PASTORAL LAND MANAGEMENT AND CONSERVATION ACT 1989 - SECT 23
PASTORAL LAND MANAGEMENT AND CONSERVATION ACT 1989 - SECT 23
(1) The rent payable
to the Crown under a pastoral lease—
(a) is
the amount from time to time determined under this section to be the annual
rent for the lease; and
(b) is
payable annually in arrears.
(2) The annual rent
for a pastoral lease is to be determined as follows:
(a) the
Valuer-General will from time to time determine the unimproved value of the
land in accordance with the Valuation of Land Act 1971 , taking into
account, in addition to any other matters taken into account under that Act,
the following matters:
(i)
the purposes, whether authorised under the lease or by
the Board, for which the land is used and the inherent capacity of the land to
be used for those purposes; and
(ii)
any prevailing climatic conditions currently affecting
the productivity of the land; and
(iii)
the proximity and accessibility of markets and other
facilities to the extent that they affect the profitability of the lessee's
enterprise; and
(iv)
any views as to land condition factors expressed by the
regional landscape board within whose region the land is situated (and the
Valuer-General must seek those views before making the determination); and
(v)
the views of any consultative committee established by
the Minister for the purpose of assisting in the determination of
pastoral lease rents;
(b) the
Valuer-General will, on making a determination under paragraph (a), fix
the annual rent for the lease as a percentage of the unimproved value of the
land, being a percentage—
(i)
that represents, in the Valuer-General's opinion, the
appropriate rate of return for the land, taking into account the purposes for
which the land is being used; and
(ii)
that may vary from lease to lease according to the
various purposes for which land is being used.
(3) The Valuer-General
must make a determination of the rents for all pastoral leases at the same
time.
(4) The
Valuer-General—
(a) may
make such a determination at any time; and
(b) must
do so on direction by the Minister,
but, in any event, must make such a determination at least every 5 years.
(5) On completing a
determination of the annual rent for a pastoral lease, the Valuer-General must
give to the Board a notice of the determination that includes a statement of
the unimproved value of the land and the percentage on which the rent is
based.
(6) The Minister may,
on the recommendation of the Board, and if the Minister is satisfied—
(a) that
some factor exists affecting the profitability of the enterprise under a
pastoral lease that has arisen since the Valuer-General last determined the
annual rent for the lease; or
(b) that
the lessee has, under an agreement with the Minister, carried out work on the
land on behalf of the Minister for which the lessee has not been recompensed;
or
(c) that
the lessee has, on his or her own initiative, undertaken special measures to
remedy or prevent degradation of the land,
reduce by an appropriate amount the rent that would otherwise be payable under
the lease in respect of any particular year.
(7) The Board is
responsible for issuing and sending to lessees annual rent accounts.
(8) The Board may, for
the purposes of administrative efficiency, fix a common day by which the rent
under all pastoral leases must be paid in each year and, for that purpose,
rent accounts for a period greater or less than a year may be sent to lessees.
(9) A rent account
must be accompanied by or include—
(a) a
copy of the Valuer-General's notice of determination if a new determination
has been made since the last rent account sent to the lessee; and
(b) an
explanation of any debits or credits shown on the account; and
(c) a
statement of the reasons for any reduction, waiver or deferment of rent
pursuant to this section.
(10) The Minister may,
on the recommendation of the Board, and if the Minister is satisfied that a
case of hardship exists, waive or defer payment of any amount of the rent due
and payable under a pastoral lease, subject to such conditions (if any) as
the Board recommends.