Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated Acts(1) This section applies to a person who:
(a) has been, at any time:
(i) a member of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (the former Commission ) before the abolition of Commission on ATSIC abolition day; or
(ii) a member of a committee that was established by the former Commission to advise it in relation to the performance of its functions; or
(iii) the Chief Executive Officer of the former Commission; or
(iv) a member of the staff of the former Commission; or
(v) engaged as a consultant by the former Commission; or
(vi) a member of the body known as the Torres Strait Islander Advisory Board; or
(vii) a member of a Regional Council before the abolition of Regional Councils on Regional Councils abolition day; or
(viii) a member of an advisory committee established by such a Regional Council to advise it in relation to the performance of its functions; or
(ix) an Administrator of such a Regional Council; or
(b) is or has been:
(i) a member of the TSRA; or
(ii) a member of an advisory committee established under section 142M; or
(iii) the TSRA Chief Executive Officer; or
(iv) a member of the staff of the TSRA; or
(v) engaged as a consultant under section 144T; or
(vi) a TSRA Administrator; or
(c) has been, before ATSIC abolition day, a Director of Evaluation and Audit.
(2) Subject to this section, a person to whom this section applies must not, either directly or indirectly:
(a) make a record of, or divulge or communicate to any person, any information concerning the affairs of another person acquired by the first - mentioned person in the performance of duties in connection with an application for, or the giving of, a loan, grant or guarantee under this Act; or
(b) produce to any person a document relating to the affairs of another person furnished in connection with an application for, or the giving of, a loan, grant or guarantee under this Act;
unless that record is made, information divulged or document produced:
(c) for the purposes of this Act or of a prosecution for an offence against this Act; or
(d) if the person is a statutory office holder in, or an officer or employee of, a Department or agency that has taken over a function or functions previously performed by the former Commission--in the performance of the person's duties as such a statutory office holder, officer or employee.
Penalty: Imprisonment for one year.
(3) It is a defence to a prosecution for contravening subsection (2), if:
(a) in relation to a prosecution for divulging information to a person or body--the information was communicated to a person authorised in writing by the person to whose affairs the document relates to receive the information; or
(b) in relation to a prosecution for producing a document to a person or body--the document was produced to a person authorised in writing by the person to whose affairs the document relates to receive the document.
Note: A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matter in subsection (3) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code ).
(4) A person to whom this section applies must not be required:
(a) to divulge or communicate to a court any information referred to in subsection (2); or
(b) to produce in a court any document referred to in that subsection;
except when it is necessary to do so for the purposes of this Act, or of a prosecution for an offence against this Act.
(5) A reference in this section to an offence against this Act includes a reference to:
(a) an offence relating to this Act against section 6 of the Crimes Act 1914 ; or
(b) an offence against section 134.1, 134.2, 135.1, 135.2, 135.4 or 136.1 of the Criminal Code .
(6) In this section:
"court" includes any tribunal, authority or person having power to require the production of documents or the answering of questions.
"produce" includes permit access to.
"this Act" includes the regulations.