Mining Act 1992

If an application for review of the Secretary’s assessment of the amount of a security deposit that may be required for an authorisation is duly made, the Minister is to review the Secretary’s assessment.

In conducting a review, the Minister—

must have regard to—

submissions made by the holder of the authorisation in relation to the assessment the subject of the review, and

matters prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this section, if any, and

otherwise, has the same functions as the Secretary in relation to an assessment.

The review, if conducted by a delegate of the Minister, is not to be conducted by the Secretary or a person who, as the delegate of the Secretary, made the assessment the subject of the review.

Following the review, the Minister may—

affirm the Secretary’s assessment, or

amend the Secretary’s assessment, or

set aside the Secretary’s assessment and substitute a new assessment.

An assessment, or an amendment to an assessment, that is made by the Minister has the same effect as an assessment, or an amendment, made by the Secretary. However, the assessment or amendment is not reviewable under this section.

Any action taken by the Minister under this section does not affect—

the validity of any security deposit condition imposed or varied before the action was taken, or

liability for an administrative levy that arose before that action was taken.

However, if the Minister makes a new assessment, or amends an assessment, the Minister may—

vary or, if the decision-maker is not the Minister, direct the decision-maker to vary, a security deposit condition in accordance with the assessment or amendment, and

direct the Secretary to reassess any administrative levy payable for an affected authorisation, and for which liability arose before the Minister’s assessment or amendment, in a manner that the Minister considers fair and reasonable.