Page 2313 - Week 09 - Tuesday, 15 September 1992
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The object of this amendment is to extend the commissioner's power to determine exemptions. The commissioner over the last year has frequently said to appellants, "I am sorry; I have no power to consider an exemption under the Act. The Act does not give me that power". He has said this on many occasions. In fact, the Chief Minister argued earlier that he should have very limited powers of exemption.
I suggest that much of the dissatisfaction and much of the unfair and unjust imposition of tax over the last year has been because the commissioner has had no power, no discretion, to exempt and has merely had to reject the applications. I happen to believe that that is wrong and needs to be rectified. I am suggesting here that, whether or not you accept that there should be few cases in which the commissioner ought to exercise his power of exemption, when one of those cases arises he should have the widest of powers rather than the narrowest of powers to consider such a request. At the moment he does not have that.
I am seeking to make it easier for an appellant to have a case heard and considered by the commissioner, rather than his having simply to say, "I am sorry; I have no discretion. I cannot entertain your appeal and I cannot rule on it". I do not believe that in anybody's terms that is an unreasonable imposition. It does not necessarily affect the net outcome of the workings of the Act, but it would at least be seen by some people to be a fairer Act than it is now.
MS FOLLETT (Chief Minister and Treasurer) (10.08): The Government will again be opposing Mr Kaine's amendment, for the simple reason that it is both unnecessary and undesirable for the commissioner to have the kind of discretion that is involved in the proposal. I understand that on the initial application of land tax to residential properties there were some 90,000 forms to be processed and many applications for exemption from land tax were made. Dealing with that number was both difficult and complex. I do not believe that those circumstances will be repeated. The amended exemption provisions that my Bill provides will make the commissioner's decision much more straightforward and more certain. The power to exempt totally, which is contained in Mr Kaine's proposal, is not necessary, and I think is bad law.
MR MOORE (10.09): It seems to me that in dealing with this tax the Liberals have spent a great deal of time ensuring that whatever they can do to make this tax less effective they will do. I can understand where they are coming from and I think they are entitled to do that. My position was that I would support this. I have always supported a land tax, and I have spoken on that matter a number of times. It would be pointless to repeat what is already well recorded in Hansard as my view on land tax.
With reference to this amendment, it seems to me that the only people who could benefit from it are the lawyers. What would happen is that the people who seek to have a decision made by the Commissioner for ACT Revenue will decide that they do not like the decision and they will take it to the courts through the Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act. The Territory and the people who have applied will wind up spending a great deal of money on lawyers and courts. I think that is terribly undesirable, and therefore I will oppose this amendment.
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