Aboriginal Housing Act 1998

This Act is the Aboriginal Housing Act 1998.

This Act commences on a day or days to be appointed by proclamation.

The objects of this Act are as follows—

to ensure that Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders have access to affordable and quality housing,

to ensure that such housing is appropriate having regard to the social and cultural requirements, living patterns and preferences of the Aboriginal people or Torres Strait Islanders to whom the housing is to be provided,

to enhance the role of Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders in determining, developing and delivering policies and programs relating to Aboriginal housing,

to ensure that priority is given, in providing housing assistance for Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders, to those individuals who are most in need,

to ensure that the available supply of housing under this Act is shared equitably among Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders who are most in need,

to increase the range of housing choices for Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders so as to reflect the diversity of individual and community needs,

to ensure that registered Aboriginal housing organisations are accountable, effective and skilled in the delivery of Aboriginal housing programs and services,

to ensure that the Aboriginal Housing Office’s housing programs and services are administered efficiently and in co-ordination with other programs and services that are provided to assist Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders,

to encourage the sustainable employment of Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders in the delivery of Aboriginal housing assistance.

In this Act—

Aboriginal Housing Office (or AHO) means the Aboriginal Housing Office constituted by this Act.

Aboriginal person means a person who—

is a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia, and

identifies as an Aboriginal person, and

is accepted by the Aboriginal community as an Aboriginal person,

and the expression Aboriginal people has a corresponding meaning.

Aboriginal Regional Housing Committee means an Aboriginal Regional Housing Committee established under this Act.

agency head means the head of the Public Service agency in which persons are employed to enable the AHO to exercise its functions.

AHO housing agreement means an agreement between the Aboriginal Housing Office and a registered Aboriginal housing organisation in accordance with this Act.

ATSIC means the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission established under the Commonwealth Act.

Board means the Board of the Aboriginal Housing Office established by this Act.

Commonwealth Act means the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission Act 1989 of the Commonwealth.

Commonwealth-State agreement includes any agreement to which the Commonwealth and the State are parties, whether or not other persons or bodies are also parties to the agreement.

exercise a function includes perform a duty.

function includes a power, authority or duty.

government agency means—

a Public Service agency, or

a statutory body representing the Crown, or

a State owned corporation, or

any other public or local authority constituted by or under an Act.

housing includes any form of residential accommodation.

land includes—

a legal or equitable estate or interest in land, or

an easement, right, charge, power or privilege over, or in connection with, land.

Land and Housing Corporation means the New South Wales Land and Housing Corporation constituted by the Housing Act 2001.

New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council means the New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council established under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983.

registered Aboriginal housing organisation means an eligible organisation (as defined in section 25) that is registered for the time being under Part 5.

Torres Strait Islander means a person who—

is a descendant of an indigenous inhabitant of the Torres Strait area within the meaning of the Commonwealth Act, and

identifies as a Torres Strait Islander, and

is accepted by the Torres Strait Islander community as a Torres Strait Islander.

Notes included in this Act do not form part of this Act.

There is constituted by this Act a body corporate with the corporate name of the Aboriginal Housing Office.

The Aboriginal Housing Office is, for the purposes of any Act, a statutory body representing the Crown.

Note—

The management of the Aboriginal Housing Office is provided for in Part 6 of this Act. The AHO has a Board and is also subject to the control and direction of the Minister.

The Aboriginal Housing Office has the principal functions of—

planning and developing programs and services to assist Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders in meeting their housing needs, and

delivering those programs and services, and

evaluating those programs and services from time to time in order to determine whether they continue to effectively meet the housing needs of Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders.

In exercising those principal functions, the AHO is—

to liaise with other government agencies and non-government bodies in the delivery of Aboriginal housing programs and services, and

to co-ordinate Aboriginal housing programs and services with other programs and services that are provided by government agencies (including Commonwealth agencies) and non-government bodies to assist Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders, and

to develop priorities for Aboriginal housing programs and services in accordance with the objects of this Act, and

to advise the Minister on Aboriginal housing policy, and

to develop and implement strategies for the employment of Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders in the delivery of Aboriginal housing programs and services.

The Aboriginal Housing Office may—

subject to this Act, provide funding out of the Aboriginal Housing Fund to registered Aboriginal housing organisations, and

assist registered Aboriginal housing organisations in developing and implementing effective asset and management strategies, and

provide assistance to registered Aboriginal housing organisations in the form of advice, support services and training, or in such other form as the AHO considers appropriate.

Note—

The AHO is required to register Aboriginal housing organisations under Part 5 of this Act.

The AHO may, with the approval of the Minister—

transfer or lease property to registered Aboriginal housing organisations, and

construct housing for registered Aboriginal housing organisations.

Subsection (2) does not limit the forms of assistance that can be provided by the AHO to registered Aboriginal housing organisations under subsection (1).

No duty is chargeable under the Stamp Duties Act 1920 or the Duties Act 1997 on a transfer or lease of property to a registered Aboriginal housing organisation by the AHO.

The Aboriginal Housing Office may enter into agreements with registered Aboriginal housing organisations in relation to funding, housing and other assistance provided to registered Aboriginal housing organisations under this Act.

The AHO must not, unless the Minister otherwise directs—

provide funding to a registered Aboriginal housing organisation, or

transfer land to a registered Aboriginal housing organisation, or

construct housing for or on behalf of a registered Aboriginal housing organisation, or

provide any other assistance to a registered Aboriginal housing organisation in such other circumstances as the Minister may determine,

unless the AHO has entered into an agreement with the registered Aboriginal housing organisation in relation to the provision of that assistance.

Note—

Part 4 sets out the types of conditions that may be contained in an agreement entered into under this section.

The Aboriginal Housing Office may provide housing to Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders by leasing property to individuals or in such other manner as it considers appropriate.

The AHO may assist Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders with the cost of such housing by providing rental subsidies, rental rebates or any other assistance it considers appropriate.

The Aboriginal Housing Office may—

generally control and manage the property owned by the AHO, and

develop and implement effective asset and management strategies with respect to the property owned by the AHO.

In exercising its functions, the AHO may lease, sell, exchange or otherwise dispose of or deal with any property owned by the AHO in such manner, and subject to such terms and conditions, as it thinks fit.

Without limiting subsection (2), the AHO may—

provide, construct or relocate, or arrange for the provision, construction or relocation of, any of the following—

housing,

utility services,

community facilities,

housing related infrastructure, and

demolish any building on any land, and

subdivide and re-subdivide any land, and consolidate subdivided or re-subdivided land, and

set out and construct access roads on any land, and

erect, alter, repair and renovate buildings and make other improvements to any land.

The functions referred to in subsection (3) (b)–(e) are, if the land concerned is not owned by the AHO, exercisable by the AHO only with the permission of the owner of the land or other person having the control or management of the land.