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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 06 Hansard (Thursday, 24 June 2004) . . Page.. 2798 ..

ACT WorkCover has no statutory role under the Act. The Fund manager is the responsible statutory officer. Currently, the OHS Commissioner, who is also the head of ACT WorkCover, is appointed as the Fund Manager under section 8 of the Act.

Community housing
(Question No 1516)

Mrs Burke asked the Minister for Disability, Housing and Community Services, upon notice, on 5 May 2004:

(1) What is the current process or policy for housing individuals in Government or community based housing, who are newly released from gaol or a correctional institution;

(2) What processes or policies are in place to adequately address, house and/or allocate/transfer, tenants in Government or community housing who are undergoing rehabilitation for substance abuse;

(3) What proportion of housing tenants in either A.C.T. Government housing or community housing, would be deemed people on high incomes;

(4) What is the criteria or salary cut off range used to determine or deem a tenant to be a high income earning tenant.

Mr Wood: The answer to the member’s question is as follows:

(1) An applicant who has been approved for public housing and who has been released from jail or a correctional institution is housed when their name reaches the top of the Applicants’ List they have been approved for i.e. Standard or Early Allocation. If the applicant has been approved for a standard allocation they may apply for an early allocation status if they consider that their circumstances have altered significantly to warrant priority allocation of accommodation. The applicant is also entitled to apply to the Commissioner for Housing for an out of turn allocation of accommodation if they consider that their circumstances warrant them being placed ahead of the applicants on their Applicants’ List.

Where appropriate, Housing ACT works with ACT Corrective Services to ensure that accommodation provided to applicants released from jail or a correctional facility meets the needs of the individual and complies with any conditions set by the courts.

(2) Housing ACT exempts the income of a tenant or resident who enters a residential rehabilitation facility for the purposes of calculating their rental rebate. However, the tenant is charged a basic rental of $5 per week.

If a tenant approved for a transfer reaches the top of the Applicants’ list while they are in a residential rehabilitation facility, Housing ACT will allow them to stay on the List and will allocate them accommodation as soon as it becomes available on their release. Housing ACT will also engage with client and support agencies to ensure the allocation of the most appropriate available accommodation.

(3) Housing ACT does not determine or deem tenant households to be high or low income earning tenants. A tenant’s household income is obtained only for the purpose of determining whether they are eligible for a rental rebate.

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