Telecommunications Carrier Licence Charges (Annual Charges) Determination (No. 2) 2023

Adam Suckling

[signed]

Member

Brendan Byrne

[signed]

Member/General Manager

1  Name

 This is the Telecommunications Carrier Licence Charges (Annual Charges) Determination (No. 2) 2023.

2  Commencement

(1) This instrument commences on the later of:

(a) the start of the day after the day it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislation; and

(b) immediately after the commencement of the Telecommunications Carrier Licence Charges (Specification of Costs by the ACMA) Determination (No. 2) 2023.

Note 1: The Federal Register of Legislation may be accessed free of charge at www.legislation.gov.au.

Note 2: The Telecommunications Carrier Licence Charges (Specification of Costs by the ACMA) Determination (No. 2) 2023 commences on 11 December 2023.

(2) However, this instrument does not commence at all unless both of the events mentioned in paragraphs (1)(a) and (b) occur.

3  Authority

 This instrument is made under subsection 14(1) of the Telecommunications (Carrier Licence Charges) Act 1997.

4  Repeal of this instrument

 This instrument is repealed at the start of 1 July 2025.

5  Application

 This instrument applies to carrier licences that were in force at the beginning of the 2022-2023 financial year.

6  Definitions

  In this instrument:

ACCC means the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.

Act means the Telecommunications (Carrier Licence Charges) Act 1997.

carrier licence means a carrier licence to which this instrument applies, as provided by section 5.

carrier licence charge means a charge within the meaning of Part 3 of the Act.

CSPA (or Consumer Safeguards Part A) means the program of work undertaken by the ACMA to enhance analysis, transparency and reporting of telecommunications complaints data.

eligible revenue has the same meaning as in the TCPSS Act.

eligible revenue period has the same meaning as in the TCPSS Act.

exempt carrier licence means a carrier licence that was held by a carrier that was a non-participating person for the eligible revenue period that began on 1 July 2021 and ended on 30 June 2022.

MBA means the Measuring Broadband Australia program conducted by the ACCC to monitor and report on the performance of fixed line broadband services delivered over the National Broadband Network (NBN).

NBN fixed line connection means a fixed line broadband service delivered over the NBN fixed line network.

Note: The NBN fixed line network is part of the NBN but does not include a fixed wireless network or satellite access network.

non-participating person has the same meaning as in the Telecommunications (Participating Persons) Determination 2015.

Note: The Telecommunications (Participating Persons) Determination 2015 is available, free of charge, on the Federal Register of Legislation: www.legislation.gov.au.

qualifying retail carriage service provider or QRCSP has the same meaning as in the Telecommunications (Consumer Complaints) Record-Keeping Rules 2018.

Note: The Telecommunications (Consumer Complaints) Record-Keeping Rules 2018 are available, free of charge, on the Federal Register of Legislation: www.legislation.gov.au.

TCPSS Act means the Telecommunications (Consumer Protection and Service Standards) Act 1999.

test segment means a class of broadband service that is tested in accordance with specified conditions under the MBA.

Note: The following expressions used in this instrument are defined in the Act:

(a) ACMA’s telecommunications functions;

(b) ACMA’s telecommunications powers.

7  References to other instruments

In this instrument, unless the contrary intention appears:

(a) a reference to any other legislative instrument is a reference to that other legislative instrument as in force from time to time; and

(b) a reference to any other kind of instrument is a reference to that other instrument as in force at the commencement of this instrument.

Note 1: For references to Commonwealth Acts, see section 10 of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901; and see also subsection 13(1) of the Legislation Act 2003 for the application of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 to legislative instruments.

Note 2: All Commonwealth Acts and legislative instruments are registered on the Federal Register of Legislation.

8  Carrier licence charge – exempt carrier licence

The amount of carrier licence charge imposed on an exempt carrier licence is $0.

9  Method of ascertaining carrier licence charge – other carrier licences

(1)      This section applies to a carrier licence that is not an exempt carrier licence.

(2)      The amount of carrier licence charge imposed on a carrier licence in relation to a carrier named in column 2 of the table in Schedule 1 is equal to the sum of the amounts ascertained using the formulas in subsections (3) to (5), as applicable.

Note: The formula in subsection (3) applies to all the carriers named in column 2 of Schedule 1. In addition, the formula in subsection (4) applies to all the carriers named in column 2 of Schedule 2 (carriers who were also qualifying retail carriage service providers during the 2021-2022 financial year), and the formula in subsection (5) applies to all the carriers named in column 2 of Schedule 3.

(3)     
The amount for the purposes of this subsection is ascertained using the formula:

where:

MCA (maximum charge amount, excluding costs relating to the CSPA and the MBA) is $27 086 074.

Note: This amount is the total sum of the amounts determined under subsection 15(1) of the Act as specified in the following instruments, excluding costs relating to the CSPA and the MBA:

(a)        the Telecommunications Carrier Licence Charges (Specification of Costs by the ACMA) Determination (No. 2) 2023, made by the ACMA under paragraphs 15(1)(a), (c) and (ca) of the Act (excluding the portion of the amount determined by the ACMA under paragraph 15(1)(a) that relates to the CSPA);

(b)       the Determination under paragraph 15(1)(b) No. 2 of 2023, made by the ACCC under paragraph 15(1)(b) of the Act (excluding the portion of the amount that relates to the MBA); and

(c)        the Telecommunications (Carrier Licence Charges) (Paragraph 15(1)(d)) Determination 2023, made by the Minister under paragraph 15(1)(d) of the Act.

OTC (other telecommunications costs) is $137 260.

Note: This amount relates to costs that:

(a) are part of the proportion of the ACMA’s costs for the 2021-2022 financial year that is attributable to the ACMA’s telecommunications functions and powers; and

(b) have been recovered from telecommunications charges (other than annual carrier licence charges).

The amount determined to be the proportion of the ACMA’s costs for the 2021-2022 financial year that is attributable to the ACMA’s telecommunications functions and powers is $13 055 695 — see section 6 of the Telecommunications Carrier Licence Charges (Specification of Costs by the ACMA) Determination (No. 2) 2023). This figure includes the CSPA costs.

ER (eligible revenue), for the carrier, is the amount mentioned in column 4 of the row in the table in Schedule 1 in which the carrier’s name appears in column 2.

Note: This amount is the eligible revenue of the carrier for the 2021-22 eligible revenue period as assessed by the ACMA under subsection 47(1) of the TCPSS Act.

TER (total eligible revenue) is $24 830 979 887.

Note: This amount is the total sum of the eligible revenue of all the carriers named in Schedule 1 for the 2021-2022 eligible revenue period as assessed by the ACMA under subsection 47(1) of the TCPSS Act.   

(4)      The amount for the purposes of this subsection is ascertained using the formula:

where:

CSPA (Consumer Safeguards Part A) program cost is equal to $813 888.

Note: This amount is the portion of the costs incurred by the ACMA during the 2021-2022 financial year, as determined by the ACMA under paragraph 15(1)(a) of the Act, that relates to the CSPA.

ERQRCSP (eligible revenue of qualifying retail carriage service provider), for the QRCSP, is the amount mentioned in column 4 of the row in the table in Schedule 2 in which the QRCSP’s name appears in column 2.

Note: This amount is the eligible revenue of the carrier, who was also a QRCSP for the 2021-2022 financial year, as assessed by the ACMA under subsection 47(1) of the TCPSS Act. Schedule 2 lists each carrier who was also a QRCSP in the 2021-2022 financial year and their eligible revenue for the 2021-2022 eligible revenue period.

TERQRCSP (total eligible revenue of qualifying retail carriage service providers) is $19 610 597 163.

Note: This amount (specified in Schedule 2) is the total sum of the eligible revenue of all the carriers who were also QRCSPs for the 2021-2022 financial year, as assessed by the ACMA under subsection 47(1) of the TCPSS Act.    

(5)      The amount for the purpose of this subsection is ascertained using the formula:

where:

APC (annual program costs) is equal to $1 837 902.

Note: This amount is the portion of the costs incurred by the ACCC during the 2021-2022 financial year, as determined by the ACCC under paragraph 15(1)(b) of the Act, that are attributable to the MBA.

FLC (fixed line connections) for the carrier, is the number listed in column 4 of the row in the table in Schedule 3 in which the carrier’s name appears in column 2.

Note: The FLC figure for each carrier is derived from information provided by the ACCC about the number of NBN fixed line connections operated in a test segment which are attributable to the carriers named in column 2 of the table in Schedule 3, during the 2021-2022 financial year.

TFLC (total fixed line connections) is equal to 7 980 776.

Note: This figure is derived from information provided by the ACCC about the total number of NBN fixed line connections operated in a test segment that are attributable to the carriers named in column 2 of the table in Schedule 3, during the 2021-2022 financial year.

Schedule 1 Eligible revenue for carrier

(subsection 9(3))

Schedule 2 Eligible revenue for carrier/QRCSP

(subsection 9(4))

Schedule 3 Fixed line connections for carrier

(subsection 9(5))