State Penalties Enforcement Amendment Bill 2017

Introduced: 2/3/2017By: Hon C Pitt MPStatus: PASSED with amendment

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Plain English Summary

Overview

This bill overhauls how Queensland collects unpaid fines through the State Penalties Enforcement Registry (SPER). It creates Work and Development Orders so people in hardship can clear their fines through unpaid work, medical treatment, counselling or courses instead of paying cash, while giving SPER stronger tools against people who refuse to engage.

Who it affects

Anyone with unpaid Queensland fines is affected: people experiencing hardship get new non-monetary options and flexible payment plans, while those ignoring SPER face longer vehicle immobilisation, direct bank account garnishment and easier wage deductions.

Key changes

Creates Work and Development Orders letting people in hardship clear fines through unpaid work, mental health or medical treatment, drug or alcohol treatment, counselling, life skills courses, or mentoring — supervised by approved community organisations
Expands eligibility for non-monetary debt discharge to cover mental illness, cognitive or intellectual disability, homelessness, substance use disorder, and domestic and family violence (not just financial hardship)
Replaces rigid per-debt arrangements with flexible case-managed payment plans, so new fines can be rolled into an existing plan
Lets SPER order your bank to pay a lump sum directly from your account, subject to a minimum protected balance
Extends the maximum period a vehicle can be immobilised from 5 days to 14 days before it is seized and sold
Removes the requirement for SPER to verify a debtor's financial situation before garnishing wages
Allows SPER to share penalty debt information with Queensland Police, interstate and federal law enforcement agencies for prescribed purposes
Moves initial disputes about not receiving an infringement notice back to the issuing council or agency rather than SPER

How this affects you

Justice & Rights

•If you have unpaid fines and can't afford to pay, you can clear them by doing unpaid work, attending treatment, counselling or a life skills course through an approved community organisationClause 24 (new Part 3B, s 32G)A work and development order requires a person to undertake unpaid work, medical or mental health treatment, educational courses, counselling, drug or alcohol treatment, or (for under-25s) mentoring to satisfy SPER debt.
•If you ignore SPER, your car can be immobilised for up to 14 days before it is seized and sold, doubling the previous 5-day windowClause 59 (amending s 108O)Extends the maximum immobilisation period from five days to 14 days.
•SPER can now direct your bank to pay a lump sum from your account, not just a regular redirectionClause 44 (amending s 75) and Clause 47 (new Division 6A)Adds a new type of fine collection notice directing a financial institution to pay an amount from money held for the debtor, subject to a protected minimum account balance prescribed by regulation.
•If you think you never got the original infringement notice, you dispute it with the council or agency that issued it, not SPERClause 37 (new s 56)Disputes about not receiving an infringement notice are decided by the administering authority; SPER only decides disputes about its own enforcement orders.

Cost of Living

•People in financial hardship can apply for a flexible payment plan covering all their SPER debts instead of being chased for each fine separatelyClause 23 (new Part 3A)Introduces payment plans at a case level, with new debts able to be added to an existing plan rather than triggering separate enforcement.
•The registrar can waive or refund SPER fees for people experiencing hardship, and fees are simplified to a single charge per enforcement actionClause 77 (new s 150AA)Allows the registrar to waive or return all or part of any fee payable under the Act in circumstances prescribed by regulation, such as debtor hardship.
•SPER can take money directly from your wages without first being satisfied about your financial circumstances, making it easier to garnish pay if you don't engageClause 45 (amending s 79)Removes the requirement for the registrar to be satisfied of the debtor's personal financial circumstances before issuing a fine collection notice for redirection of earnings.

Health

•You can clear your fines through medical or mental health treatment, drug and alcohol treatment, or counselling if you have a mental illness, cognitive or intellectual disability or substance use disorderClause 24 (new s 32G and s 32H)Eligibility for work and development orders includes mental illness, cognitive or intellectual disability, substance use disorder, homelessness, and domestic and family violence.
•Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living in remote areas can clear fines through culturally appropriate programsClause 24 (new s 32G(1)(g))For a person who is an Aborigine or Torres Strait Islander and lives in a remote area, a culturally appropriate program may be undertaken to satisfy SPER debt.
•Registered health practitioners, psychologists and nurse practitioners can become approved sponsors who supervise treatment plans that discharge finesClause 24 (new s 32G(3))A health practitioner for these orders includes a medical practitioner, a psychologist, or a nurse practitioner endorsed under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law.

Bill Journey

Introduced2 Mar 2017

First Reading

Committee

Committee Report28 Apr 2017

Committee report tabled

Second Reading

In Detail

Third Reading

Royal Assent19 May 2017

Referenced Entities

Sectors Affected

Community Services Financial Services Mental Health Courts Criminal Law

Classified using AGIFT/ANZSIC Australian government standards

State Penalties Enforcement Amendment Bill 2017

Plain English Summary

Overview

Who it affects

Key changes

Bill Journey

Referenced Entities

Legislation

Organisations

Programs & Schemes

Roles & Offices

Sectors Affected

Source Documents