{"id":"F2016L00689","name":"Farm Household Support (Waiver of Debts) Minister’s Rule 2016","slug":"farm-household-support-waiver-of-debts-minister-s-rule-2016","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":129252,"registerId":"commonwealth-F2016L00689-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Name of rule","content":"#### 1 Name of rule\n\n  This rule is the Farm Household Support (Waiver of Debts) Minister’s Rule 2016.","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement","content":"#### 2 Commencement\n\n  This rule commences on the day after it is registered.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Authority","content":"#### 3 Authority\n\n  This rule is made under the Farm Household Support Act 2014.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Modifications of Part 5.4 of the Social Security Act 1991","content":"#### 4 Modifications of Part 5.4 of the Social Security Act 1991\n\n  Part 5.4 of the Social Security Act 1991 has effect for the purposes set out in section 91 of the Farm Household Support Act 2014 as if the following 2 sections (sections 1238 and 1238A) were inserted.\n\n> Note: In the following two sections the ‘Administration Act’ is the Social Security (Administration) Act 1999; the ‘Department’ is the Department which administers the Farm Household Support Act 2014; the ‘Secretary’ is the Secretary of that Department. The term ‘business income’ is defined by subsection 68(3) of the Farm Household Support Act 2014. These definitions derive from the Farm Household Support Act 2014 and the Social Security Act 1991.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"1238","sectionType":"section","heading":"Debts for the 2014-2015 financial year","content":"#### 1238 Debts for the 2014-2015 financial year\n\n  (1) The Secretary may waive the right to recover all or part of a debt if:\n    (a) the payments that gave rise to the debt were made in the 2014-2015 financial year; and\n    (b) the rates of those payments were determined, at least in part, on the basis of an estimate of a person’s business income in relation to that financial year; and\n    (c) the debt arose, at least in part, as a result of a determination under Subdivision A of Division 7 of Part 3 of the Administration Act; and\n    (d) the reason, or one of the reasons, for making that determination was that the Secretary considered that the person’s business income differed from the estimate.\n  (2) If the Secretary forms the opinion that the estimate was not reasonable, the Secretary must have regard to that opinion in deciding whether to waive the right to recover any, all or part of the debt.\n  (3) The Secretary may form the opinion that the estimate was not reasonable even if he or she had earlier considered the estimate to be reasonable.","sortOrder":4},{"sectionNumber":"1238A","sectionType":"section","heading":"Compliance with a notice under section 68 or 69 of the Administration Act","content":"#### 1238A Compliance with a notice under section 68 or 69 of the Administration Act\n\n  (1) The Secretary may waive the right to recover all or part of a debt if:\n    (a) the debt arose, at least in part, as a result of a person not having complied with a notice under section 68 or 69 of the Administration Act, being a notice requiring the person to provide the Department with information or a statement about the person’s business income in a particular period; and\n    (b) the Secretary has given the person 1 or more subsequent notices under section 68 or 69 requiring the person to provide the Department with the information or the statement; and\n    (c) the person has complied with 1 of those subsequent notices.\n  (2) In deciding whether to waive the right to recover any, all or part of the debt, the Secretary may have regard to the circumstances of:\n    (a) the non‑compliance to which paragraph (1)(a) refers; and\n    (b) any non‑compliance with a subsequent notice under section 68 or 69 in relation to the information or statement.\n  (3) Subsection (2) does not limit the matters to which the Secretary may have regard.","sortOrder":5}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This legislation maintains its original narrow scope. It was designed specifically to provide debt waiver mechanisms for Farm Household Support recipients in particular circumstances (2014-2015 estimates and notice compliance), and it does exactly that without expanding into broader social security debt waiver powers or other financial years."},"complexity_factors":["Heavy cross-referencing to external legislation (Farm Household Support Act 2014, Social Security Act 1991, Social Security (Administration) Act 1999)","Nested conditional logic with multiple cumulative requirements (four conditions in section 1238(1), three in section 1238A(1))","Requires understanding of defined terms imported from other Acts ('business income', 'Secretary', 'Department', 'Administration Act')","Self-referential provisions (subsection 1238A(2) refers back to paragraph (1)(a))","Subjective decision-making criteria ('reasonable' estimate, 'circumstances' of non-compliance) without objective standards","Temporal specificity — only applies to 2014-2015 financial year and specific notice compliance periods"],"plain_english_summary":"This law gives the Secretary power to waive certain debts owed by farmers who received Farm Household Support in 2014–15 — specifically where payment rates were based on estimated business income that later proved incorrect, or where farmers initially failed to supply income information but did so after follow‑up. It eases harsh repayment outcomes from unpredictable farm income and helps keep vulnerable farming families afloat."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"This Rule modifies Part 5.4 of the Social Security Act 1991 (clause 4) by inserting ss1238 and 1238A, creating a new, discretionary waiver power specific to debts arising from 2014–15 payments and from non‑compliance with income‑information notices. That inserts an additional relief mechanism not present in the unamended provision, shifting who decides relief (the Secretary) and narrowing scope to the stated circumstances (ss1238–1238A)."},"complexity_factors":["Discretionary power concentrated in the Secretary: both ss1238(1) and 1238A(1) use 'may waive', giving administrative discretion over whether and how much debt to waive.","Retrospective and time‑limited scope: s1238 applies only to debts from payments made in the 2014–2015 financial year, creating a narrow backward‑looking rule (s1238(1)(a)).","Subjective assessment of estimates: s1238(2) requires the Secretary to 'have regard' to an opinion that an income estimate was not reasonable, and s1238(3) allows that opinion to be formed after an earlier contrary view.","Interaction with Administration Act processes: s1238(1)(c) ties debt origin to determinations under Subdivision A of Division 7 of Part 3 of the Social Security (Administration) Act 1999, so recovery/waiver decisions depend on prior administrative determinations.","Compliance‑related condition and remediation path: s1238A(1) permits waiver where a debt arose from non‑compliance with notices under ss68 or 69 of the Administration Act but the person later complied with a subsequent notice, creating an incentive to supply information after initial non‑compliance.","Decision factors and open-ended considerations: s1238A(2) allows the Secretary to regard the circumstances of non‑compliance and any subsequent non‑compliance, and s1238A(3) expressly does not limit other matters the Secretary may consider, increasing uncertainty for applicants.","Delegated/defined terms from other Acts: key terms ('business income', 'Administration Act', 'Department', 'Secretary') are defined elsewhere (note following inserted sections), requiring cross‑reference for full interpretation.","Compliance burden and administrative cost: the rule creates processes for reassessing past estimates and notice compliance, which may increase departmental casework and record review (implied by ss1238 and 1238A requirements).","Commencement and legal effect: rule commences day after registration (clause 2) and operates by modifying Part 5.4 of the Social Security Act 1991 for the Farm Household Support Act 2014 purposes (clause 4), adding legal complexity through statutory amendment rather than standalone provision."],"plain_english_summary":"**What it does:** Allows the Secretary to waive recovery of some or all Farm Household Support debts tied to payments made in 2014–15 when those payments were based on business‑income estimates later judged unreasonable, or where the debt arose from failure to comply with income‑information notices but the person later provided the information (ss1238–1238A).\n\nWho it affects and why it matters: Farmers who received 2014–15 payments and later faced debt assessments; it creates a discretionary relief route while leaving eligibility and scope to departmental decision‑making."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/farm-household-support-waiver-of-debts-minister-s-rule-2016","history":"/api/acts/farm-household-support-waiver-of-debts-minister-s-rule-2016/history","analysis":"/api/acts/farm-household-support-waiver-of-debts-minister-s-rule-2016/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/farm-household-support-waiver-of-debts-minister-s-rule-2016/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/farm-household-support-waiver-of-debts-minister-s-rule-2016/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/farm-household-support-waiver-of-debts-minister-s-rule-2016/documents"}}