The Charities Amendment Bill 169-3 received its third reading in Parliament on Thursday 29 June 2023. Despite every MP in Parliament (outside of Labour) opposing the Bill, and despite the vast majority of submitters calling for the Bill to be .
‘Unconstitutional, indefensible’: Lawyers bash proposed changes to charity sector
By Jerome Doraisamy|16 March 2021
If proposed amendments to Australia’s charity sector pass, the sector’s ability to provide access to justice will be diminished, and the capacity of corporate lawyers to provide pro bono will also be hindered.
The federal government recently issued proposed amendments to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission’s governance standard 3, together with an exposure draft that could, lawyers said, very significantly broaden the basis upon which the ACNC Commissioner could deregister a charity.
Should the changes go through, a charity may be able to be deregistered in cases extending beyond indictable offences and those attractive civil penalties of 60 penalty units, or for failing to take reasonable steps to ensure a charity’s resources are not used to promote or support unlawful conduct.