Social Services (No. 2)

No. 61 of 1967

An Act relating to Child Endowment.

[Assented to 18 September 1967]

BE it enacted by the Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty, the Senate, and the House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Australia, as follows:—

Short title and citation.

1.—(1.) This Act may be cited as the Social Services Act (No. 2) 1967.

(2.) The Social Services Act 1947–1966, as amended by the Social Services Act 1967, is in this Act referred to as the Principal Act.

(3.) Section 1 of the Social Services Act 1967 is amended by omitting sub-section (3.).

(4.) The Principal Act, as amended by this Act, may be cited as the Social Services Act 1947–1967.

Commencement.

2. This Act shall come into operation on the nineteenth day of September, One thousand nine hundred and sixty-seven.

Child endowment.

3. Section 95 of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by omitting sub-section (2.) and inserting in its stead the following sub-sections:—

“(1a.) The rate at which an endowment is payable is the rate applicable from time to time in accordance with this section.

“(2.) The rate of endowment in respect of a child under the age of sixteen years in respect of whom an endowment is payable to a person other than an institution is—

(a) where the child is the only such child, or where there are two or more such children and the child is the elder or eldest of them—Fifty cents per week;

(b) where there are two or more such children and the child is the younger or second eldest of them—One dollar per week;

(c) where there are three or more such children and the child is the third eldest of them—One dollar fifty cents per week; and

(d) where there are four or more such children and the child is not one of the three eldest of them—an amount per week that exceeds by Twenty-five cents the amount payable in respect of the next elder of those children”; and

(b) by adding at the end thereof the following sub-section:—

“(8.) Where an endowment granted in respect of a child is payable from a date before the date on which it is granted, the endowment shall, for the purposes of calculating the rate of an endowment in respect of a younger child, be deemed to have become payable on the date from which it is payable.”.

4. Sections 103a to 103d (inclusive) of the Principal Act are repealed and the following sections inserted in their stead:—

Adjustment of rates where child becomes student child.

“103a. Where a child in respect of whom an endowment is payable becomes a student child, the rate of the endowment in respect of that child or any other child is not affected by reason of that event in respect of the endowment period during which the child becomes a student child.

Adjustment of rates where there is a non-endowed child in family.

“103b. In respect of any period during which an endowee has the custody, care and control of a child under the age of sixteen years in respect of whom endowment is not payable (in this section referred to as ‘the excluded child’), the Director-General may, if he thinks fit, authorize payment, in respect of every child under the age of sixteen years in respect of whom endowment is payable to the endowee, of endowment at the rate that would be applicable—

(a) if the excluded child were a child in respect of whom endowment is payable; and

(b) where the excluded child is not older than every child under the age of sixteen years in respect of whom endowment is payable to the endowee—if the excluded child were older than every such child.”.

Payment of endowment during temporary absence from Australia.

5. Section 104 of the Principal Act is amended by adding at the end of sub-section (3.) the words “but, where an endowment would, but for this sub-section, be payable in respect of a child (in this sub-section referred to as ‘the excluded child’), an endowment in respect of any other child is, subject to section one hundred and three b of this Act, payable at the rate that would be applicable if an endowment were payable in respect of the excluded child.”.

Saving.

6. The amendments made by this Act shall not be taken to affect the rate at which any endowment is payable in respect of an endowment period that ended before the date of commencement of this Act.