Part 1Preliminary

Part 1—Preliminary 1—Short title This Act may be cited as the Fines Enforcement and Debt Recovery Act 2017. 3—Interpretation (1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears— approved treatment program means a treatment program of a prescribed kind that has been approved by the Minister for the purposes of this definition; approved treatment program manager means a person who has general oversight of approved treatment programs and coordinates the implementation of relevant court orders and relevant determinations of the Chief Recovery Officer (and includes a delegate of such a person); authorised officer means— (a) the Sheriff; or (b) the Chief Recovery Officer; or (c) a Registrar of the Magistrates Court; or (d) the Registrar of the Youth Court; or (e) a person appointed under section 67 as an authorised officer; bond means an agreement (not being a bail agreement) entered into pursuant to the sentence of a court under which the defendant undertakes to the Crown to comply with the conditions of the agreement; case manager means a person responsible for supervision of a person's participation in an approved treatment program; council means a council constituted under the Local Government Act 1999; court means a court of criminal jurisdiction; Court means— (a) in relation to a debtor who is a youth or an expiation notice issued to a person who was under the age of 18 years at the time of the alleged offence—the Youth Court; (b) in relation to any other debtor or expiation notice—the Magistrates Court; debtor means (other than in Part 8) the person by whom a pecuniary sum is payable; driver's licence means a licence under the Motor Vehicles Act 1959; expiation notice means an expiation notice under the Expiation of Offences Act 1996; expiation period means the period specified in an expiation notice for payment of the expiation fee (in the absence of an arrangement under section 20); issuing authority, in relation to an expiation notice, means— (a) if the notice is given by a police officer—the Commissioner of Police; or (b) in any other case—the Minister, statutory authority or council on whose behalf the notice is given; land means, according to the context— (a) land as a physical entity, including— (i) any building or structure on, or improvement to, land (whether affixed to the land or not); and (ii) land covered by water and, in such a case, the overlying water; and (iii) a lot under the Community Titles Act 1996 or a unit under the Strata Titles Act 1988; or (b) a legal estate or interest in, or right in respect of, land; ordinary business hours means the hours between 9 am and 5 pm on any day other than a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday; pecuniary sum means an amount payable pursuant to an order or direction of a court in proceedings relating to an offence, and includes— (a) a fine; and (b) compensation; and (c) costs; and (d) a sum payable pursuant to a bond or to a guarantee ancillary to a bond; and (e) a VIC levy imposed on a person on conviction of an offence; personal details, in relation to a person, means— (a) the person's full name; and (b) any former name of the person (including, if relevant, the person's maiden name); and (c) any alias of the person; and (d) the person's date of birth; and (e) the address of where the person is living; and (f) the address of where the person usually lives; and (g) any former residential address of the person in the previous 5 years; and (h) the person's business address; and (i) the name and address of the person's employer; protected person has the same meaning as in the Intervention Orders (Prevention of Abuse) Act 2009; public sector agency has the same meaning as in the Public Sector Act 2009; VIC levy means a levy imposed under the Victims of Crime Act 2001 or a corresponding previous law. (2) For the purposes of this Act— (a) enforcement action includes a penalty enforcement order made under the Criminal Law (Sentencing) Act 1988 as in force before the commencement of section 11 of the Statutes Amendment (Fines Enforcement and Recovery) Act 2013; and (b) a debtor is subject to a suppression order if a suppression order forbidding publication of the debtor's name was made in the proceedings in which the pecuniary sum was imposed on the debtor and the order has not subsequently been revoked. (3) Unless the contrary intention appears— (a) a reference in this Act to a pecuniary sum includes a reference to— (i) the amount outstanding of such a sum or, if a number of pecuniary sums have been aggregated, the amount outstanding of the aggregated sums; and (ii) any fees, charges or other amounts which are, in accordance with this Act, added to and form part of such a sum; and (b) a reference in this Act to an amount due under an expiation notice includes a reference to— (i) the amount outstanding under the notice or, if a number of amounts have been aggregated, the amount outstanding of the aggregated amounts; and (ii) any fees, charges or other amounts which are, in accordance with this Act, added to and form part of such amount. (4) Subject to this Act, a person expiates an offence if a person pays all of the amounts due under the expiation notice (including any levy payable under the Victims of Crime Act 2001) or such amounts are recovered from the person in accordance with this Act or the Expiation of Offences Act 1996.