Referral of the inquiry
1.1
On 19 September 2019 the Senate referred the provisions of the Family Assistance Legislation Amendment (Building on the Child Care Package) Bill 2019 (bill) to the Education and Employment Legislation Committee (the committee) for inquiry and report by 11 October 2019.
Conduct of the inquiry
1.2
Details of the inquiry were made available on the committee's website. The committee also contacted a number of organisations inviting submissions to the inquiry. Submissions were received from 13 organisations.
1.3
A list of submissions can be found at Appendix 1.
Objectives of the bill
1.4
The bill seeks to make minor policy refinements and provide clarification to measures contained in the Family Assistance Legislation Amendment (Jobs for Families Child Care Package) Act 2017. These amendments are a response to feedback from families and the childcare sector on the implementation of the childcare package. The amendments make refinements to the operation of the childcare package introduced in July 2018 and thereby respond to findings from evaluations of the package.
1.5
The bill is comprised of two schedules:
Schedule 1 — Amendments relating to childcare subsidies;
Schedule 2 — Amendments relating to ensuring the integrity of the childcare subsidy system.
1.6
These amendments will be implemented as part of a phased approach, with some measures to take effect following Royal Assent and others to commence from 13 January 2020 and 13 July 2020.
Schedule 1 — Amendments relating to childcare subsidies
1.7
The bill will amend the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Act 1999 and the A New Tax System (Family Assistance)(Administration) Act 1999 to have the effect of:
removing the 50 per cent limit on the number of children a provider can self-certify for the Additional Child Care Subsidy (child wellbeing);
allowing the Minister for Education to prescribe circumstances in which a third party may contribute to meeting the cost of an individual's childcare fees without affecting that individual's Commonwealth childcare subsidies;
introducing a new rule-making provision to allow the Minister for Education to prescribe specific circumstances in which Commonwealth childcare subsidies can be paid where the child is absent at the start or end of an enrolment;
amending the In Home Care rate in parallel with the rates for other care types, and the capacity for the Minister for Education to specify eligibility criteria and care requirements that must be met for access to Commonwealth-subsidised In Home Care places;
making clear that decisions made under section 105 of the A New Tax System (Family Assistance)(Administration) Act 1999 (Secretary initiated review) must be first subject to internal review before application is made to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT);
simplifying the claims process for the Child Care Subsidy (CCS); and
clarifying the policy intent of the Commonwealth and addressing unintended consequences.
Schedule 2 — Amendments relating to ensuring the integrity of the childcare subsidy system
1.8
The amendments in Schedule 2 seek to improve the Commonwealth's childcare subsidy payment framework by bringing the requirements for the approval of childcare providers and services into greater alignment with related state and territory laws.
1.9
The bill's amendments under Schedule 2 will have the effect of:
...ensuring that where an approved provider or childcare service is suspended or cancelled under the Education and Care Services National Law [National Law](effectively the state/territory licencing regime for operating childcare services), access to Commonwealth childcare subsidies will be automatically suspended or cancelled.
1.10
Other amendments proposed under the bill will allow for childcare providers to request voluntary suspension of their Commonwealth approval in certain circumstances and bring clarity to policy intent by addressing unintended consequences.
Compatibility with human rights
1.11
The bill's statement of compatibility with human rights states that it is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011. According to the Explanatory Memorandum (EM), the bill engages the following human rights:
the right to work under Article 6 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR);
the rights of parents under Articles 3, 18 and 19 of the Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRC);
the right to an adequate standard of living, under Article 27 of the CRC; and
the right to social security, under Article 9 of the ICESCR.
1.12
The EM notes that the bill advances human rights by providing families with greater access to workforce participation and access to a flexible and quality childcare system. The bill also achieves this by making the scheme more transparent for families, and more efficient for the Commonwealth to administer.
Structure of the report
1.13
This report is divided into two chapters. This chapter provides an overview of the bill, while the second chapter considers key provisions of the bill and issues raised in submissions to the inquiry.
Financial impact statement
1.14
While the EM states that the measures contained in the bill do not have a discernible financial impact, it notes that the Minister's Rules made under the new powers established by the bill could have a future financial impact. The EM notes that detailed costings would be developed and agreed at the appropriate time when any such Rules are being made.
Acknowledgements
1.15
The committee thanks those organisations that contributed to the inquiry by preparing written submissions.