What it does
Mechanically, the Salaries and Allowances Act 1975 establishes and governs the Salaries and Allowances Tribunal (the Tribunal) and prescribes the Tribunal’s powers, processes and scope to inquire into, determine or report on remuneration and certain entitlements for a wide array of public offices in Western Australia. Key structural features are: the Tribunal is composed of three members appointed by the Governor (s 5(2)); members hold office for up to three years and may be reappointed (s 5(3)); the Chairperson is appointed by the Governor from among the members (s 5(8)); and members are paid fees and allowances as determined by the Governor (s 5(6)).
Substantively, the Act gives the Tribunal a statutory duty to inquire and determine remuneration for Ministers of the Crown and Parliamentary Secretaries, officers and members of Parliament, certain senior public service officers in the Special Division, university council and senate members identified in s 6(1)(ea), chief executive officers (CEOs) of local governments (s 7A), fees/allowances for local government councillors and committee members (ss 7B, 7BAA), executive officers and directors of prescribed Government entities (ss 7C, 7D, Schedule 2), and allowances for audit and risk committee director-members of certain Government Trading Enterprises (s 7E). It also requires the Tribunal to inquire into and report on judicial remuneration (s 7) and to determine Governor remuneration on the Premier’s pre-appointment request (s 5A). The Act imposes publication, commencement and payment mechanics: determinations and reports must be in writing and signed by members, published in the Government Gazette (ss 5A(4)(a)-(c), 6(2)-(3)), and remuneration payable under determinations is to be paid notwithstanding other laws and charged to the Consolidated Account (ss 5A(8), 6(4)).
The Act prescribes procedure and investigatory powers: the Tribunal may inform itself in any manner it thinks fit, receive written or oral statements, is not bound by rules of evidence, and has the powers of a Royal Commission under the Royal Commissions Act 1968 for purposes of its inquiries (s 10(1)-(2)). Meeting and decision rules are in s 9, with a quorum of two members (s 9B), and the Act allows written resolutions that have the same effect as a meeting (s 9A).