{"id":"C2004A04595","name":"Protection of the Sea (Imposition of Contributions to Oil Pollution Compensation Funds—General) Act 1993","slug":"protection-of-the-sea-imposition-of-contributions-to-oil-pollution-compensation-funds-general-act-19","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"40 of 1993","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":38449,"registerId":"commonwealth-C2004A04595-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-01","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Short title [see Note 1]","content":"#### 1 Short title \\[see Note 1\\]\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Protection of the Sea (Imposition of Contributions to Oil Pollution Compensation Funds—General) Act 1993.","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement [see Note 1]","content":"#### 2 Commencement \\[see Note 1\\]\n\n  This Act commences, or is taken to have commenced, as the case requires, on the commencement of Chapter 1 of the Protection of the Sea (Oil Pollution Compensation Funds) Act 1993.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Application of the Protection of the Sea (Oil Pollution Compensation Funds) Act 1993","content":"#### 3 Application of the Protection of the Sea (Oil Pollution Compensation Funds) Act 1993\n\n  Sections 4 and 5 of the Protection of the Sea (Oil Pollution Compensation Funds) Act 1993 apply in relation to this Act in a corresponding way to the way in which they apply in relation to that Act.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Imposition of contributions","content":"#### 4 Imposition of contributions\n\n  (1) Contributions payable under the Protection of the Sea (Oil Pollution Compensation Funds) Act 1993 are imposed.\n  (2) This section imposes contributions only so far as those contributions are neither duties of customs nor duties of excise within the meaning of section 55 of the Constitution.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Act does not impose tax on property of a State","content":"#### 5 Act does not impose tax on property of a State\n\n  (1) This Act does not impose a tax on property of any kind belonging to a State.\n  (2) In this section, property of any kind belonging to a State has the same meaning as in section 114 of the Constitution.","sortOrder":4}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This Act remains tightly focused on its original purpose: providing the constitutional and legal mechanism to impose contributions to oil pollution compensation funds. It has not expanded beyond this narrow technical function since 1993."},"complexity_factors":["Extremely short — only 5 operative sections","No defined terms section (relies entirely on definitions in companion Act)","Minimal conditional logic — essentially one imposition provision with a constitutional safeguard","Heavy reliance on external legislation — the entire operation depends on the Protection of the Sea (Oil Pollution Compensation Funds) Act 1993","Single constitutional carve-out in section 4(2) referencing section 55 of the Constitution","Single reference to section 114 of the Constitution in section 5"],"plain_english_summary":"This law is a **technical companion piece** to another Act about oil spill compensation. Here's what it does:\n\n**The big picture:**\nWhen oil spills happen at sea, cleaning up the mess costs serious money. Australia participates in international schemes (the IOPC Funds) that compensate victims of oil pollution damage. These schemes are funded by contributions (basically levies) paid by companies that receive oil shipments.\n\n**What this specific Act does:**\n\n*   **It formally imposes (creates) the legal obligation** to pay contributions to these international oil pollution compensation funds. The main rules about who pays, how much, and when are in the companion Act (the Protection of the Sea (Oil Pollution Compensation Funds) Act 1993). This Act just makes the charge legally stick.\n\n*   **It navigates constitutional limits:** Section 4(2) is crucial — it ensures the contributions are structured so they don't count as \"customs duties\" or \"excise duties\" under the Constitution. This matters because the Constitution has strict rules about which taxes the Federal Parliament can impose and how they must be structured.\n\n*   **It protects State property:** Section 5 ensures the Commonwealth can't tax property belonging to State governments (a constitutional requirement under section 114 of the Constitution).\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\n*   **Oil receivers/companies** that import or receive oil in Australia — they pay the contributions\n*   **The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA)** — which administers the collection\n*   **Victims of oil spills** — who ultimately benefit from the compensation funds\n\n**Why it matters:**\nWithout this technical Act, Australia couldn't legally collect money for the international oil pollution funds. It's the legal foundation that lets Australia participate in global efforts to ensure oil spill victims get compensated, even when the polluter can't pay or disappears."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act remains tightly focused on its original narrow purpose: constitutionally imposing the contributions established under the companion Oil Pollution Compensation Funds Act 1993. No scope expansion or drift is evident. It does exactly what a levy imposition act is designed to do — nothing more."},"complexity_factors":["Requires cross-referencing a companion Act to understand any substantive obligations — this Act has no standalone meaning","Constitutional references (sections 55 and 114 of the Constitution) require background legal knowledge to interpret correctly","The distinction between customs duties, excise duties, and general levies is a nuanced area of constitutional law","The Act's purpose is procedural/constitutional rather than directly regulatory, which can confuse non-lawyers about why it exists","Short and sparse — but deceptive simplicity, as each clause carries significant constitutional weight"],"plain_english_summary":"This short Act is a technical, constitutional companion to the Oil Pollution Compensation Funds Act 1993: it gives legal force to the financial contributions payable into international oil-pollution compensation funds. It mainly affects oil importers and those who receive oil by sea in Australia, and exists solely to meet constitutional requirements—excluding customs/excise and charges on State-owned property—so the levy collection is legally valid."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act does not expand or narrow the substantive contribution regime in the Funds Act; it simply imposes those contributions and records two limits (no customs/excise character and no tax on State property). The substantive definitions, rates and recipient arrangements remain governed by the Funds Act (s3–5)."},"complexity_factors":["Direct cross‑references to another statute (Protection of the Sea (Oil Pollution Compensation Funds) Act 1993) create dependency for substantive rules and definitions (s3).","Constitutional limits referenced: excludes creation of customs/excise duties and excludes taxation of State property, invoking interpretive issues tied to ss 55 and 114 of the Constitution (s4(2), s5).","Very short, largely operative/confirmatory text—low internal statutory complexity but greater reliance on external instruments and constitutional interpretation.","Potential commencement timing dependency: ties operative effect to commencement of Chapter 1 of the Funds Act (s2)."],"plain_english_summary":"This Act makes the contribution obligations provided for in the Protection of the Sea (Oil Pollution Compensation Funds) Act 1993 legally enforceable. Payers are those defined as contributors under the Funds Act; the contributions are imposed by this Act (s3–4). The imposition is limited so it does not create customs or excise duties (s4(2)) and it does not tax property of a State (s5). The Act commences with Chapter 1 of the Funds Act (s2)."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/protection-of-the-sea-imposition-of-contributions-to-oil-pollution-compensation-funds-general-act-19","history":"/api/acts/protection-of-the-sea-imposition-of-contributions-to-oil-pollution-compensation-funds-general-act-19/history","analysis":"/api/acts/protection-of-the-sea-imposition-of-contributions-to-oil-pollution-compensation-funds-general-act-19/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/protection-of-the-sea-imposition-of-contributions-to-oil-pollution-compensation-funds-general-act-19/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/protection-of-the-sea-imposition-of-contributions-to-oil-pollution-compensation-funds-general-act-19/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/protection-of-the-sea-imposition-of-contributions-to-oil-pollution-compensation-funds-general-act-19/documents"}}