Road worker holding "Slow" signThe Government has just announced the delay of the commencement of the ACNC and the setting up of a working group to work through major tax reforms for the Not-For-Profits sector.

The Assistant Treasurer announced on 1 March 2012 that the ACNC will not commence operation until 1 October 2012.

The Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Social Inclusion acknowledged that the legislative reform that is planned needs to be responsive to feedback from the Not-For-Profit sector about the proposed legislation.  The Government wishes to take the extra time to ensure the legislation and guidelines reflect this feedback when they are released.

If Not-For-Profit organisations have questions about the delay, they can be directed to Treasury at nfpreforms@treasury.gov.au.  At the very least, Not-For-Profit organisations may wish to ask whether the government is reconsidering the proposed requirement to have a registered company auditor to review or audit the financial reports of certain charities under the new legislation.

Both the Assistant Treasurer and the Minister for Social Inclusion have also announced the creation of a Working Group to discuss reform of the taxation laws regarding GST, FBT and DGR endorsements.  The aim of the Working Group is to achieve better and fairer taxation reform for the Not-For-Profit sector by December 2012.

Keep poised for updates from our blogs when further details come to hand.