PREVENTING THE MISUSE OF GOVERNMENT ADVERTISING BILL 2010

i Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010

Contents

Part 1--Preliminary

1 Short

title

...........................................................................................

2 Commencement

.................................................................................

3 Objects

...............................................................................................

Part 2--Preventing the Misuse in Government Advertising

4 Interpretation

......................................................................................

5 Requirements

for

campaign advertising ............................................ 3

6 Exemptions

........................................................................................

Revision of guidelines ....................................................................... 5

Functions of the Auditor-General ...................................................... 6

Powers and independence of the Auditor-General ............................. 6

Part 3--Miscellaneous

Later Acts not to be interpreted as overriding this Act ...................... 8

11 Regulations

........................................................................................

Schedule--Guidelines on campaign advertising

Part 1 Preliminary

Section 2

2 Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010

2 Commencement

This Act commences on the day after it receives the Royal Assent.

3 Objects

The objects of this Act are:

(a) to establish the framework for accountability of expenditure

on government information and advertising campaigns to

ensure that campaigns do not contain electoral matter, by:

(i) providing the Auditor General with the powers and

functions to review and report on government

information and advertising campaigns; and

(b) establishing a process by which Ministers and the

Auditor-General report to the Parliament; and

use of public funds for government information

advertising campaigns; and

(b) to provide for exemption from those guidelines in cases of

national emergency.

Preventing the Misuse in Government Advertising Part 2

Section 4

Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010 3

Part 2--Preventing the Misuse in Government

Advertising

4 Interpretation

(1) In this Part, unless the contrary intention appears:

agency means an agency subject to the Financial Management and

Accountability Act 1997.

Audit Act means the Auditor-General Act 1997.

campaign means government information and advertising

campaign, however described.

campaign advertising guidelines, or guidelines, means the

guidelines in the Schedule.

department means the department with administrative

responsibility for this Act.

Finance Minister means the Minister with administrative

responsibility for this Act.

Minister means the Minister responsible for the agency

undertaking a campaign.

(2) Unless the contrary intention appears, any term defined in the

guidelines has the same meaning in this Part.

5 Requirements for campaign advertising

Principles

(1) No amount appropriated by any Act is to be expended for any

purpose associated with campaign advertising unless the agency

undertaking the campaign complies with the principles set out in

the campaign advertising guidelines.

Part 2 Preventing the Misuse in Government Advertising

Section 5

4 Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010

Review and report by the Auditor-General

(2) Other than for the purpose of providing the statements required by

subsection (3), no amount appropriated by any Act is to be

expended for any purpose associated with a campaign with

expenditure in excess of $250,000 unless:

(a) the Minister has given to the Auditor-General the statements

required by subsection (3); and

(b) the Minister has approved and authorised the development of

the campaign; and

the compliance of the campaign with the guidelines.

(3) When seeking a review of a campaign by the Auditor-General, the

Chief Executive of the agency must give to the Auditor-General:

(a) a statement setting out the following:

(i) the purpose and nature of the campaign;

(ii) the intended recipients of the information to be

communicated by the campaign;

(iii) the name of the person who is to authorise the

campaign;

(iv) the manner in which the campaign is to be carried out;

(v) the name of the person or the entity that is to carry out

the campaign;

(vi) whether the campaign is to be carried out under a

contract;

(vii) whether such contract is to be let by tender;

(viii) the estimated cost of the campaign; and

(b) a statement certifying that the Chief Executive of the agency

is satisfied that the campaign complies with the campaign

advertising guidelines.

Reports to Parliament

(4) The Minister must cause a copy of each of the statements

mentioned in subsection (3) to be tabled in each House of the

Parliament within 7 days of giving the statement to the

Auditor-General.

Preventing the Misuse in Government Advertising Part 2

Section 6

Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010 5

(5) If the Minister cannot comply with subsection (4) because a House

is not scheduled to sit during that period the Minister must, within

that period:

(a) give a copy of each statement to the Presiding Officer of the

House, for presentation to that House; and

(b) cause a copy of each statement to be published on the

agency's website.

(6) The Auditor-General must give to the Presiding Officer of each

House of the Parliament, for presentation to that House, a copy of

each report provided to a Minister for the purposes of

subsection (2), at the same time as providing it to the minister.

6 Exemptions

(1) Despite anything in the guidelines, a campaign may not be

exempted from the guidelines other than in accordance with this

section.

National emergency exemption

(2) The Minister may seek an exemption from compliance with the

guidelines on the basis of a national emergency, in accordance with

clause 9 of the guidelines.

(3) The exemption expires when the national emergency has ended.

(4)

National emergency has the meaning prescribed in the regulations.

Auditor-General's review and report

(5) As soon as practicable after a campaign is exempted from the

guidelines in accordance with this section, the Minister must seek a

review of the campaign by the Auditor-General in accordance with

the procedures set out in subsection 5(2).

7 Revision of guidelines

(1) The regulations may revise the guidelines.

(2) Before the Governor-General makes regulations for the purposes of

subsection (1), the Finance Minister must:

Part 2 Preventing the Misuse in Government Advertising

Section 8

6 Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010

(a) cause a draft of the revised guidelines to be published on the

department's website; and

(b) invite and consider public submissions on the draft; and

(d) cause a report on the consultation process to be tabled in each

House of the Parliament.

(3) Regulations made for the purposes of subsection (1) must not

commence until the disallowance period for the regulations has

expired, unless they are first approved by resolution of each House

of the Parliament.

8 Functions of the Auditor-General

The Auditor-General's functions include the following:

(a) considering campaigns as specified in this Part and in the

guidelines;

(b) reporting on the compliance of campaigns with the

guidelines;

connected to those guidelines;

(d) providing advice to the Minister and the Parliament on the

operation of the guidelines and on any proposal by the

Minister to revise the guidelines;

(e) any other function necessary or convenient to enable the

Auditor-General to undertake a function assigned to the

Auditor-General under this Part.

Note:

Section 22 of the Audit Act provides that the Auditor-General's

functions include any functions given to the Auditor-General by any

other Act.

9 Powers and independence of the Auditor-General

To avoid doubt, in undertaking functions under this Part, the

Auditor-General has:

(a) the powers given to the Auditor-General under the Audit Act;

and

Part 3 Miscellaneous

Section 10

8 Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010

Part 3--Miscellaneous

10 Later Acts not to be interpreted as overriding this Act

(1) An Act enacted at or after the commencement of this section is not

to be interpreted as:

(a) amending or repealing, or otherwise altering the effect or

operation of, a provision of this Act; or

(b) authorising the making of an instrument amending or

repealing, or otherwise altering the effect or operation of, a

provision of this Part.

(2) Subsection (1) does not affect the interpretation of an Act so far as

that Act provides expressly for that Act to have effect despite this

Act, or despite a specified provision of this Act.

11 Regulations

The Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters:

(a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or

(b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or

giving effect to this Act.

Schedule Guidelines on campaign advertising

Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010 9

Schedule--Guidelines on campaign

advertising

Introduction

1. These guidelines set out the principles applying to Australian

Government departments and agencies undertaking information and

advertising campaigns.

2. Government information and advertising campaigns with expenditure

in excess of $250,000 must be reviewed by the Auditor-General, who

will report on the proposed campaign's compliance with these

guidelines. A Minister responsible for a campaign with expenditure of

$250,000 or less may ask the Auditor-General to review that

campaign's compliance with these guidelines where the campaign is of

a sensitive nature or the Minister considers that such review is

appropriate.

Underlying principles

3. In general terms, a campaign is a planned series of communication

activities that share common objectives, target the same audience and

have specific timelines and a dedicated budget.

4. The underlying principles governing the use of public funds for

government information and advertising campaigns (`campaigns') are

that:

a. all members of the public have equal rights to access

comprehensive information about government policies,

programs and services which affect their entitlements, rights

and obligations;

b. governments may legitimately use public funds for

information programs or education campaigns to explain

government policies, programs or services and to inform

members of the public of their obligations, rights and

entitlements; and

c. government campaigns shall not be conducted for party

political purposes.

Schedule Guidelines on campaign advertising

10 Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010

Administrative process

5. Agencies subject to the Financial Management and Accountability

Act 1997 (`agencies') must comply with the guidelines for all

campaigns, whether delivered by the agency, third parties or jointly

delivered, where the Commonwealth has committed to expenditure of

$250,000 or more.

6. Agencies must also comply with all policies and processes in relation

to government campaigns which are issued and amended from time to

time by the Cabinet Secretary or the agency responsible for such

policies, currently the Department of Finance and Deregulation

(`Finance').

7. Government campaigns can be approved for launching by a Minister

only when:

a. the Chief Executive of the agency undertaking the campaign

certifies that the campaign complies with the guidelines and

relevant government policies; and

b. for those campaigns with expenditure in excess of $250,000,

the Auditor-General provides a report to the Minister

responsible for the agency undertaking the campaign on the

proposed campaign's compliance with the guidelines.

8. The Chief Executive's certification will be published on the relevant

department's web site when the campaign is launched. Chief Executives

will ensure that:

a. research reports for advertising campaigns with expenditure

of $250,000 or more are published on their agency's web site

following the launch of a campaign where it is appropriate to

do so; and

b. details of advertising campaigns undertaken will be published

in agency annual reports.

9. The Cabinet Secretary can exempt a campaign from compliance with

these guidelines on the basis of a national emergency. Where an

exemption is approved, the Auditor-General will be informed of the

exemption and the reasons for the decision will be formally recorded

and reported to the Parliament as soon as practicable.

10. The Government will make publicly available the expenditure for

all campaigns commissioned by any agency.

Schedule Guidelines on campaign advertising

Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010 11

Definition of campaign advertising

11. For the purposes of these Guidelines, an advertising or information

campaign designed to inform, educate, motivate or change behaviour.

Large-scale recruitment advertising not related to specific job vacancies

and with a degree of creative content may be considered an advertising

campaign. Agencies must seek advice from Finance if they are unsure

whether an activity is an advertising campaign.

12. Non-campaign advertising includes, but is not limited to:

a. recruitment for specific job vacancies;

b. auction and tender notices;

c. invitations to make submissions or apply for grants;

d. notification of date and/or location specific information (for

example, notification of a public meeting at a particular time

and place); and

e. other public notices.

13. `Campaign costs' include those activities involved in the

development, production and dissemination of information to the public

about Government programs, policies and matters which affect their

benefits, rights and obligations. Examples of these activities include:

a. the use of market research agencies, public relations

consultants, advertising agencies and/or other specialist

consultants in the development of such material; and

b. the production of press, radio, on-line, other electronic

media, cinema and television advertisements, audio-visual

material and printed material (pamphlets explanatory

booklets, etc).

Guidelines for campaign advertising

14. Consideration must be given to information requirements during

policy development and program planning. Campaigns must be

instigated only where a need is demonstrated, target recipients are

clearly identified and the campaign is based on appropriate research.

15. The requirements for review and certification of campaigns are

determined by the value of the campaign The value of a campaign is the

budget for all campaign elements across all financial years and includes:

a. market or social research consultants, public relations

consultants, advertising agencies and/or other specialist

Schedule Guidelines on campaign advertising

12 Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010

consultants commissioned in the development of advertising

material;

b. production and placement of advertising in print, radio,

digital, cinema, television or out-of-home media; and

c. production and dissemination of other campaign materials.

16. The value of a campaign does not include departmental staff and

associated costs.

Guideline 1: Material must be relevant to government

responsibilities

17. The subject matter of material to be communicated to the public

must be directly related to the Government's responsibilities. As such,

only policies or programs underpinned by legislative authority,

appropriation of the Parliament, or a Cabinet Decision which is

intended to be implemented during the current Parliament, should be the

subject of an advertising campaign.

18. Examples of suitable uses for government campaign advertising

include to:

a. inform the public of new, existing or proposed government

policies, or policy revisions;

b. provide information on government programs or services or

revisions to programs or services to which the public are

entitled;

c. disseminate scientific, medical or health and safety

information; or

d. provide information on the performance of government to

facilitate accountability to the public.

Guideline 2: Material must be presented in an objective, fair and

accessible manner

19. The material communicated must be presented in an explanatory,

fair, objective and accessible manner. Specifically, information in

campaigns must be directed at the provision of objective, factual and

explanatory information and enable the recipients of the information to

reasonably and easily distinguish between facts, on the one hand, and

comment, opinion and analysis on the other.

Schedule Guidelines on campaign advertising

Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010 13

20. Where information is presented as a fact, it must be based on

accurate, verifiable facts, and expressed in conformity with those facts.

No factual claim should be made which cannot be substantiated. When

making a factual comparison, the material must not attempt to mislead

the recipient about the situation with which the comparison is made and

it must state explicitly the basis for the comparison.

21. Pre-existing policies, products, services and activities must not be

presented as new.

22. Special attention must be paid to communicating with any

disadvantaged individuals or groups which are identified as being

within the designated target audience. Particular attention must be given

to the communication needs of young people, the rural community and

those for whom English is not a convenient language in which to

receive information.

23. There must be recognition of the full participation of women, ethnic

and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island communities in Australian

society by realistically portraying their interests, lifestyles and

contributions to Australian society. Care must be taken that this is not

done in a stereotypic way.

Guideline 3: Material must not be directed at promoting party

political interests

24. Material must be presented in a manner free from partisan

promotion of government policy and political argument, and in

objective language. The dissemination of information using public

funds must not be directed at fostering a positive impression of a

particular political party or promoting party political interests.

Dissemination of information may be perceived as being party-political

because of any one of a number of factors, including:

a. the content of the material - what is communicated;

b. the source of the campaign - who communicates it;

c. the reason for the campaign - why it is communicated;

d. the purpose of the campaign - what it is meant to do;

e. the choice of media - how, when and where it is

communicated;

f. the timing, geographic and demographic targeting of the

campaign;

g. the environment in which it is communicated; or

Schedule Guidelines on campaign advertising

14 Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010

h. the effect it is designed to have.

25. The information and material presented in a campaign must not:

a. mention the party in government by name;

b. directly attack or scorn the views, policies or actions of

others such as the policies and opinions of opposition parties

or groups;

c. include party-political slogans or images;

d. be designed to influence public support for a political party, a

candidate for election, a Minister or a Member of Parliament;

e. refer or link to the websites of politicians or political parties.

Guideline 4: Material must be produced and distributed in an

efficient, effective and relevant manner, with due regard to

accountability

26. Campaigns must be justified by a cost/benefit analysis which would

be best done after preparation of the communications strategy and

consultant briefs. The nature of the campaign, including the method,

medium and volume of the publicity activities, must be justified in

terms of society's needs, efficiency and effectiveness, and there must be

a clear audit trail regarding decision making.

27. Campaigns must be supported by a Communications Strategy. The

strategy includes the campaign objectives and measures of success,

which allows evaluation of the campaign to be undertaken at key

milestones and to determine, for example:

a. That communication messages and mediums remain

effective;

b. That the target audience remains appropriate; and

c. When objectives have been achieved.

28. Existing procurement policies and procedures for the tendering and

commissioning of services and the employment of consultants must be

followed.

29. Campaigns must be evaluated to determine effectiveness.

Guideline 5: Advertising must comply with legal requirements

30. Campaigns and related material, the manner of presentation and the

delivery of the campaign must comply with all relevant laws including:

Schedule Guidelines on campaign advertising

Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 No. , 2010 15

� laws with respect to broadcasting and media;

�

privacy

laws;

� intellectual property laws;

�

electoral

laws;

� trade practices and consumer protection laws; and

� workplace relations laws.

31. Distribution of unsolicited material must be carefully controlled.

The information conveyed must clearly and directly affect the interests

of recipients.

Commonwealth of Australia Bills

PREVENTING THE MISUSE OF GOVERNMENT ADVERTISING BILL 2010