Consultation Regulation Impact Statement

The Attorney-General’s Department (AGD) invites the community and businesses to provide comment on four options that serve to reduce the national security risks posed by chemicals of security concern. Public consultation is an important part of the Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) process, which analyses the costs and benefits of policy options to reduce the national security risks posed by 11 precursor chemicals to homemade explosives.

The Consultation Regulation Impact Statement is available for download through the following links:

Submissions

Submissions will be accepted over an eight week period from Friday 3 February 2012 to Friday 30 March 2012.

All submissions, whether lodged by email or by post, must be accompanied by a separate submission cover sheet. The cover sheet contains important information that will assist AGD in compiling stakeholder feedback.

Detailed instructions on how to lodge a submission are available through the following links. Please review this information before lodging your submission:

The submission cover sheet is available through the following links. Please ensure the cover sheet is attached as a separate document to your submission:

Acceptance of submissions for publication on a website

In meeting the Australian Government’s commitment to enhancing the accessibility of published material, the Attorney-General’s Department will only publish submissions that have been submitted electronically. The following formats are preferred:

  1. Microsoft Word
  2. Rich Text Format (RTF), or
  3. txt format

Please limit individual file size to less than 5MB. The Department may create PDF documents from the above formats.

Hardcopy submissions received by mail or fax will still be considered, however they will not be published on the website.

Businesses affected by the proposed measures

As part of the public consultation, members of the community and businesses involved in the import, manufacture, processing, transport, sale or end-use of the precursor chemicals are invited to provide feedback on the options. The precursor chemicals being considered as part of the consultation process are:

  • Ammonium perchlorate
  • Hydrogen peroxide
  • Nitric acid
  • Nitromethane
  • Potassium chlorate
  • Potassium nitrate
  • Potassium perchlorate
  • Sodium azide
  • Sodium chlorate
  • Sodium nitrate 
  • Sodium perchlorate

Treatment measures for the remaining Chemicals of Security Concern will be considered as part of future consultation processes.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is a Regulation Impact Statement?

A Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) is a public document with two key purposes:

  1. To allow Government decision makers to be informed by a balanced assessment of the best available information, and
  2. To inform the community about the likely impact of a proposal and the information taken into account by Government in reaching a decision.

A RIS must identify a problem, investigate feasible options to address the problem, analyse the costs, benefits and associated risks of these options and incorporate stakeholder input. These requirements are set out in guidance documents on the Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) website.

All Council of Australian Governments (COAG) RIS documents require approval by OBPR. This happens at two stages: before the Consultation RIS is released for public consultation and once a final Decision RIS has been prepared.
Stakeholder feedback gathered during the public consultation period will inform the drafting of the Decision RIS. Once complete, OBPR will assess the Decision RIS, and if approved, the Decision RIS will be provided to the Commonwealth Attorney-General and responsible State and Territory Ministers for their consideration.

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Are control measures needed for commonly available chemicals?

The Consultation RIS identifies several gaps in current arrangements – including the ease of legitimate access to chemicals of security concern. The Consultation RIS puts forward several options that aim to minimise, as low as reasonably practicable, the risk of terrorists and criminals acquiring precursor chemicals to homemade explosives.

As seen in terrorist attacks around the world, commonly available chemicals have been used to make homemade explosives that can rival commercial explosives. Terrorists have used homemade explosives to cause casualties, fatalities and large scale damage to property, and intelligence from Australia and the international community shows that terrorist organisations continue to be interested in chemicals that can be used to make bombs or toxic weapons.

In October 2008, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) agreed to establish the Chemical Security Management Framework (the Framework) to outline Australian governments’ approach to managing the risks posed by chemicals of security concern.

As part of the Framework, risk assessments were undertaken for each precursor chemical, and control measures were drafted to address vulnerabilities within the supply chain.

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What are the proposed control measures?

A full copy of the proposed measures is available for download at the following links:

Further information on the proposed measures is contained within the Consultation RIS.
Depending on which option is preferred, the types of things businesses might expect to undertake include:

  • Employee and contractor checking
  • Personnel security awareness
  • Inventory control procedures
  • Receipt of chemical procedures
  • Theft and diversion procedures
  • Physical access controls
  • Personnel access controls
  • Point of Sale procedures
  • Sale and distribution procedures, and
  • Consignment control/tracking

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How were the proposed control measures developed?

The Attorney-General's Department drafted the proposed measures based on vulnerabilities identified through risk assessments conducted using the Chemical Security Risk Assessment Methodology (CSRAM). The CSRAM was developed in partnership with State and Territory governments, industry and relevant law enforcement and intelligence agencies and assesses the security risk on four factors:

  • Level of security concern
  • Impact
  • Employability, and
  • Vulnerability

The proposed measures have been endorsed by the National Government Advisory Group (NGAG) on Chemicals of Security Concern. The NGAG is made up of representatives from the Commonwealth and all States and Territory governments.

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Who might be affected by the proposed control measures?

The proposed control measures cover many businesses in the chemical supply chain including importers, processors, wholesalers, transporters, retailers and commercial end-users.

The wide availability and variety of uses of products containing the precursor chemicals means that a large number of businesses are likely to be affected by the proposed measures. The background document outlines some of the main uses of these chemicals in Australia:

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How can I provide comments on the Consultation RIS?

Details on how you can make a submission are contained in the “Instructions For Making a Submission” document – available for download on the right hand side of this page.
Submissions must be received by the Attorney-General’s Department by close of business on Friday 30 March 2012. Submissions can be made in two ways:

  • By email to Chemical.Security.RIS@ag.gov.au (preferred) or
  • By post, to:

    ATTN:  Mr Mark Whitechurch
    Chemical Security RIS
    Attorney-General’s Department
    3-5 National Circuit
    BARTON  ACT  2600

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Who will read my submission?

Your submission will be read by the Attorney-General’s Department and PricewaterhouseCoopers – the consultant that drafted the Consultation RIS. All submissions will be made publicly available on this website, unless confidentiality is requested.

Any request made under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Commonwealth) for access to a submission marked ‘confidential’ will be determined in accordance with that Act.

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What happens after the public consultation period?

The information contained in the Consultation RIS and feedback provided during the public consultation process will form the basis of a Decision RIS. The Decision RIS is the final document that identifies the option that would most effectively and efficiently reduce the risk of terrorists gaining access to precursor chemicals. The Decision RIS will include a list of stakeholders that were consulted and a summary of views.

The Decision RIS will be forwarded to the Office of Best Practice Regulation to ensure it meets the requirements set out in the COAG best practice regulation guide.

Once approved by OBPR, the Decision RIS will be presented to the Commonwealth Attorney-General and responsible Ministers in each jurisdiction for their final decision about which option to implement.

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When will the final decision be made?

The Decision RIS is expected to be completed by the end of July 2012. A copy of the final document will be available on this website and on the OBPR website at www.obpr.gov.au.

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How can I keep updated on future developments in chemical security?

If you are interested in receiving information on policy updates regarding chemical security, please subscribe to our newsgroup by emailing your name and organisation to Chemical.Security.News@ag.gov.au.

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National Security Hotline: 1800 123 400, or Email:hotline@nationalsecurity.gov.au If you see people handling or purchasing chemicals in a way that doesn't seem right, call the National Security Hotline: 1800 123 400, or Email: hotline@nationalsecurity.gov.au

 

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