Clean Energy Legislation (Carbon Tax Repeal) Act 2014

Carbon unit. Under the repealed Clean Energy Act 2011, a carbon unit was a tradeable instrument that an entity with a carbon liability had to surrender in proportion to its greenhouse gas emissions. Schedule 1 removed all references to carbon units from Commonwealth legislation and provided transitional rules for units held at the time of repeal.

Carbon liability. The obligation that arose under the Clean Energy Act 2011 for "liable entities" (large emitters) to surrender carbon units. Schedule 1 addressed what happened to outstanding liabilities at the time of repeal.

Carbon tax price reduction obligation. A new regulatory obligation inserted into the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 by Schedule 2. Businesses that had passed on the carbon cost to customers were required to pass on the savings to customers after the repeal. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) was given enforcement powers.

Designated carbon unit day. A defined date used in the transitional provisions. Carbon units issued before that day were treated under transitional rules in Schedule 1.

Clean Energy Regulator. The Commonwealth regulatory body established under the Clean Energy Regulator Act 2011. Schedule 1's transitional provisions gave the Clean Energy Regulator continuing functions in relation to pre-repeal liabilities, registry obligations, and compliance.

Australian National Registry of Emissions Units (ANREU). The registry for carbon units, Australian carbon credit units, Kyoto units, and prescribed international units under the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011. Schedule 1 amended the ANREU Act to remove carbon units but retained the registry for remaining instrument types.

Conservation tillage offset. An income tax offset under Subdivision 385-J of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 that was linked to the carbon pricing system. Schedule 3 repealed this subdivision.

ARENA. The Australian Renewable Energy Agency, which provides funding for renewable energy research and development. Schedule 5 adjusted ARENA's yearly maximum payment amounts under the Australian Renewable Energy Agency Act 2011.

Large emitters (liable entities under the Clean Energy Act 2011): The primary intended beneficiaries of the repeal. Schedule 1 removed their carbon pricing obligations from 1 July 2014. Transitional provisions in various amended Acts (such as Part 20 of the Clean Energy Act 2011 as it continued to apply post-repeal, and Part 10.23 of the Corporations Act 2001) governed outstanding liabilities.

Businesses that passed on carbon costs (regulated by Schedule 2): The carbon tax price reduction obligation applied to businesses in the electricity, gas, and other regulated sectors that had included carbon costs in their pricing. These businesses were required to demonstrate price reductions to the ACCC.

Steel manufacturers: Schedule 4 repealed the Steel Transformation Plan Act 2011. Steel companies that had been receiving assistance under the Plan ceased to receive that assistance.

Conservation tillage farmers: Schedule 3 removed the income tax offset for no-till farming practices that had been linked to the carbon pricing incentive framework.

ARENA: Schedule 5 adjusted ARENA's funding levels, with implications for its grant-making capacity over the following financial years.

Carbon market participants: Entities holding Kyoto units, Australian carbon credit units, or other units in the ANREU were not affected by the repeal of carbon units per se. Those other instruments continued to exist in the registry.

Commonwealth financial services licensees holding carbon units: Sections 1542 to 1546 of the Corporations Act 2001 (as inserted by Schedule 2 transitional provisions) governed the variation and cancellation of financial services licences that had been authorised to deal in carbon units.

Schedule 2 (price reduction obligation): Part V of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, inserted by Schedule 2, imposed obligations on regulated businesses to reduce prices to consumers. The ACCC was empowered to monitor, investigate, and take action against businesses that did not pass on the savings. This was an enforcement-backed regulatory obligation, not merely a guideline.

Schedule 1 transitional obligations: Liable entities with outstanding carbon liabilities at the repeal date were required to comply with the transitional provisions. The Clean Energy Regulator retained jurisdiction over pre-repeal compliance matters.

ARENA Schedule 5: ARENA's board was subject to the amended funding table, which specified maximum annual payments for financial years through 2019-20 and beyond.

ACCC: Given enforcement powers under the Part V price reduction obligation inserted by Schedule 2. Could investigate non-compliance and take action under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 framework.

Clean Energy Regulator: Retained transitional functions under Schedule 1's provisions to manage outstanding liabilities, registry matters, and compliance for the period following repeal.

Governor-General: Section 3 of the amending Act applied each schedule as specified in that schedule. The commencement provisions gave the Governor-General no residual discretion; the main provisions all commenced on Royal Assent or on 1 July 2014 by operation of the table in section 2.

Financial services licensee holders: Under the Corporations Act transitional provisions (sections 1542 to 1546), holders of financial services licences previously authorised to deal in carbon units had limited rights to respond to variation or cancellation decisions during the transitional period.

Schedule 2 (price reduction obligation): The Part V obligations in the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 were backed by the competition and consumer enforcement regime. The ACCC could seek injunctions, pecuniary penalties, and other remedies under that framework for non-compliance.

Schedule 1 transitional compliance: Entities that failed to comply with pre-repeal obligations relating to carbon units remained subject to the Clean Energy Act 2011 as it continued to apply under the transitional provisions.

Conservation tillage (Schedule 3): The repeal of Subdivision 385-J of the ITAA 1997 applied to assessments for periods beginning on or after the commencement of Schedule 3. No penalties; it was a legislative removal of an entitlement.

Commencement: Sections 1 to 3 commenced on Royal Assent (17 July 2014). Schedule 1 and Schedules 3 to 5 all commenced on 1 July 2014 (retrospectively). Schedule 2 commenced the day after Royal Assent (18 July 2014).

Price reduction obligation (Schedule 2): Took effect from 18 July 2014. Businesses were required to reduce prices from that date to reflect the removal of carbon costs.

Conservation tillage offset (Schedule 3): The repeal applied to assessments for periods beginning on or after the commencement of Schedule 3 (1 July 2014).

Transitional regulations: Schedule 1 empowered the making of transitional regulations to manage the transition from the carbon pricing to the post-repeal framework.

Clean Energy Act 2011 (repealed by Schedule 1): The fundamental substantive interaction. Schedule 1 repealed the whole of the Clean Energy Act 2011 and five associated charging Acts. The Clean Energy Act 2011 as it continued to apply post-repeal for outstanding liabilities was governed by the Part 20 transitional provisions inserted into that Act.

Competition and Consumer Act 2010: Schedule 2 inserted Part V into this Act creating the carbon tax price reduction obligation and the Division 5 enforcement framework.

Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011: Amended by Schedule 1 to remove carbon units from the registry while retaining it for other instruments.

Corporations Act 2001: Schedule 1 inserted transitional provisions (Part 10.23) addressing the variation and cancellation of financial services licences previously covering carbon units (sections 1542 to 1546).

Income Tax Assessment Act 1997: Schedule 3 removed Subdivision 385-J (conservation tillage offset) and related items.

Australian Renewable Energy Agency Act 2011: Schedule 5 amended the funding table to adjust ARENA's yearly maximum payments.

A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999: Schedule 1 amended the definitions of "eligible Australian carbon credit unit" and "eligible emissions unit" to remove references to carbon units.

Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006: Schedule 1 removed references to carbon units from the AML/CTF Act's definition of "designated service".

Renewable Energy (Electricity) Act 2000: Amended by Schedule 1 to remove references to carbon units in the context of the renewable energy certificates regime.

National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act 2007: Amended by Schedule 1 to remove references to carbon pricing but retained the greenhouse and energy reporting framework itself.

The source text is approximately 10 times duplicated. The 1.9 million character source file contains approximately 200,000 characters of unique operative content, repeated about ten times. This is a source data issue, not a feature of the Act. Any analysis should be based on the unique operative content.

The Act is historically complete. The carbon tax framework was repealed over a decade ago. No ongoing obligations arise from the Act itself. The price reduction obligations in Schedule 2 applied in 2014 and would have been resolved through ACCC enforcement processes. Legal practitioners should not expect to find ongoing rights or obligations in this Act.

The National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting framework was NOT repealed. The NGER Act 2007 and its reporting obligations survived the repeal. Large facilities are still required to report greenhouse and energy data under the NGER Act. The repeal applied only to the carbon pricing mechanism built on top of that framework.

The ANREU registry survived. The Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011 was amended but not repealed. The registry continued to record Australian carbon credit units (ACCUs), Kyoto units, and prescribed international units. Participants in the voluntary carbon market and the Carbon Farming Initiative were not affected by the removal of carbon units from the registry.

Transitional provisions in amended Acts may still have residual effects. The Part 10.23 transitional provisions in the Corporations Act 2001 (inserted by Schedule 1) covered the variation of financial services licences. Any regulatory history from 2014 relating to those licences should be checked against those provisions.

Post-repeal carbon unit liability: A company held uncancelled carbon units at the time of repeal. The transitional provisions in the Clean Energy Act 2011 (Part 20) determined the treatment of those units. The Clean Energy Regulator remained the relevant authority.

Price reduction complaint in 2014: A retail energy customer complained that their electricity retailer had not passed on the carbon tax savings after 1 July 2014. The customer could make a complaint to the ACCC, which was empowered under the Part V price reduction obligation inserted by Schedule 2 into the Competition and Consumer Act 2010.

Financial services licence adjustment: A financial services licensee held a licence that authorised dealing in carbon units. Sections 1542 to 1546 of the Corporations Act 2001 (as inserted by Schedule 1) governed what happened to that authorisation: the AFSL was varied to remove the carbon unit authorisation, and the licensee was given a statement of reasons for any cancellation.

Conservation tillage assessment: A farmer had claimed the conservation tillage offset in their 2013-14 tax return. The offset continued to apply for that year. For 2014-15 and later years, Subdivision 385-J was no longer available.