Thank you for contacting the Freedom of Information (FOI) inbox of the
Australian Department of Social Services (the Department). Your email,
should it be a request for access to documents under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982, will be actioned by the DSS FOI Team.

If your email is for any other type of enquiry, you should direct it to
[1][email address]. It will not be actioned from this inbox.

GENERAL INFORMATION

If you are seeking general information about FOI, you may find the
following websites useful:

[2]http://www.dss.gov.au/contact/freedom-of...

[3]http://www.oaic.gov.au/freedom-of-inform...

PROCESS

An FOI Officer has received your email and it will be actioned
accordingly. In the case of a valid FOI request, you can expect us to
provide you with an acknowledgment that the request has been received
within 14 days. We may contact you earlier if we need to discuss
particular aspects of your request.

REQUESTS OUTSIDE OFFICE HOURS

Please note that if this message has been received outside our business
hours of 9am to 5pm (Eastern Standard Time), Monday to Friday or on
a public holiday, your request will be actioned on the next business day.

Kind regards

DSS FOI Team
Email: [4][ABA Advisory Committee request email]

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
2. http://www.dss.gov.au/contact/freedom-of...
3. http://www.oaic.gov.au/freedom-of-inform...
4. mailto:[ABA Advisory Committee request email]

Dear Clivea

I refer to your below correspondence received by the Department of Social
Services on 22 October 2019, in which you requested access under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).

The subject matter of your request closely relates to the functions of the
National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA).

I am writing to inform you that your request has been transferred to the
NIAA under the provisions of section 16 of the FOI Act on the basis that
your request more closely relates to the responsibilities and functions of
that agency.

NIAA has agreed to accept the transfer and will contact you shortly in
relation to this matter.

Should you have any queries about this matter, please do not hesitate to
contact me on [phone number] or via email to [1][ABA Advisory Committee request email].

Kind regards

Strategic Coordination Section

Government and Executive Services Branch

Department of Social Services

[email address]

DSS acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia,
and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We pay our
respects to them and their cultures, and to elders both past and
present.            

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----Original Message-----
From: Clivea <[FOI #5766 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 22 October 2019 11:33 PM
To: FOI <[ABA Advisory Committee request email]>
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Quantify Annual Receipts and
distribution of Statutory Royal Equivilent monies

Dear Aboriginals Benefit Account Advisory Committee, Please provide me
with the last two years annual statements, which identify how much in
dollars was received from Mining Companies and how much was paid to
Aboriginal for the purposes established for the receipt of statutory
royalty equivalent monies generated from mining on Aboriginal land in the
Northern Territory (NT), and the distribution of these monies.

Yours faithfully,

Clive Elliott

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:

[2][FOI #5766 email]

Is [3][ABA Advisory Committee request email] the wrong address for Freedom of Information requests
to Aboriginals Benefit Account Advisory Committee? If so, please contact
us using this form:

[4]https://www.righttoknow.org.au/change_re...

This request has been made by an individual using Right to Know. This
message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet.
More information on how Right to Know works can be found at:

[5]https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/offi...

If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web
manager to link to us from your organisation's FOI page.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[ABA Advisory Committee request email]
2. mailto:[FOI #5766 email]
3. mailto:[ABA Advisory Committee request email]
4. https://www.righttoknow.org.au/change_re...
5. https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/offi...

hide quoted sections

OFFICIAL

Dear Mr Elliott,

Thank you for your request under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI
Act) dated 22 October 2019, which was transferred to the National
Indigenous Australians Agency (the NIAA), seeking access to documents to
the following:

Dear Aboriginals Benefit Account Advisory Committee, Please provide me
with the last two years annual statements, which identify how much in
dollars was received from Mining Companies and how much was paid to
Aboriginal for the purposes established for the receipt of statutory
royalty equivalent monies generated from mining on Aboriginal land in the
Northern Territory (NT), and the distribution of these monies.

I am writing to seek clarification regarding the scope of your request.

Preliminary inquiry results and clarification

To assist in identifying the documents you seek access to, I would be
grateful if you could you please specify certain details. Specifically:

·        Could you please provide further information in relation the
following part of your request ‘and how much was paid to Aboriginal [?]
for the purposes’

o   Do you mean Aboriginal companies or Aboriginal peoples?;

·        Could you please clarify what you mean by ‘distribution of these
monies’

o   Distribution in what context and/or by what means?

I would be grateful for your response by 12pm Thursday 31 October 2019 to
allow the NIAA to process your request within the legislative timeframes.

Please feel free to call me if you have any questions or if you would like
to discuss this.

Kind regards,

Jodie

Freedom of Information Adviser
National Indigenous Australians Agency
p. (02) 6271 5964  e. [1][email address]
w. [2]niaa.gov.au  w. [3]indigenous.gov.au

 
The National Indigenous Australians Agency acknowledges the traditional
owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to
land, sea and community. We pay our respects to them and their cultures
and to their elders both past and present.
 
[4][IMG]     [5][IMG]     [6][IMG]     [7][IMG]

______________________________________________________________________

IMPORTANT: This message, and any attachments to it, contains information
that is confidential and may also be the subject of legal professional or
other privilege. If you are not the intended recipient of this message,
you
must not review, copy, disseminate or disclose its contents to any other
party or take action in reliance of any material contained within it. If
you
have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately
by
return email informing them of the mistake and delete all copies of the
message from your computer system.
______________________________________________________________________

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
2. https://niaa.gov.au/
3. https://www.indigenous.gov.au/
4. https://www.facebook.com/indigenous.gov.au
5. https://www.instagram.com/indigenous_gov/
6. https://twitter.com/indigenous_gov
7. https://www.youtube.com/user/IndigenousG...

hide quoted sections

OFFICIAL

Dear Clivea,

I refer to your email of 22 October 2019, and subsequent clarifying
emails, in which you made a request under the Freedom of Information Act
1982 (Cth) (FOI Act) for access to the following:

‘ Dear Aboriginals Benefit Account Advisory Committee, Please provide me
with the last two years annual statements, which identify how much in
dollars was received from Mining Companies and how much was paid to
Aboriginal companies and Aboriginal peoples for the purposes established
for the receipt of statutory royalty equivalent monies generated from
mining on Aboriginal land in the Northern Territory (NT), and the
distribution of these monies.’

The National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) is responding on behalf
of the Aboriginals Benefit Account Advisory Committee(ABAAC).

Documents publicly available

As I understand, you have requested information about payments into the
Aboriginals Benefit Account (ABA) which are distributed to Aboriginal
organisations and individuals.

The information which you have requested is publicly available in the
documents outlined below.

The overall allocation of funding for the ABA is included in annual
reports for the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Reports are
available in full at:
[1]https://www.pmc.gov.au/who-we-are/accoun...
. The annual reports for 2018-19 is available at:
[2]https://annualreport.pmc.gov.au/sites/de...
and the annual report for 2017-18 is available at:
[3]https://www.pmc.gov.au/sites/default/fil...
.

In the 2018-19 Annual Report, financial information for the ABA is
available from page 186. The Statement of Comprehensive Income is on page
189, and page 197 outlines the funding which has been distributed to land
councils for administrative purposes (subsection 64(1) payments) and for
royalty equivalent payments (subsection 64(3) payments) under the
Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 (Land Rights Act).

In the 2017-18 Annual Report, financial information for the ABA is
available from page 207. The Statement of Comprehensive Income is on page
211, and page 219 outlines the funding which has been distributed to land
councils for administrative purposes (subsection 64(1) payments) and for
royalty equivalent payments (subsection 64(3) payments) under the Land
Rights Act.

A breakdown of the grants provided under subsection 64(4) of the Land
Rights Act from the ABA is on the Australian Government’s Grant Connect
website: [4]https://www.grants.gov.au/ . From the home page, go to the
Grant Awards section, enter the keywords of ‘Aboriginals Benefit Account’,
and you will see a list of all grants awarded from 31 December 2017.
Grants awarded prior to 30 December 2017 are available on the website of
the National Indigenous Australians Agency at
[5]https://www.niaa.gov.au/indigenous-affai...
in the link titled ‘Indigenous Affairs Grant Reporting (excluding all IAS
Grants)’.

Withdrawal

On the basis that the documents you seek access to are publicly available,
I would be grateful if you would consider withdrawing your request.  

Your response by COB Friday 8 November 2019 would be much appreciated.

If you have any questions or I can assist further, please feel free to
contact me.  

Many Thanks,

Jodie

Freedom of Information Adviser
National Indigenous Australians Agency
p. (02) 6271 5964  e. [6][email address]
w. [7]niaa.gov.au  w. [8]indigenous.gov.au

 
The National Indigenous Australians Agency acknowledges the traditional
owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to
land, sea and community. We pay our respects to them and their cultures
and to their elders both past and present.
 
[9][IMG]     [10][IMG]     [11][IMG]     [12][IMG]

______________________________________________________________________

IMPORTANT: This message, and any attachments to it, contains information
that is confidential and may also be the subject of legal professional or
other privilege. If you are not the intended recipient of this message,
you
must not review, copy, disseminate or disclose its contents to any other
party or take action in reliance of any material contained within it. If
you
have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately
by
return email informing them of the mistake and delete all copies of the
message from your computer system.
______________________________________________________________________

References

Visible links
1. https://www.pmc.gov.au/who-we-are/accoun...
2. https://annualreport.pmc.gov.au/sites/de...
3. https://www.pmc.gov.au/sites/default/fil...
4. https://www.grants.gov.au/
5. https://www.niaa.gov.au/indigenous-affai...
6. mailto:[email address]
7. https://niaa.gov.au/
8. https://www.indigenous.gov.au/
9. https://www.facebook.com/indigenous.gov.au
10. https://www.instagram.com/indigenous_gov/
11. https://twitter.com/indigenous_gov
12. https://www.youtube.com/user/IndigenousG...

hide quoted sections

OFFICIAL

Dear Clivea,

I refer to my email of 5 November 2019 (copy below).

I would be grateful if you could please advise whether you agree to
withdraw your request, given the documents you have requested are publicly
available and links to same have been provided to you.

Your response by COB Tuesday 12 November 2019 would be greatly
appreciated.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Many Thanks,

Jodie

Freedom of Information Adviser
National Indigenous Australians Agency
p. (02) 6271 5964  e. [1][email address]
w. [2]niaa.gov.au  w. [3]indigenous.gov.au

 
The National Indigenous Australians Agency acknowledges the traditional
owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to
land, sea and community. We pay our respects to them and their cultures
and to their elders both past and present.
 
[4][IMG]     [5][IMG]     [6][IMG]     [7][IMG]

From: FOI NIAA <[email address]>
Sent: Tuesday, 5 November 2019 11:55 AM
To: Clivea <[FOI #5766 email]>
Cc: FOI NIAA <[email address]>
Subject: FOI/1920/035 - Your FOI Request [SEC=OFFICIAL]

OFFICIAL

Dear Clivea,

I refer to your email of 22 October 2019, and subsequent clarifying
emails, in which you made a request under the Freedom of Information Act
1982 (Cth) (FOI Act) for access to the following:

‘ Dear Aboriginals Benefit Account Advisory Committee, Please provide me
with the last two years annual statements, which identify how much in
dollars was received from Mining Companies and how much was paid to
Aboriginal companies and Aboriginal peoples for the purposes established
for the receipt of statutory royalty equivalent monies generated from
mining on Aboriginal land in the Northern Territory (NT), and the
distribution of these monies.’

The National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) is responding on behalf
of the Aboriginals Benefit Account Advisory Committee(ABAAC).

Documents publicly available

As I understand, you have requested information about payments into the
Aboriginals Benefit Account (ABA) which are distributed to Aboriginal
organisations and individuals.

The information which you have requested is publicly available in the
documents outlined below.

The overall allocation of funding for the ABA is included in annual
reports for the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Reports are
available in full at:
[8]https://www.pmc.gov.au/who-we-are/accoun...
. The annual reports for 2018-19 is available at:
[9]https://annualreport.pmc.gov.au/sites/de...
and the annual report for 2017-18 is available at:
[10]https://www.pmc.gov.au/sites/default/fil...
.

In the 2018-19 Annual Report, financial information for the ABA is
available from page 186. The Statement of Comprehensive Income is on page
189, and page 197 outlines the funding which has been distributed to land
councils for administrative purposes (subsection 64(1) payments) and for
royalty equivalent payments (subsection 64(3) payments) under the
Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 (Land Rights Act).

In the 2017-18 Annual Report, financial information for the ABA is
available from page 207. The Statement of Comprehensive Income is on page
211, and page 219 outlines the funding which has been distributed to land
councils for administrative purposes (subsection 64(1) payments) and for
royalty equivalent payments (subsection 64(3) payments) under the Land
Rights Act.

A breakdown of the grants provided under subsection 64(4) of the Land
Rights Act from the ABA is on the Australian Government’s Grant Connect
website: [11]https://www.grants.gov.au/ . From the home page, go to the
Grant Awards section, enter the keywords of ‘Aboriginals Benefit Account’,
and you will see a list of all grants awarded from 31 December 2017.
Grants awarded prior to 30 December 2017 are available on the website of
the National Indigenous Australians Agency at
[12]https://www.niaa.gov.au/indigenous-affai...
in the link titled ‘Indigenous Affairs Grant Reporting (excluding all IAS
Grants)’.

Withdrawal

On the basis that the documents you seek access to are publicly available,
I would be grateful if you would consider withdrawing your request.  

Your response by COB Friday 8 November 2019 would be much appreciated.

If you have any questions or I can assist further, please feel free to
contact me.  

Many Thanks,

Jodie

Freedom of Information Adviser
National Indigenous Australians Agency
p. (02) 6271 5964  e. [13][email address]
w. [14]niaa.gov.au  w. [15]indigenous.gov.au

 
The National Indigenous Australians Agency acknowledges the traditional
owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to
land, sea and community. We pay our respects to them and their cultures
and to their elders both past and present.
 
[16][IMG]     [17][IMG]     [18][IMG]     [19][IMG]

______________________________________________________________________

IMPORTANT: This message, and any attachments to it, contains information
that is confidential and may also be the subject of legal professional or
other privilege. If you are not the intended recipient of this message,
you
must not review, copy, disseminate or disclose its contents to any other
party or take action in reliance of any material contained within it. If
you
have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately
by
return email informing them of the mistake and delete all copies of the
message from your computer system.
______________________________________________________________________

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
2. https://niaa.gov.au/
3. https://www.indigenous.gov.au/
4. https://www.facebook.com/indigenous.gov.au
5. https://www.instagram.com/indigenous_gov/
6. https://twitter.com/indigenous_gov
7. https://www.youtube.com/user/IndigenousG...
8. https://www.pmc.gov.au/who-we-are/accoun...
9. https://annualreport.pmc.gov.au/sites/de...
10. https://www.pmc.gov.au/sites/default/fil...
11. https://www.grants.gov.au/
12. https://www.niaa.gov.au/indigenous-affai...
13. mailto:[email address]
14. https://niaa.gov.au/
15. https://www.indigenous.gov.au/
16. https://www.facebook.com/indigenous.gov.au
17. https://www.instagram.com/indigenous_gov/
18. https://twitter.com/indigenous_gov
19. https://www.youtube.com/user/IndigenousG...

hide quoted sections