Proceeds of Crime Act 2002
The July 2007 Proceeds of Crime funding round for non-government organisations is now finalised.
Overview
The Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (the Act) was passed on 11 October 2002 and came into operation on 1 January 2003.
The Act provides a scheme to trace, restrain and confiscate the proceeds of crime against Commonwealth Law. In some circumstances it can also be used to confiscate the proceeds of crime against foreign law or the proceeds of crime against State law (if those proceeds have been used in a way that contravenes Commonwealth law).
The new Act also provides a scheme that allows confiscated funds to be given back to the Australian community in an endeavour to prevent and reduce the harmful effects of crime in Australia.
What Can Be Funded?
Subsection 298(1) of the Act provides that the Australian Government may approve a program for the expenditure, in a particular financial year, of money standing to the credit of the Confiscated Assets Account (CAA). These funds may be approved for one of the four following purposes:
- crime prevention measures
- law enforcement measures
- measures relating to treatment of drug addiction, or
- diversionary measures relating to the illegal use of drugs.
See ‘Projects’ below for a list of funded projects under subsection 298(1) of the Act.
The Australian Government may also approve equitable sharing payments to be made to the States, self-governing Territories and foreign countries under subparagraph 297(1)(a) of the Act. The equitable sharing program allows the sharing of confiscated funds with other jurisdictions, in recognition of the effort involved in joint investigations or prosecutions of unlawful activity.
See ‘Equitable Sharing Program’ below for a list of payments made under subparagraph 297(1)(a) of the Act.
Non-government Sector Funding
Non-government organisations can apply for funding for crime prevention measures, drug addiction treatment measures and diversionary measures relating to illegal use of drugs. Non-government sector funding is allocated by a targeted grants process. Unlike traditional grants programs, the amount of funds available under proceeds of crime varies from year to year. Thus a proactive, focused approach provides the greatest benefit to the Australian community and helps the Australian Government achieve policy outcomes for the benefit of all Australians.
As funding becomes available through recovery action taken against criminal assets, the Australian Government will place advertisements in the national press seeking expressions of interest (EOIs) for programs addressing a nominated priority area of crime prevention, drug treatment or diversion program for illicit drug use.
COMMUNITY PROGRAMS:
Completed Projects
Banyan House - $304,183.00 (NT). The Pre Program and Re-Entry project helped fund a 20-bed residential withdrawal and rehabilitation facility for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal men and women experiencing substance misuse problems .
Wollongong Crisis Centre - $141,894 (NSW). The Carinya Halfway and Aftercare Program provided supported accommodation for people with a history of illicit drug dependence who may also have been suffering from a mental health disorder.
Drug Arm WA - $150,000 (WA). The Youth Options Program provided assistance to young people to enable them to improve their life and work skills and make a positive contribution to the community by providing mentoring and other support to young people at risk of criminal offending, substance abuse and social exclusion.
Uniting Care Wesley - $330,341 (SA). The 2 to 1 project helped support people within the inner city of Adelaide with long-term illicit drug and mental health concerns, providing both group and individual treatment to individuals with a long-term substance abuse history.
St Luke's Nursing Service - $218,367 (Qld). The AMEND Program established a home-based relapse prevention and management service for pregnant and parenting women on the Gold Coast who experienced problems relating to their use of illicit drugs.
The Buttery - $385,800 (NSW). The Lifestyle Support Program helped treat people with co-existing mental health and illicit drug dependence issues in the Northern Rivers area of NSW to provide a sustainable long-term reduction in the use of illicit drugs.
Active Projects
Mission Australia - $621,200 (NSW). The Triple Care Farm (TCF) project expands the farm’s residential rehabilitation program for young people with substance abuse issues by thirty percent.
Odyssey House McGrath Foundation - $655,300 (NSW). The After Care Program provides post-residential rehabilitation support to individuals who have completed treatment programs.
Odyssey House Victoria - $477,200 (Vic). The Dignified Surroundings project refurbishes 45 bedrooms in the Odyssey House Victoria residential therapeutic community. Residents undertake accredited training in different aspects of the refurbishment, including cabinet-making and general construction.
Palmerston Association - $403,000 (WA). The Residential Rehabilitation Vocational project enhances the vocational training program for long-stay recovering substance user residents as a core component of the rehabilitation program.
Shire of Ngaanyatjarraku - $744,300 (WA). The Youth Diversion—Treatment Camps project operates treatment camps associated with a youth diversionary program for young people involved in excessive substance use within Ngaanyatjarra communities in WA.
St Vincent de Paul Aged Care & Community Services (SVDP ACCS) - $667,300 (Vic). The Post Quin House Program enhances the capacity of Quin House to respond to the high relapse rate of individuals leaving rehabilitation and entering the community by providing follow-up and long-term support to clients for up to 12 months.
The Mirabel Foundation Inc - $390,000 (Vic). The Mirabel House Connections Program provides therapeutic groups, educational support, respite care, recreation and youth ambassadors for young people to help reduce recurring patterns of inter-generational drug use and increase protective factors.
Grampians Community Health - $258,331 (Vic). The Youth Outreach Drug Treatment Program provides innovative rural youth drug treatment and prevention services in the Wimmera and Central Grampians regions of Victoria.
Wesley Mission - $660,000 (NSW). The Wesley Rehabilitation Services project provides 10 additional beds at its abstinence-based residential program in South West Sydney.
OzCare - $652,100 (Qld). The Brisbane Home and Community-Based Illicit Drug Treatment Service provides a non-residential, integrated drug rehabilitation service.
Odyssey - $666,000 (Vic). The OPSTEP project provides short-term residential accommodation and case-management services in the Frankston and Peninsula regions of Victoria.
The Buttery INC - $750,000 (NSW). The MISA Lifestyle Support Program provides an outreach program targeting clients in rural areas of the far North Coast of NSW such as Lismore and Tweed Heads. The MISA Lifestyle Support Program will build on the recent success of the MISA pilot project that was also funded under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.
Odyssey House Victoria - $735,000 (Vic). The ONE STEP Odyssey North East Short Term Engagement project will build on a successful pilot project in the Frankston region that established innovative and responsible accommodation and intensive case-management services for people experiencing substantial problems with alcohol and other drugs.
BAYSA Youth Services - $744,109 (Vic). The Youth Access Program project enables three specialist Youth Alcohol and Drug Outreach workers to engage with up to 500 young people in the Barwon Region in Victoria and provide professional provision of coordinated pathways and supported referrals of young people to enable true rehabilitation from poly drug abuse.
Odyssey House McGrath Foundation - $250,000 (NSW). The Refurbishment of the Assessment and Referral Centre at Minto in NSW will enable the refurbishment of the dormitory and the dining/lounge room as well as an upgrade of the driveway.
The Lyndon Community - $736,972 (NSW). The Lyndon Withdrawal Unit project will establish a Comprehensive Clinical Leadership model for mental health and alcohol and drug workers and will initially provide a residential detoxification and rehabilitation service which will extend into an increased community support role.
The Salvation Army Top End - $100,500 (NT). The Parenting Enhancement Module project provides safe and supported accommodation for mothers who are undergoing drug and alcohol rehabilitation. The project also includes classes covering parenting skills and child behaviour, as well as family counselling for families with children who are ‘at risk’.
Jesuit Social Services - $97,771 (Vic). The Outdoor Experience (Gateway) project provides alternative treatment for young people between 14 and 25 through wilderness therapy out of Kew in Victoria. The program includes a two week pre-trip phase, followed by an 11-day remote journey, then a two week post-trip phase. The funding will assist with the refurbishment of accommodation of ‘The Bush Hut’ where the participants will stay.
Baptist Community Services SA - $572,737 (SA). The Westcare Drug Intervention Program trains two Indigenous workers to target people with a history of abuse, family breakdown, homelessness and mental health issues. This program will provide intensive support, including budgeting, living skills, general counselling and help to access health and welfare services.
The Addiction Treatment Foundation - $200,000 (NSW). The Out-patient Co-morbidity Substance Abuse project provides Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Motivational Enhancement Therapy and Pharmacotherapy in association with medical health professionals over a three month period.
Salvation Army WA Division - $500,000 (WA). The Harry Hunter Rehab Program Bridge House project refurbishes both the Bridge House and the Harry Hunter Adult Rehabilitation Centre in Perth which has 47 beds and operates a 24-hour sobering-up centre, a five- to seven-day detoxification unit and a three- to four-week residential assessment program unit. .
Turning Point - $750,000 (Vic). The Melbourne Specialist Methamphetamine Clinics project addresses the current service gaps that have been identified by people who have problems with methamphetamine abuse. The two chosen sites are ‘hotspots’ for methamphetamine use, City of Melbourne and City of Port Phillip. The project establishes clinical and referral pathways, employs and trains specialist staff to undertake integrated best-practice intervention, and provides a range of tailored treatments for methamphetamine users.
GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS:
Completed Projects
Crimtrac - $713,333.. The Australian National Child Offender Register project funded the development of a nationally consistent approach to child protection offender registration. Funding received under the POCA made up one-third of the total development funding for this project, with the remainder being provided by the States and Territories.
Attorney-General's Department - $1,000,000. The Firearms Management System Scoping Study funded the development of a system to provide (i) the ability to detect movement of illegal firearms into Australia and between jurisdictions, (ii) early identification of trends in firearms supply and use, (iii) better coordination of law enforcement efforts, (iv) the ability, for people with a legitimate use of firearms, to travel more easily between jurisdictions, and (v) an improved ability for Australia to meet its international firearms commitments.
Australian Federal Police - $1,000,000. The Enhanced IT Intelligence Functionality (Project Walshingham) upgraded high-tech computer systems to improve their ability to sift through large databases to extract intelligence, linkages and other information to enhance the prevention and investigation of criminal activity.
Customs - $890,000. The CCTV Upgrade at Australian International Airports project upgraded closed circuit television (CCTV) capabilities at Adelaide, Darwin, Brisbane, Perth, Gold Coast and Cairns International airports by providing wide-angle surveillance and digital video recording capabilities.
Department of Health and Ageing - $105,000. The Croc Festivals project supported the 2005 festival program.
National Institute of Forensic Science - $60,000. The 18th International Symposium on the Forensic Sciences project helped fund the Symposium.
AUSTRAC - $1,919,419. The Reform of Measures to Combat Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism project engaged in reform measures to counter money laundering and the financing of terrorism.
Attorney-General's Department - $310,000. The South East Asian Collaborative Group on Precursors created a forum to extend and coordinate the aims and objectives of the National Strategy to Prevent the Diversion of Precursor Chemicals into Illicit Drug Manufacture Beyond Australia. The funds were used to facilitate a meeting on these issues with governments of the Asia – Pacific region.
Attorney-General's Department - $166,602.90. The South East Asian Collaborative Group on Precursors project facilitated the Second South East Asian Collaborative Group on Precursors (ACoG) meeting in Tokyo, Japan, in February 2007.
Australian Federal Police - $394,000. The In-Car Computing project accelerated in-car computing research and development from the concept to application stage.
Australian Crime Commission - $33,950. The Lost and Stolen Document Register Feasibility Study conducted a feasibility study into the establishment of a lost and stolen document register for proof of identity documents: it is intended to assist victims of identity theft and to mitigate the risk of further compromise of their identity for criminal purposes.
Attorney-General's Department and Australian Taxation Office - $508,574. The Document Verification Study undertook an empirical study of the Proof of Identity (POI) information provided by a sample of customers applying for tax file numbers with the Australian Taxation Office. The study will have implications for wider, whole-of-government, identity security measures.
Australian Institute of Criminology - $360,000. The Drug Use Monitoring in Australia (DUMA) project extended data collection of drug use by police detainees to a new site in Darwin and another in Melbourne.
Current Projects
Australian Federal Police - $200,000. The International Policing Towards 2020 Conference will focus on emerging trends in crime, sociology, geopolitics and science and technology.
Attorney-General's Department - $1,119,347. The Review of the Extradition Act 1988, the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act 1987, and intensive bilateral treaty negotiations project significantly enhances Australia’s capacity to cooperate with other countries to enforce the law where alleged offenders and evidence are located in a foreign jurisdiction. Extradition and mutual assistance in criminal matters are essential to effectively combat terrorism and transnational organised crime, including people smuggling, trafficking (in persons, firearms and illicit drugs), money laundering and corruption.
National Institute of Forensic Science - $900,000. The Improved Closed Set DNA Project funds research into the possible development of a fresh approach to DNA profiling in situations where there is a closed set of subjects (such as identification of victims of mass disaster). The near-perfect accuracy required for some circumstances, such as criminal prosecutions, is costly and time-consuming. NIFS, in partnership with Forensic Sciences South Australia and the Flinders University, will seek to develop a process for closed set DNA profiling which, by having a lesser, more appropriate standard of accuracy, will be quicker and more cost-effective.
Australian Institute of Criminology - $400,000. The Firearms Theft Monitoring Program undertakes a long-term Firearms Theft Monitoring Program to assist in identifying changes in the nature and extent of firearms theft and to provide valuable support for the future development of policy on firearms theft in Australia.
Australian Institute of Criminology - $750,000. The Cybercrime / ID Fraud project undertakes a national survey of the business sector to determine the extent and impact of attacks on the confidentiality, integrity or availability of network data. The Australian Institute of Criminology will contact, via telephone and mail, a random sample of 16,000 businesses across all business sectors in Australia.
Australian Federal Police - $200,000. The Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) Database project supports the development of DVI capabilities within Australia and New Zealand. Specifically, the project will purchase, configure and implement a database system for use by all jurisdictions in Australian mass-casualty incidents.
Australian Federal Police - $200,000. The Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) Commander Training project supports the development of a DVI Commander Training Program for Australian and New Zealand police jurisdictions. The program seeks to develop and deliver four instances of the Australasian DVI Commander Program and develop the emerging leaders in Australian and New Zealand DVI response.
Crimtrac - $1,900,000. The Minimum Nationwide Person Profile (MNPP) Project provides police throughout Australia with direct online access to assist them in determining whether a person is a threat to police safety, a threat to themselves or others, of interest to the police, or wanted by the police.
Australian Customs Service - $1,500,000. The Customs Electronic Signage project increases electronic signage at international airports to warn travellers of particular offences.
Attorney-General's Department - $600,000. The Shared Responsibility Agreements project contributes to Shared Responsibility Agreements (SRAs) between the Attorney-General’s Department and Indigenous communities. SRAs are agreements between governments and Indigenous communities and are developed where Indigenous communities decide they want to address specific priorities. SRAs combine better coordinated service delivery that reduces bureaucratic red tape for individuals and communities.
Attorney-General's Department - $500,000. The National Firearms Management System project contributes to the development of the NFMS Business Case, which is being lead by Victoria Police. The establishment of a NFMS will enable State and Territory firearms registries to communicate more effectively to reduce the risk posed by the interstate movement of firearms.
Attorney-General's Department - $252,000. The South East Asian Collaborative Group on Precursors project facilitated the third meeting of the South East Asian Collaborative Group on Precursors (ACoG) held in Hobart in September 2007.
Crimtrac - $2,223,000. The Automated Number Plate Recognition project delivers a detailed scoping study that will identify a strategic approach to integrate ANPR technology across Australia, identifying the necessary infrastructure and associated cost benefits analysis. A national approach will provide a significant benefit for the Australian community, and police forces and other law enforcement agencies will be able to identify and track potential vehicles of interest within and across State and Territory borders.
Australian Federal Police - $105,350. A national Proceeds of Crime Conference comprising Commonwealth and State and Territory agencies involved in the recovery of proceeds of crime will be conducted. The aim of the conference is to improve investigation and litigation practices, and to increase the effectiveness of proceeds of crime recovery.
Australian Federal Police - $1,146,000. The Australian Federal Police received funding to improve its capability to provide close operational support, including surveillance capacity for investigations.
Attorney-General's Department - $1,250,000. Four non-government organisations will be provided with $250,000 each to develop their capacity in working to combat people trafficking. The project will also provide support for the work of the National Roundtable on People Trafficking.
Equitable Sharing Program
The United Nations Convention Against Corruption obliges States to share profits of crime where assistance in the recovery of those profits contributes to legal enforcement cooperation.
The Australian Government has made the following equitable sharing payments under the 2002 Act:
- $3,372,807.49 to the Chinese Government for money recovered in Australia by the Australian Federal Police, regarding a matter involving a Chinese national, who was wanted in China for embezzlement and fraud offences.
- $642,540.46 to the Indonesian Government after an investigation by a joint Australian-Indonesian task force.
- $94,622.74 to the Queensland Government in recognition of the significant contribution by the Queensland police in assisting Australian Government authorities in a criminal investigation.
- $3,860,000.00 to the Singaporean Government in recognition of it’s assistance in the investigation and prosecution of a Singapore national for fraud offences.
- $280,446 to the United Kingdom in recognition of its assistance in the investigation into a series of thefts in the UK.
- $199,478.42 to the Victorian Government and $199,478.42 to the New South Wales Government in recognition for assistance in the investigation of the Tran matter.
Prior to the commencement of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, equitable sharing arrangements were possible under the Proceeds of Crime Act 1987. Equitable sharing payments under the 1987 Act that the Australian Government has made include:
- $683,500 to the Lebanese Government in recognition of assistance in investigating tobacco excise fraud.
The Australian Government has also benefited under similar sharing arrangements that other countries have under their laws, receiving the following payments for assistance given by Australian Law Enforcement Agencies:
- $1,780,000 and $280,000 from the United States Government.
- $1,782,514.78 from the Netherlands Government.