79Limitation on service giving certificates—reporting period limit

#### 79 Limitation on service giving certificates—reporting period limit (1) An approved child care service providing care to a child may not give, in a particular reporting period, a certificate under section 76 (child at risk or hardship) in respect of a session of care provided by the service to a child if: (a) the service has already, by certificates given under section 76, committed amounts of child care benefit in respect of that child, or in respect of other children, during the same reporting period; and (b) the total amount of child care benefit so committed by the service in relation to that child and those other children, exceeds the reporting period limit for that reporting period (whether the sessions of care to which the commitment relates occur before, during or after the reporting period). Reporting period limit (2) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(b), the reporting period limit, for a reporting period (the subject reporting period) means: (a) 18% of the total amount of child care benefit payable in relation to all care provided by the service during the reference reporting period (see subsection (3)); or (b) if the Secretary determines that paragraph (a) is inappropriate to the circumstances of the service—an amount determined by the Secretary in relation to the subject reporting period. Reference reporting period (3) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(a), the reporting period that is the reference reporting period in relation to the subject reporting period is not the reporting period (the previous reporting period) immediately before the subject reporting period. It is the reporting period immediately preceding the previous reporting period. Secretary may specify a higher percentage for paragraph (2)(a) (4) The Secretary may specify a higher percentage for the purposes of paragraph (2)(a) in relation to an approved child care service and a reporting period. References in subsection (1) to child care benefit (5) The references in paragraphs (1)(a) and (b) to child care benefit are references to: (a) if an individual is conditionally eligible for child care benefit by fee reduction in respect of the child—to fee reductions; and (b) if the service is eligible for child care benefit by fee reduction in respect of the child—to child care benefit.