Measures to Reduce Charities’ Red Tape and Reporting Duplication
3 July 2017 at 2:59 pm
More than 600 charities registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profit Commission in the ACT are no longer required to duplicate reporting to the ACT government.
A memorandum of understanding between the ACNC and Access Canberra, signed on Thursday, means that from 1 July information shared to the ACNC by a charity will automatically be shared with ACT government.
Access Canberra’s deputy director-general Dave Peffer said the Red Tape Reduction Legislation Amendment Act 2017, would save charities time in removing duplication in reporting.
“What this means in practice is less paperwork for charities and more time for them to do what they do best: supporting our community,” Peffer said.
“From 1 July 2017, those charities registered with the ACNC that undertake fundraising will no longer need a charitable collection licence in the ACT and will only need to submit their Annual Information Statement once, to the ACNC.”
The move makes the ACNC the primary regulator for charities operating in the ACT.
ACNC’s commissioner Susan Pascoe welcomed the amendment and encouraged other states and territories to come on board.
“The ACNC and ACT government have worked closely for an extended period to develop and deliver these reforms,” Pascoe said.
“Beginning almost immediately, the ACT’s registered charities will benefit from the removal of arrangements that required duplicative reporting to two different regulators.
“The ACNC will continue to work with other state and territory governments to implement similar reforms for the benefit of Australia’s registered charities and the community.”
A similar move was made by South Australia in December last year which saw it become the first state to streamline reporting and reduce reporting duplication between the ACNC and the state.
