Fisheries Cost Recovery

GVP Review

The Victorian Fisheries Authority (VFA) delivers fisheries administration, management, compliance and research services for the ongoing sustainable operation of Victoria's commercial fisheries (comprising wild-catch, aquaculture and fish receiver licences and individual quota holders), in accordance with the Fisheries Act 1995 and the Fisheries (Fees, Royalties and Levies) Regulations 2008. Levies for cost-recoverable services are recovered in line with the Victorian Government's response to the National Competition Policy 2001 review of the Fisheries Act and its more recent Cost Recovery Guidelines.

New Cost Recovery Principles

The following cost recovery principles, developed by the FCRSC in September 2012, underpin the new approach to recovering costs from the commercial fishing industry.

1. Cost recovery systems should be designed to promote:
   1. Economic efficiency; i.e. improve the allocation of resources in an economy by providing price signals for service provision that incorporate all of the relevant costs; and
   2. Equity; i.e. those that benefit from a government service, or contribute to the need for a service, should pay for the associated costs.  Where a number of groups benefit from a service, costs should be apportioned.
2. The cost recovery system should be administratively simple and minimise operating costs.
3. Operation of the system, including planning for the provision and delivery of services, should involve well designed, cost effective, consultation with those paying for the costs of services.
4. There should be transparency about the nature, extent, delivery and cost, of services for which there is cost recovery.
5. Operation of the system should promote opportunities for efficiency improvements.
6. Cross-subsidisation between fishers and fisheries should be minimised.
7. Fee for service should be used where possible to directly recover the costs of transactions/services.
8. Between-year volatility should be minimised in order to smooth costs to better enable businesses to plan.
9. Where resources are diverted to non-recoverable services (e.g. emergency services) or are materially under-delivered, a corresponding adjustment to future levies or future services should be made.
10. The implementation of the system should include monitoring and periodic review.
11. The design, nature and extent of services should take into account the risks posed to the fishery and the value of production generated by the fishery.