jurisdiction. Businesses needed to register their name in every jurisdiction in which they traded. For businesses that traded in all States and Territories this would cost in the order of $1000 to be registered for three years. The legislative package replaced the State/Territory legislation, and allowed a national business names register to be established. Under the national regime, business name applicants need only register their business name once, even if they trade in more than one jurisdiction and pay one fee of $70 for three years or $30 for one year.
The Commonwealth Acts can be found at ComLaw (http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Browse/Results/ByTitle/Acts/Current/Bu/0)
The subordinate legislation can also be found at ComLaw
http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Browse/Results/ByTitle/LegislativeInstruments/Current/Bu/0)
Date of effect / The national business names registration service began operations on 28 May 2012.
Contact details / Ms Yogeeta Pala
ISBP Division
Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education
Phone: (02) 6276 1595
Email:
National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011
Type of entry / Past changeTitle / National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011
Description of issue / The National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011 established the National VET Regulator, known as the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA). It also established the regulatory framework within which ASQA operates.
Under the Act, ASQA derives its power from a referral of powers of the referring states (New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Tasmania) and the Commonwealth Constitution for non-referring states (Victoria and Western Australia) and the territories.
ASQA commenced operation on 1 July 2011, with regulatory powers over all registered training organisations in NSW, ACT and NT as well as RTOs in Victoria and Western Australia which offer VET courses in a referring state or territory and/or offer VET courses to overseas students.
ASQA assumed responsibility for all registered training organisations in Tasmania on 15 February 2012, South Australia on 26 March 2012 and Queensland on 29 June 2012.
Link to the Act: http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/C2012C00473
Date of effect / The Act commenced on 1 July 2011.
Contact details / Maryann Quagliata
General Manager, Tertiary Quality Governance Branch
Phone: 02 62407230
Email:
National Vocational Education and Training Regulator (Consequential Amendments) Act 2011