2008-2009-2010

 

The Parliament of the

Commonwealth of Australia

 

THE SENATE

 

 

 

Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Income Support for Students) Bill 2009

 

 

(Government)

(1)     Clause  2 , page 2 (table), omit the table, substitute:

Commencement information
Column 1	Column 2	Column 3
Provision(s)	Commencement	Date/Details
1.  Sections 1 to 4 and anything in this Act not elsewhere covered by this table	The day this Act receives the Royal Assent.
2.  Schedule 1, items 1 and 1A	1 April 2010.	1 April 2010
3.  Schedule 1, items 2 to 3A	1 July 2010.	1 July 2010
4.  Schedule 1, Part 1, Division 2	1 April 2010.	1 April 2010
5.  Schedule 1, Part 2, Divisions 1 and 2	1 July 2010.	1 July 2010
6.  Schedule 1, Part 2, Divisions 3 and 4	1 July 2012.	1 July 2012
7.  Schedule 2, Part 1	1 April 2010.	1 April 2010
8.  Schedule 2, items 5 to 16	1 April 2010.	1 April 2010
9.  Schedule 2, item 17	Immediately after the commencement of the provision(s) covered by table item 2.	1 April 2010
10.  Schedule 2, items 18 to 34	1 April 2010.	1 April 2010
11.  Schedule 3	Immediately after the commencement of Schedule 1 to the Social Security Amendment (Training Incentives) Act 2009 .	1 July 2009
12.  Schedule 4	The day after this Act receives the Royal Assent.

[commencement]

(2)     Schedule  1 , item  1 , page 4 (lines 8 to 11) , omit subsection 1067A ( 4 ), substitute:

             (4)  For the purposes of Part 2.11, this Part and section 1070G, a person is independent at a time in a period specified in an item of the table if at the time the person is at least the age specified in the item:

 

Age when person becomes independent
Item	Period	Age
1	The period starting at the start of 1 April 2010 and ending at the end of 31 December 2010	24 years
2	The year 2011	23 years
3	A year after 2011	22 years

[independence age]

(3)     Schedule  1 , page 4 (after line 14) , after item  1 , insert:

1A  Application of amendment affecting independence age

Subsection 1067A(4) of the Social Security Act 1991 as amended by item 1 applies for the purposes of working out a person’s eligibility for, or amount of, youth allowance for a day, or fares allowance for a journey on a day, that is on or after 1 April 2010.

[independence age]

(4)     Schedule  1 , item  3 , page 5 (line 1) , omit “ January ”, substitute “ July ”.

[workforce participation for independence]

(5)     Schedule  1 , page 6 (after line 9) , after item  3 , insert:

3A  Application of amendments about workforce participation

Subsections 1067A(10), (10A), (10B), (10C) and (10D) of the Social Security Act 1991 as amended by items 2 and 3 apply for the purposes of working out a person’s eligibility for, or amount of, youth allowance for a day, or fares allowance for a journey on a day, that is on or after 1 July 2010.

[workforce participation for independence]

(6)     Schedule  1 , heading to Division  3 , page 6 (lines 14 and 15) , omit the heading.

[definition of independent]

(7)     Schedule  1 , item  5 , page 6 (lines 16 to 23) , omit the item, substitute:

5  Application of amendment

The amendment made by this Division applies for the purposes of working out a person’s eligibility for, or amount of, fares allowance for a journey on a day that is on or after 1 April 2010.

[definition of independent]

(8)     Schedule  1 , item  11 , page 8 (line 7) , omit “ January ”, substitute “ July ”.

[parental income test]

(9)     Schedule  1 , item  18 , page 13 (line 3) , omit “ January ”, substitute “ July ”.

[parental income test]

(10)   Schedule  2 , Part  1 , page 24 (after line 33) , at the end of the Part, add:

4A  Transitional rule for student scholarship start-up payment

(1)       Subsection 592G(1) of the Social Security Act 1991 does not prevent a person from being qualified exactly twice in 2010 for a student start-up scholarship payment if:

                     (a)  the person undertakes full-time study in an approved scholarship course on 1 April 2010; and

                     (b)  the person becomes qualified for youth allowance on or after 1 July 2010 but before 29 July 2010; and

                     (c)  when the person becomes qualified for youth allowance, the person is not independent (see section 1067A of that Act).

(2)       To avoid doubt, subitem (1) does not allow a person to qualify more than twice in 2010 for a student start-up scholarship payment.

4B  Transitional rule for relocation scholarship payment

(1)       This item applies if:

                     (a)  a person qualifies for a relocation scholarship payment on or after 1 July 2010 but before 29 July 2010 because the person is not independent (see section 1067A of the Social Security Act 1991 ) but is required to live away from home (see section 1067D of that Act); and

                     (b)  the person undertakes full-time study in an approved scholarship course on 1 April 2010; and

                     (c)  the earliest time at which the person was required to live away from home (see section 1067D of that Act) in connection with the course was not more than 6 months before the person started full-time study in the course in 2010.

(2)       Subsection 592L(2) of the Social Security Act 1991 does not apply to affect the amount of the first relocation scholarship payment to the person.

Note:       The amount of that relocation scholarship payment to the person will therefore be $4,000 (under subsection 592L(1) of the Social Security Act 1991 ) unless subsection 592L(3) of that Act applies.

[transitional rules for scholarship payments]

(11)   Schedule  2 , item  14 , page 27 (line 25) , omit “1  March ”, substitute “15  April ”.

[threshold amount]

(12)   Page 35 (after line 11) , at the end of the Bill, add:

Schedule 4 — Higher education assistance for rural and regional students

   

Social Security Act 1991

1  After Chapter 2B

Insert:

Chapter 2BA — Higher education assistance for rural and regional students

Part 2BA.1 — Higher education assistance for rural and regional students

   

1061ZZFW   Scheme for higher education assistance for rural and regional students

             (1)  The Minister must, by legislative instrument, determine a scheme for paying $20 million, in the period starting on 1 January 2011 and ending at the end of 30 June 2013, for assistance for the undertaking of higher education by people under 25 years old who both:

                     (a)  have their main place of residence in a rural or regional area; and

                     (b)  would experience financial hardship in undertaking higher education without the assistance.

             (2)  Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), the scheme may deal with the following:

                     (a)  the form of the assistance;

                     (b)  the circumstances in which payment is to be made, or assistance is to be provided, to particular persons;

                     (c)  the amounts of payments to, or assistance for, particular persons;

                     (d)  which persons qualify for payments or assistance;

                     (e)  administrative matters, such as determination of entitlement and how and when payments will be made or assistance will be provided.

             (3)  The Minister may, by legislative instrument, vary the scheme, but not so as to reduce the total of payments to less than $20 million or delay the day by which that amount is to be paid.

[rural and regional students]