for Archived historical research · The AEC trialled SMS messaging for communicating with potential...

AUSTR

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nnual Report 2

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–2010

Australian Electoral CommissionABN 21 133 285 851

West Block OfficesQueen Victoria TerraceParkes ACT 2600Email: [email protected]

AUSTRALIAN ELECTORAL COMMISSION

Annual Report 2009–2010

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AUSTRALIAN ELECTORAL COMMISSION Annual Report 2009–2010

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Produced by: Australian Electoral Commission

Project managed by: Gemma Dickie

Printed by: CanPrint Communications Pty Limited

Coordinated and edited by: WordsWorth Writing Pty Ltd

Designed by: Z00 Advertising

Web address of this report: www.aec.gov.au/About_AEC/Publications/Annual_Reports/index.htm

Contact officer: Director, Governance, Systems and Organisational Reporting Section Australian Electoral Commission West Block Offices Queen Victoria Terrace Parkes ACT 2600

PO Box 6172 Kingston ACT 2604

Telephone: 02 6271 4411 Fax: Email: Website:

02 6271 4458 [email protected] www.aec.gov.au

ISSN: 0814-4508

© Commonwealth of Australia 2010

This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without prior written permission from the Commonwealth. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to the Commonwealth Copyright Administration, Attorney-General’s Department, National Circuit, Barton ACT 2600 or posted at http://www.ag.gov.au/cca.

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http://www.ag.gov.au/ccawww.aec.gov.au/About_AEC/Publications/Annual_Reports/index.htm

29 October 2010

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v AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10 CONTENTS

Contents

About this report vii Report on performance: Outcome 3 81

Outcome 3 overview 82 Year in review 1

Program 3 .1 – Electoral education 85 Electoral Commissioner’s review 2

Program 3 .2 – School and community Summary of achievements 6 programs 88

Program 3.3 – Communication strategies AEC overview 9

and services 92 Purpose and values 10

Performance framework 11 Management and accountability 99

Legislative framework 13 Corporate governance 101

Organisational structure 14 Support services 108

Office network 16 External scrutiny 113

Partnerships 19 Human resources 119

Providing access for people with disabilities 132 Report on performance: Outcome 1 27

Assets management 136 Outcome 1 overview 28

Purchasing 137 Program 1. 1 – Electoral roll management 31

Grant programs 138 Program 1.2 – Support services for

Consultants and contracts 139 electoral redistributions 49

Appendices 141 Report on performance: Outcome 2 53

Appendix A – R esources 142 Outcome 2 overview 54

Appendix B – S taffing 147 Program 2 .1 – Federal elections, by-elections and referendums 59 Appendix C – O ccupational health and

safety 152 Program 2 .2 – Party registrations 64

Appendix D – F reedom of information 156 Program 2 .3 – Funding and disclosure services 67 Appendix E – A dvertising and market

research 160 Program 2 .4 – Fee-for-service elections 70

Appendix F – P rovision of electoral roll Program 2 .5 – Industrial and Torres Strait

information 161 Regional Authority elections 73

Appendix G – E cologically sustainable Program 2 .6 – Advice and assistance in

development 175 overseas elections 76

Appendix H – C onsultancies 177

Appendix I – Industrial and fee-for-service elections statistics 179

Appendix J – P ublications 181

Appendix K – F raud control certification 185

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vi CONTENTS AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10

References 187

List of abbreviations 188

List of requirements 190

Analysis of Financial performance 193

Analysis of financial performance 195

Financial statements 197

Alphabetical index 244

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vii

AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10 ABOUT THIS REPORT

About this report This annual report documents the performance of the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) for the financial year ending 30 June 2010.

Structure The annual report begins with: ■■ the Electoral Commissioner’s review of the

AEC’s performance in 2009–10 and outlook for 2010–11

■■ a summary of the AEC’s significant achievements in 2009–10

■■ an overview of the AEC ■■ a summary of developments since the end of

the financial year that have affected, or will affect, the AEC’s operations.

The next three sections detail the AEC’s: ■■ performance in meeting the objectives and

targets of the outcomes and programs framework set out in the 2009–10 Portfolio Budget Statements

■■ performance in relation to corporate responsibilities.

The main report is followed by: ■■ appendices that provide detailed information

and statistics required by legislation and other reporting requirements

■■ a list of abbreviations used in the report ■■ a list of annual reporting requirements,

indicating where they are addressed in the document

■■ information about the AEC’s financial performance, including the audited financial statements for 2009–10

■■ an alphabetical index.

Readers The annual report is designed to meet the information needs of the AEC’s stakeholders and customers, including: ■■ Australians who are eligible to enrol and vote ■■ members of parliament and candidates ■■ students, teachers and researchers ■■ AEC staff ■■ political parties and interest groups ■■ state, territory and international electoral

authorities ■■ federal, state, territory and local government

agencies ■■ the media.

The annual report is presented for tabling in the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia. Copies are available free of charge, in hard copy or in electronic format through the AEC website.

Contact officer For more information about the annual report, contact the Director, Governance, Systems and Organisational Reporting Section, at the address shown below. General contact details for the AEC are also shown in the ‘Overview’ section of the report.

Web address of this report: www.aec.gov.au/About_AEC/Publications/ Annual_Reports/index.htm

Contact officer: Director, Governance, Systems and Organisational Reporting Section Australian Electoral Commission

West Block Offices Queen Victoria Terrace Parkes ACT 2600

PO Box 6172 Kingston ACT 2604

Telephone: (02) 6271 4411 Fax: (02) 6271 4558 Email: [email protected] Website: www.aec.gov.au

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www.aec.gov.auwww.aec.gov.au/About_AEC/Publications

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■■ Electoral Commissioner’s review ■■ Summary of achievements

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2 YEAR IN REVIEW AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10

Electoral Commissioner’s review

Ed Killesteyn Electoral Commissioner Image credit: Eddison Photography Studio

For the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), 2009–10 was a year of preparing for the immediate challenge – the forthcoming federal election – while also looking over the horizon, to map out changes in the way the AEC might better meet the needs of voters in coming years.

Looking back on 2009–10 The AEC worked consistently towards 30 June 2010, our ‘election ready’ date, with a focus on preparing essential elements for the 2010 federal election. A countdown tool on the staff intranet provided a daily reminder of how many months or weeks remained before the AEC had to be ‘election ready’. Having reached this target, we were able to respond immediately to the announcement of the election in July 2010. The AEC’s performance in conducting the 2010 federal election will be discussed in the 2010–11 Annual Report.

Beyond the immediate, and important, work of election preparation and administration, the defining challenge for the AEC remains the state of the Commonwealth electoral roll. By June 2010, an estimated 1.59 million eligible Australians were not on the electoral roll. The growth in the estimated number of people not enrolled reflects the fact that the Australian population continues to grow at a faster rate than the rate of enrolment. It will take a number of years of effort, and the right strategies, to improve the percentage of those enrolled.

Increasing the number of names on the electoral roll is just one part of the challenge. At the 2007 federal election, a significant number of registered voters did not vote on the day, or were unable (or unwilling) to record a valid vote. In total, around 2.4 million eligible Australian voters did not fully exercise their

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AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10 YEAR IN REVIEW 3

franchise in the 2007 election. This presents a considerable challenge to the AEC and to the Australian community.

The AEC continues to focus on four key outcomes: ■■ increase the number of eligible citizens on

the electoral roll ■■ increase the number of people who access

their right to vote ■■ reduce the number of votes which are

inadvertently cast as informal and therefore not included in the count

■■ improve community knowledge about electoral processes.

The great majority of the missing 1.59 million electors are aged 18 to 39, which suggests that a particular range of strategies is required. Our outreach and advertising activities in 2009–10 were targeted closely at young and isolated social groups.

The Australian community is increasingly turning to digital media for its information needs, and the AEC must therefore harness the new tools. In June 2010, the AEC launched its Famous People Vote Too campaign, an internet-based strategy to encourage younger Australians to enrol to vote and to update their enrolment details. Using the appeal of a range of well-known Australians – actors, sportspeople, designers – and encouraging video input from the public, the campaign was a concerted effort to increase awareness and enrolments in advance of the next federal election.

The AEC trialled SMS messaging for communicating with potential voters. With careful use of data from agencies such as Centrelink, we were able to issue some 54 000 SMS reminders by mid-June 2010. These reminders were designed to prompt

responses to letters previously sent by the AEC. The trial was moderately successful and demonstrated the affordability of this means of communications. In September 2009, the AEC also introduced an online electoral enrolment form, the AEC SmartForm, which enables people to supply their details to the AEC electronically, and generate a printed form to be signed and returned to the AEC for processing. This removes some of the time-consuming data entry steps in the electoral enrolment process.

Apart from the focus on preparing for the federal election, the AEC conducted a total of 1 048 other elections and ballots in 2009–10. In meeting its statutory responsibilities, the AEC conducted 265 industrial elections and 661 protected action ballots. This represented a marked increase in the number of protected action ballots, almost three times as many as for the previous financial year. The AEC also responded to requests from the public and private sectors, conducting 122 elections and ballots on a fee-for-service basis. The divisional staff are involved in the delivery of these activities, providing them with invaluable experience between federal elections.

In 2009–10, the AEC received a budget allocation to fund work improving the electoral participation of Indigenous Australians, part of the government’s broad agenda to ‘close the gap’ between Indigenous and other Australians. After consulting with Indigenous groups, the AEC appointed 19 electoral participation officers. These new staff undertook intensive training in electoral processes and are now working on the ground in urban, rural and remote Indigenous communities to provide electoral education and information and help with enrolment processes. Ahead of this, the AEC had begun pilot projects in several Indigenous communities – from remote

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areas in the Pilbara in Western Australia to urban areas of Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales – to engage community leaders and strengthen Indigenous participation in Australian democracy. These projects move away from external, one-size-fits-all approaches: instead they encourage self-sustaining forms of electoral participation within communities. While this year was a building year, the work undertaken so far has been positively received and lays a foundation for future years.

Rebuilding electoral participation will require modernisation of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 (the Electoral Act). Most provisions of the Electoral Act have been in place since 1918 – the world has changed enormously since then, and new communication technologies have had a profound impact on how people interact, communicate and participate in social processes. Young Australians in particular now expect that enrolling and voting should be simple processes that involve a range of options, including electronic tools.

Many of the states and territories are making efforts to modernise their electoral legislation, which now provides such tools as online electoral enrolment and electronic certified lists for use by polling officials. The ongoing cooperation between the AEC and the state and territory electoral commissions enables us to evaluate the success of their new systems, and this knowledge will prove invaluable for considering similar changes at the federal level. In 2009–10, we sought to strengthen our collaboration with the state and territory electoral commissions and to refine our views on improving electoral processes.

Federally, the prospects for electoral modernisation seemed positive in 2009–10. Most of the recommendations made by the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters (JSCEM) in its report on the conduct of the 2007 federal election, tabled in June 2009, gained the support of government and opposition parties. The Australian Government was also in the process of considering

issues and submissions raised by two green papers on electoral reform, released in 2008 and 2009. The government’s second green paper, Strengthening Australia’s Democracy, was launched in September 2009, providing opportunities for the community to engage in the debate about changes to Australia’s democratic processes. We continued to work closely with the JSCEM and maintain productive relationships with all major political parties.

Just as importantly, we continued to work with the community to improve the ability of Australians to exercise their franchise. For example, voters who are blind or have low vision have required the physical assistance of others. In 2009–10, the AEC again consulted closely with the representatives of these members of the community, and identified potential solutions. The discussions informed amendments to the Electoral Act to provide an electronic method of voting for Australians who are blind or have low vision.

Those amendments were among many provisions to modernise aspects of the Electoral Act that were enacted shortly after the end of the reporting period, on 14 July 2010, under the Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Pre-poll Voting and Other Measures) Act 2010, Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Modernisation and Other Measures) Act 2010, and Electoral and Referendum Amendment (How-to-Vote Cards and Other Measures) Act 2010. We are pleased to be keeping ahead of these contemporary electoral matters – an achievement of which all Australians should be proud.

Our efforts to strengthen and build partnerships with stakeholders led to the AEC Colloquium, held in Canberra in September 2009. This was a forum to encourage collaboration between the AEC and leading researchers, in the interests of understanding the long-term social trends affecting the public’s willingness to enrol to vote and to stay enrolled. The first tangible outcome of the AEC Colloquium was a research project conducted by AEC staff and Dr Helena Catt,

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AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10 YEAR IN REVIEW 5

former Electoral Commissioner of New Zealand. The project report, Mobilise the Franchise, was launched in April 2010 and provides a fresh approach to understanding, and responding to, the challenge of improving electoral participation.

The AEC Strategic Plan 2009–2014 has been in operation for more than 12 months, and its three key themes – modernisation, collaboration and investing in our people – guided AEC goals and work practices over the year. The theme of ‘people’ formed a real focus within the AEC, based on the powerful fact that the AEC’s biggest asset is its staff.

Moving into my second year as the Electoral Commissioner, I can say that one of the best things about the job is working with such a dedicated team of people right across Australia. As an organisation, our challenge over the next few years is to fully develop our staff, in order to maintain the high quality of our work and to create a first-class working environment. In the second half of 2009, I received an independent report on staff satisfaction and options for changes to our practices. Out of that report, we developed and launched the Investing In Our People program, which will better develop staff for existing and future jobs, and recognise staff achievements.

Looking to the future I expect that, following the directions set out in the Strategic Plan 2009–2014, the next few years will bring considerable change to the AEC. Our work environment must be able to respond immediately to any reforms to the Electoral Act. We must also build our capacity to identify existing and emerging social trends and address community expectations. To that end, we established the Strategic Capability Branch within the AEC national office. The new branch realigns our staff structure with these anticipated challenges, laying the foundation for innovative, responsive policies and practices in the coming decade.

The AEC needs to work further with the broader community to strengthen Australia’s culture of electoral participation, and ensure that ours is a nation in which citizens value their franchise and make the effort to exercise it. For its part, the AEC wants to minimise the effort required for electors to exercise the franchise, but in a way that guarantees the integrity and security of the electoral roll in an electronic age.

Ed Killesteyn Electoral Commissioner

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- -


Summary of achievements

Outcome 1 – voter entitlement for Australians and support for electoral events and redistributions through maintaining an accurate and up to date electoral roll

Enhanced understanding of electors’ motivations

The AEC undertook several research projects to improve its understanding of electors and identify ideas and actions to increase elector participation. Findings were used to redesign communication with electors.

Enhanced capacity for electors to engage with enrolment services electronically

The AEC enrolment SmartForm was introduced in late September 2009, enabling electors to complete enrolment applications online. The online applications are subsequently printed, signed and returned to the AEC. A significant majority of electors who use the SmartForm complete all steps of this process.

Improved roll management system

GENESIS (general enrolment, elections support and information system) became operational for all states and territories in September 2009, improving the AEC’s capacity to process enrolment applications.

Effective support for electoral redistribution processes

Support provided to the committees conducting electoral boundary redistributions for New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria allowed for the effective and timely conduct of redistribution activities in accordance with legislative requirements.

Outcome 2 – Access to an impartial and independent electoral system for Australians through the provision of election services

Successful conduct of the Bradfield and Higgins by-elections

By-elections were successfully conducted in the divisions of Bradfield and Higgins on 5 December 2009.

Ballot papers were produced and distributed to meet demand for early (pre-poll and postal) voting, as well as for use by mobile polling teams and on election day. Results were publicly announced within legislated timeframes and were made available on the AEC website on by-election night.

Checkpoint In response to feedback from AEC staff and polling officials following the 2007 election, a complete online training curriculum was developed, using modern instructional design techniques, for each of the 10 roles performed by polling officials employed during the voting period. The courseware and online delivery arrangements are well advanced in preparation for the 2010 federal election.

Building Resources in Democracy, Governance and Elections (BRIDGE)

In June 2010, BRIDGE won the 2010 United Nations Public Service Award in the category of ‘Improving the delivery of public services’, the most prestigious international recognition of excellence in public service.

Successful delivery of the programs for industrial elections, protected action ballots and fee-for-service elections and ballots

All industrial elections were completed within the required timeframes, legislation and organisations’ rules. New policies and procedures reflecting significant legislative changes were successfully implemented for the conduct of protected action ballots, the demand for which increased almost threefold. A range of fee-for-service activities was undertaken to the satisfaction of clients.

Legislative changes arising from recommendations from the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters

Three pieces of electoral reform legislation were passed by the Senate in June 2010.

The Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Pre-poll Voting and Other Measures) Bill will provide the basis for improvements to enrolment and voting services provided by the AEC, for the 2010 federal election. The Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Modernisation and Other Measures) Bill 2010 and the Electoral and Referendum Amendment (How-to-Vote Cards and Other Measures) Bill will also introduce a range of measures to improve the efficiency and flexibility of enrolment and voting services.

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7 AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10 YEAR IN REVIEW

Outcome 3 – Informed Australians through the provision of information services on electoral matters

National Electoral Education Centre (NEEC)

In 2009–10, the NEEC’s visitor numbers increased by nearly 7 500. The NEEC was awarded the Canberra and Capital Region Tourism Award for Best Education Tourism Program 2009.

School and Community Visits Program (SCVP)

Outreach activities under the SCVP reached 227 567 participants, an increase of 65 per cent from 2008–09. The online school and community activity reporting database (OSCAR), developed by the AEC, was launched on 1 July 2009.

Civics education The AEC firmly aligned itself with future directions for electoral education by contributing to the national agenda for civics education through the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority.

Enrol to Vote Week Enrol to Vote Week was conducted in July–August 2009 and May 2010. In 2009, 1 791 secondary schools and colleges participated; in 2010, 1 685 secondary schools and colleges participated. In total, more than 35 000 enrolment forms were generated in 2009–10.

Mobilise the Franchise The Mobilise the Franchise project commenced in 2009–10 and examined ideas and actions aimed at increasing electoral participation. The project is ongoing, using social marketing principles to segment the electoral divisions by characteristics such as attitude, lifestyle, knowledge and skills.

Rock Enrol In May 2010, the Rock Enrol campaign was launched on the ABC youth radio station triple j, encouraging young people to enrol to vote in time for the next federal election.

Famous People Vote Too

The Famous People Vote Too campaign, featuring a group of well-known Australians, was launched in June 2010. The campaign was designed to raise public awareness of enrolment and target ‘missing voters’, particularly among young Australians.

Market testing of letters

Letters used for the Continuous Roll Update program were market tested, which determined that a new stepped approach would be more effective than the traditional letter format. New envelope and letter designs tested positively.

AEC website The AEC website had around 840 000 unique visitors and in excess of 5 million pageviews.

By-election official guide

A booklet providing by-election information was produced and delivered to approximately 60 000 households in the Division of Bradfield and 69 000 households in the Division of Higgins. Due to the extremely high number of candidates contesting the Bradfield by-election, additional communication strategies were implemented to assist electors to cast formal votes.

Services supporting all outcomes

Gateway In response to staff feedback after the 2007 federal election, a new operational training strategy was developed, leading to the implementation of a new learning management system for AEC staff. The system has a strong focus on self-paced online learning packages, supplemented with targeted instructor-led training where appropriate. AEC staff are now able to undertake their election training at any point in the election cycle.

Internal communications

The AEC increased its internal communication activity and capability. A new team was established to build new communication tools and channels, and to increase the effectiveness of internal communication.

In February 2010, the AEC launched an upgraded intranet as the primary internal communication channel. The new intranet is delivered to staff when they log on each day and provides a daily news service with information and updates on AEC activities and achievements.

In 2009–10, the AEC also introduced vodcasting (video communication) to enable the Electoral Commissioner to communicate on significant issues to the AEC’s dispersed workforce.

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■■ Purpose and values ■■ Performance framework ■■ Legislative framework ■■ Organisational structure ■■ Office network ■■ Partnerships

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10 AEC OVERVIEW AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10

Purpose and values

Table 1 sets out the role, functions, values and other key attributes of the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), as described in the five-year strategic plan that commenced in July 2009.

Table 1 Organisational overview

why we are here The role of the AEC is to deliver the franchise: that is, an Australian citizen’s right to vote, as established by the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918.

what we do We: ■■ manage the federal electoral roll ■■ conduct elections and referendums, including industrial elections, protected action ballots and fee-for-service elections and ballots

■■ educate and inform the community about electoral rights and responsibilities ■■ provide research, advice and assistance on electoral matters to the parliament, other government agencies and recognised bodies

■■ provide assistance in overseas elections and referendums in support of wider government initiatives

■■ administer election funding, financial disclosure and party registration requirements ■■ support electoral redistributions.

For whom we do it

Our services are used by a wide range of customers including electors, political parties, the parliament, the government and organisations requiring electoral services. The pursuit of high standards in each of these areas ensures all Australians have a say in the government of the country.

what we value As an independent statutory body we embrace the values of the Australian Public Service in the high standards of behaviour we display on a day-to-day basis. In particular, we:

■■ conduct our business in a non-partisan manner with fairness and impartiality ■■ maintain high standards of integrity and ethical behaviour ■■ respect and uphold the law ■■ are tolerant of difference, sensitive to special needs and show respect for one another

■■ are open, transparent and accountable in what we do ■■ respect and listen to our clients and stakeholders and each other.

we abide by the following principles: ■■ we act to serve the Australian people and the Federal Parliament ■■ we strive for excellence ■■ we never knowingly mislead anyone.

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11 AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10 AEC OVERVIEW

Performance framework

Table 2 shows the framework that determined the performance of the AEC in 2009–10.

Table 2 Performance framework

Drivers Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 Portfolio Budget Statements 2009–10 AEC National Business Plan 2009–10 Branch, state, territory and divisional business plans

Strategic focus

Themes of the AEC Strategic Plan 2009–2014: ■■ Modernisation ■■ Collaboration ■■ Investing in our people

êGovernment outcomes

1 Voter entitlement for Australians and support for electoral events and redistributions through maintaining an accurate and up-to-date electoral roll

2 Access to an impartial and independent electoral system for Australians through the provision of election services

3 Informed Australians through the provision of information services on electoral matters

Government programs

1.1 Electoral roll management

1.2 Support services for electoral redistributions

2.1 Federal elections, by-elections and referendums

2.2 Party registrations

2.3 Funding and disclosure services

2.4 Fee-for-service elections

2.5 Industrial and Torres Strait Regional Authority elections

2.6 Advice and assistance in overseas elections

3.1 Electoral education

3.2 School and community programs

3.3 Communication strategies and services

Performance report

Pages 27–51 Pages 53–79 Pages 81–97

êTable continues

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Table 2 Performance framework (continued)

Business outcomes

■■ A high level of client and stakeholder trust and confidence in the way the AEC manages the roll

■■ An increased level of enrolment participation by eligible Australians

■■ Delivery of the enrolment franchise through a complete and accurate electoral roll

■■ A high level of client and stakeholder trust and confidence in the way the AEC manages electoral events

■■ A decreased level of informal voting by eligible Australians

■■ Delivery of the election franchise through an increased level of election participation by eligible Australians

■■ Clients and stakeholders who understand their electoral rights and responsibilities

■■ Delivery of the electoral franchise through a better informed and involved community

The annual report examines the AEC’s performance in achieving the government outcomes. Those outcomes and the programs that deliver them are defined in the annual Portfolio Budget Statements (PBS) and Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements of the Department of Finance and Deregulation. There is no variation between the AEC outcomes and programs described in those statements for 2009–10 and the outcomes and programs described in this report.

The Department of Finance and Deregulation is implementing a new approach to performance reporting, building on the previous ‘outcomes and outputs’ approach, to enhance transparency and accountability. As a result, ‘outcomes’ replaced the AEC’s former ‘output groups’, and ‘programs’ replaced individual ‘outputs’, in the PBS for 2009–10. Further changes aligning the AEC with the new approach have been made in the PBS for 2010–11.

Copies of the PBS are available from the Department of Finance and Deregulation website, at www.finance.gov.au/publications/ portfolio-budget-statements.

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www.finance.gov.au/publications


Legislative framework

The AEC operates as an independent agency under the Electoral Act. The various legislative provisions under which the AEC develops its core business processes, purpose, values and leadership capabilities, and conducts its activities, are summarised in Table 3.

Table 3 Legislative framework

Legislative instrument AEC function

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Act 2005

Conducting certain Torres Strait Regional Authority elections

Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 Conducting federal elections

Maintaining and updating the Commonwealth electoral roll, including evidence of identity requirements

Promoting public awareness of electoral and parliamentary matters through information and education programs

Providing international electoral assistance in cases approved by the Minister for Foreign Affairs

Conducting and promoting research into electoral matters and other matters that relate to AEC functions

Registering political parties

Paying public funding to election candidates and parties, and publishing financial details of political parties and others

Determining representation entitlements (redistributions)

Electoral and Referendum Regulations 1940

Conducting federal elections and referendums and providing elector information

Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009

Conducting industrial elections

Fair Work Act 2009 Conducting protected action ballots

Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997

Managing public money and property

Freedom of Information Act 1982 Holding and releasing documents

Privacy Act 1988 Storing, using and disclosing personal information

Public Service Act 1999 Ensuring the effective and fair employment, management and leadership of its employees

Referendum (Machinery Provisions) Act 1984

Conducting referendums

Representation Act 1983 Defines the number of senators per state

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Organisational structure

The AEC’s organisational structure for 2009–10, including the names of senior executives, is shown in Figure 1.

Commission The Electoral Act was amended in 1984 to establish a three-person Australian Electoral Commission (Commission) with the functions and powers set out in s.7 of the Electoral Act. The Commission meets as required in accordance with s.15 of the Electoral Act.

The Commission consists of a chairperson, who must be an active or retired judge of the Federal Court of Australia; the Electoral Commissioner; and a non-judicial member.

At 30 June 2010, the Commission consisted of: ■■ the Hon. Peter Heerey QC, the Chairperson ■■ Mr Ed Killesteyn, the Electoral Commissioner

and Chief Executive Officer of the AEC ■■ Mr Brian Pink (the Australian Statistician), the

part-time, non-judicial member.

Senior staff As Chief Executive Officer, the Electoral Commissioner has the powers of an agency head (within the meaning of the Public Service

Act 1999), and has responsibility for the management and strategic leadership of the AEC in relation to: ■■ enrolment and election activities ■■ conduct of federal parliamentary elections

and referendums, and certain other ballots, including those for industrial organisations

■■ electoral education programs ■■ electoral research ■■ administration of human, financial and

other resources ■■ provision of assistance in relation to overseas

elections and referendums ■■ national dissemination of electoral

information and education services.

Assisting the Electoral Commissioner are members of the AEC’s Executive Management Group. In the national office are the Deputy Electoral Commissioner, two first assistant commissioners, six assistant commissioners, the Chief Finance Officer and the Chief Legal Officer.

State managers, who hold the statutory appointment of Australian Electoral Officer for each state and the Northern Territory, also assist the Electoral Commissioner in managing electoral activities in their respective jurisdictions.

Executive Management Group. Back row (l,r): Paul Pirani, Pablo Carpay, neal Mason, Chris Drury, Tim Courtney, Sandra Riordan, Jenni McMullan, Cheryl McRae, Steve Kennedy, Rachel Harris, Robert Pugsley, Peter Kramer. Front row (l,r): Marie neilson, Doug Orr, Anne Bright, Barbara Davis, Ed Killesteyn, Paul Dacey, Kevin Kitson, Kathy Mitchell, Michael Maley. Image credit: Eddison Photography Studio

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Office network

AEC offices are organised geographically, with a national office in Canberra, a state office in each state and the Northern Territory, and divisional offices in or near each of the 150 electoral divisions.

national office During 2009–10, the AEC implemented a new organisational structure in its national office. The new structure meets business needs, appropriately balancing the needs to ‘do’ and to ‘support’, and provides capacity for future thinking and strategic capability. Changes included the creation of the Strategic Capability Branch.

The national office is now organised into eight branches: ■■ Education and Communications ■■ Elections ■■ Finance and Business Services ■■ Information Technology ■■ Legal and Compliance ■■ People Services ■■ Roll Management ■■ Strategic Capability.

State offices Each state office is headed by a state manager who is responsible for managing AEC activities, including conducting federal elections and referendums, and is the Australian Electoral Officer for the state or territory.

The State Manager for New South Wales also has administrative responsibility for the Australian Capital Territory divisions between

elections. During an election period, an Australian Electoral Officer is appointed for the Australian Capital Territory.

In addition: ■■ the State Manager for New South Wales has

national policy responsibility for the AEC’s conduct of industrial elections and protected action ballots

■■ the State Manager for Victoria has national policy responsibility for the AEC’s fee-forservice elections.

Divisional offices Each state or territory is divided into a number of electoral divisions that correspond to its number of members in the House of Representatives. At the end of 2009–10, there were 150 electoral divisions, with some divisional offices located with other divisional offices or state offices. Divisional offices are responsible for service delivery in elections, enrolment and public awareness.

Australia’s electoral divisions are shown in Figure 2.

Contact details The AEC’s national telephone inquiry number is 13 23 26; the national email address for inquiries is [email protected].

Contact details for the AEC’s national office and state offices are shown in Table 4. The AEC website (www.aec.gov.au) provides contact details for divisional offices.

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www.aec.gov.au

Western Australia 15

Sydney

Brisbane

Melbourne

CanberraAdelaide

Perth

Darwin

A U S T R A L I A

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Tasmania 5

South Australia 11

Queensland 30

Blair Forde Moncrieff Bonner Griffith Moreton Bowman Groom Oxley Brisbane Herbert Petrie Capricornia Hinkler Rankin Dawson Kennedy Ryan Dickson Leichhardt Wide Bay Fadden Lilley Wright Fairfax Longman Fisher Maranoa Flynn McPherson

Hobart

Canberra Fraser

Bass Braddon Denison Franklin Lyons

New South Wales 48

Brand Canning Cowan Curtin Durack Forrest Fremantle Hasluck Moore O’Connor Pearce Perth Stirling Swan Tangney

Lingiari Solomon

Adelaide Barker Boothby Grey Hindmarsh Kingston Makin Mayo Port Adelaide Sturt Wakefield

Banks Barton Bennelong Berowra Blaxland Bradfield Calare Charlton Chifley Cook Cowper Cunningham Dobell Eden-Monaro Farrer Fowler Gilmore Grayndler Greenway Hughes Hume Hunter Kingsford Smith Lindsay

Lyne Macarthur Mackellar Macquarie McMahon Mitchell Newcastle New England North Sydney Page Parkes Parramatta Paterson Reid Richmond Riverina Robertson Shortland Sydney Throsby Warringah Watson Wentworth Werriwa

Australian Capital Territory 2

Victoria 37

Aston Ballarat Batman Bendigo Bruce Calwell Casey Chisholm Corangamite Corio Deakin Dunkley Flinders Gellibrand Gippsland Goldstein Gorton Higgins Holt

Hotham Indi Isaacs Jagajaga Kooyong Lalor La Trobe McEwen McMillan Mallee Maribyrnong Melbourne Melbourne Ports Menzies Murray Scullin Wannon Wills


Figure 2 Electoral divisions

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Table 4 National and state office contact details

Address Telephone

National West Block Queen Victoria Terrace Parkes ACT 2600

(02) 6271 4411

New South Wales Level 4, Roden Cutler House 24 Campbell Street Sydney NSW 2000

(02) 9375 6333

Victoria Level 8, Casselden Place 2 Lonsdale Street Melbourne VIC 3000

(03) 9285 7171

Queensland Seventh Floor 488 Queen Street Brisbane QLD 4000

(07) 3834 3400

Western Australia Level 3, 111 St Georges Terrace Perth WA 6000

(08) 6363 8080

South Australia Ninth Floor, Origin Energy House 1 King William Street Adelaide SA 5000

(08) 8237 6555

Tasmania Second Floor, AMP Building 86 Collins Street Hobart TAS 7000

(03) 6235 0500

Northern Territory Level 7, TCG Centre 80 Mitchell Street Darwin NT 0800

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Partnerships

Developing and maintaining partnerships with other organisations, both in Australia and overseas, is one of the strategies the AEC uses to achieve its outcomes. Table 5 provides just a few examples of the partnerships that the AEC engaged in during 2009–10.

Table 5 Key partnerships supporting AEC outcomes

Partners Activities

Outcome 1

Australian Government agencies and other organisations with access to age and address information

Governed by memorandums of understanding (MOUs), the AEC uses data from the National Exchange of Vehicle and Driver Information System, Centrelink and Australia Post to target mailing for people who are eligible to enrol but are not enrolled or no longer reside at the address for which they are enrolled.

Australian Government agencies and organisations with shop fronts or offices that deliver services to the public

Through the use of ongoing arrangements to display enrolment forms in shop fronts of Centrelink, Australia Post, Medicare, the Australian Taxation Office and some Rural Transaction Centres, the AEC provides a convenient means by which people can access forms to enrol or update their enrolment details.

Australian Government Information Management Office and Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research

Through an ongoing arrangement to deliver online access to enrolment forms (including the AEC SmartForm) and information about the enrolment process on the website australia.gov.au, the AEC provides another convenient means by which people can access forms to enrol or update their enrolment details.

Department of Immigration and Citizenship

The AEC validates claims of citizenship against the department’s data as one of a number of enrolment eligibility checks.

State and territory electoral authorities

Through joint roll arrangements, the AEC works with state and territory electoral authorities to maintain a complete, accurate and up-to-date electoral roll, and to manage the close of rolls and provision of roll products for local and/or state elections and electoral activities.

Other state government agencies and organisations

The AEC uses collaborative partnerships with state government agencies and organisations to maintain and grow the roll. In Queensland and Western Australia, enrolment forms are included when state departments of transport send change of address labels for driver’s licences to customers who have advised that their addresses have changed.

Electoral Council of Australia The Electoral Council of Australia comprises senior staff of the AEC and the state and territory electoral commissioners. It provides a forum that enables joint initiatives such as sharing equipment across jurisdictions, conducting a national research conference, investigating the establishment of an internet-based election research repository and developing a national standard on voting for voters who are blind or have low vision.

Table continues

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Partners Activities

Outcome 2

AusAID The AEC’s strategic partnership agreement with AusAID provides a framework for close cooperation between the two agencies.

Building Resources in Democracy, Governance and Elections (BRIDGE)

The AEC is the lead agency in the BRIDGE partnership, which includes the United Nations Electoral Assistance Division; the United Nations Development Programme; the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance; and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems.

It is the role of the partners to support the development of BRIDGE curriculum materials and associated pedagogical materials; to manage the process for training and accrediting BRIDGE facilitators; and to foster and actively promote the effective use of BRIDGE courses, modules and materials throughout the world.

Fair Work Australia The AEC works closely with Fair Work Australia, which issues the directions and orders that direct the AEC to conduct industrial elections and protected action ballots.

International electoral authorities The AEC maintains good working relationships with election management bodies throughout the Asia–Pacific region, and more broadly. The AEC is also a member of the steering committee established to support the development of a network of election management bodies of Commonwealth countries.

State and territory electoral authorities

Under an MOU, the Northern Territory Electoral Commission maintains and manages an electoral services centre in Alice Springs.

Department of Defence The Department of Defence and the Australian Defence Force are working together with the AEC to provide voting services for Australian Defence Force personnel, including those located outside Australia.

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade provides voting services, and promotes enrolment and voting, for Australians overseas. For the 2010 federal election, this partnership will provide polling facilities in more than 100 overseas locations, allowing Australians living and travelling overseas to participate.

Centrelink For the 2010 federal election, Centrelink will provide a call centre facility to respond to telephone and email inquiries and product requests from the general public.

Australia Post Under an MOU, Australia Post provides enhanced mail services related to postal voting.

Blind and Low Vision Reference Group

A reference group of service providers and representatives is assisting the AEC to find a suitable and acceptable method of secret voting for voters who are blind or have low vision. An interim model, using a call centre, has been developed for the 2010 federal election.

Table continues

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Partners Activities

Outcome 3

Museum of Australian Democracy The AEC has supplied advice and artefacts to support the Museum of Australian Democracy’s development of museum exhibitions related to electoral processes. The AEC and the museum are working to find ways to cooperate to deliver programs to schools and community groups.

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority

The AEC has established a relationship with the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority as a contributor to the national civics curriculum development process. The AEC is involved in dialogue at senior levels, contributes to consultative forums and gives feedback on draft curriculums.

Parliamentary Education Office The AEC has had a scoping discussion with the Parliamentary Education Office to establish common program objectives in the field of civics education. A follow-up meeting has identified a specific common area of interest which will be pursued in 2010–11.

triple j The AEC has a collaborative relationship with the ABC’s triple j radio station, particularly in relation to engaging with young Australians and encouraging them to enrol and vote, through the Rock Enrol campaign.

Constitution Education Fund Australia

The AEC and the Constitution Education Fund Australia share objectives in civics education and are exploring joint initiatives, such as AusCivics, to promote civics and to engage school students on the importance of voting and the Australian democracy.

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Developments since the end of the financial year that affect the AEC’s operations Shortly after the end of the 2009–10 financial year, three significant events occurred: ■■ three Bills to amend the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 (the Electoral Act) and the

Referendum (Machinery Provisions) Act 1984 (the Referendum Act), having passed through parliament in June 2010, received Royal Assent and were enacted

■■ the date of the 2010 federal election was announced, and the writs were issued to trigger the conduct of the election

■■ the High Court declared that certain provisions of the Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Electoral Integrity and Other Measures) Act 2006 (the Integrity Act), which had inserted provisions in to the Electoral Act effecting certain cut-off dates for applications for enrolment or transfer of enrolment, were invalid.

These developments will affect the AEC’s operations in 2010–11 and may affect the AEC’s operations in future financial years.

Legislative changes

On 14 July 2010, three pieces of legislation were enacted to amend the Electoral Act and the Referendum Act. The AEC had anticipated this outcome, as described in the discussions of electoral reform in several sections of this annual report (particularly in the ‘Management and accountability’ chapter).

The Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Pre-poll Voting and Other Measures) Act 2010 implements the government response to a number of recommendations made in the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters (JSCEM) report entitled Report on the conduct of the 2007 federal election and matters related thereto, and a further amendment that limits the number of candidates that can be endorsed by a political party in each division. The Act contains provisions that: ■■ enable pre-poll votes cast in an elector’s ‘home’ division to be cast and counted as

ordinary votes, wherever practicable ■■ allow the AEC to manage its workload more efficiently by enabling enrolment transactions

to be processed in any AEC office ■■ modernise enrolment processes to enable electors to update their address details

electronically ■■ restrict the number of candidates that can be endorsed by a political party in

each division ■■ provide a framework for voters who are blind or have low vision to cast an independent

and secret vote by electronically assisted means.

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AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10 AEC OVERVIEW 23

Developments since the end of the financial year that affect the AEC’s operations (continued) The Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Modernisation and Other Measures) Act 2010 implements the government response to the majority of the recommendations of the JSCEM report as well as a number of minor amendments that are consistent with, or incidental to, the amendments made in response to the report. The Act contains provisions that: ■■ remove the requirement to publish enrolment and election-related forms and information

in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette and substitute the requirement for the Electoral Commissioner to publish the information, at a minimum, on the AEC’s website

■■ provide that a person making an application for enrolment or changing the name under which they are enrolled (which does not include amending address details) needs to include with their application either their driver’s licence number, their passport number or an attestation of identity signed by an enrolled elector

■■ reduce the age at which people may provisionally enrol, from 17 years to 16 years ■■ allow for electronic roll information to be provided to parliamentarians and allow for

electronic certified lists ■■ introduce flexibility to print ballot papers at the local level by removing the technical

requirement for ballot papers to be ‘overprinted’ ■■ introduce one form of mobile polling which may visit anywhere that the Electoral

Commissioner determines, removing inconsistencies in the arrangements for visits at various places or institutions

■■ enable a person to apply for a postal vote electronically by removing the requirement for an application for a postal vote to be signed and witnessed

■■ clarify that a right to inspect the electoral roll does not include the right to electronically copy or record the roll

■■ allow the AEC to provide the postal addresses of general postal voters to state and territory electoral commissions

■■ introduce specific provisions to facilitate enrolment and continued enrolment for people experiencing homelessness

■■ expand the grounds upon which a person may apply for a pre-poll or postal vote ■■ make a number of minor technical amendments.

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Developments since the end of the financial year that affect the AEC’s operations (continued) The Electoral and Referendum Amendment (How-to-Vote Cards and Other Measures) Act 2010 makes amendments related to how-to-vote cards and misleading or deceptive publications. The Act contains provisions that: ■■ introduce specific and expanded authorisation requirements for how-to-vote cards. The

intention of these amendments is to make it clearer who will benefit from the preference flow suggested on the how-to-vote card. It is intended that these amendments will reduce the potential for voters to be misled and to give voters the means to make informed decisions by ensuring that the political source of how-to-vote material is clearly stated.

■■ amend s.329 of the Electoral Act and s.122 of the Referendum Act, which generally prohibit a person from printing, publishing or distributing, or causing to be printed, published or distributed, anything that may mislead or deceive an elector in how to cast a vote. Subsection 329(6) defines the term ‘publish’ to include ‘publish by radio or television’. The amendments add the terms ‘telephone’ and ‘internet’ to the definition of ‘publish’ in s.329 of the Electoral Act and s.122 of the Referendum Act. The offence in s.329 of the Electoral Act and s.122 of the Referendum Act is expanded to include the internet; consequently, the Act amends the offence to have extended geographical jurisdiction.

As a result of preparations made by the AEC in anticipation of the legislative changes, some of the new provisions will be implemented in time for the 2010 federal election. Others will be implemented progressively as the AEC adapts and develops the necessary systems and procedures. Progress on implementing the changes will be described in the annual report for 2010–11.

Announcement of the 2010 federal election

On 17 July 2010, the Australian Government announced that a federal election would take place on 21 August 2010. The Governor-General issued the writs setting out the timetable for the election on 19 July 2010.

The AEC immediately began to deploy the systems, procedures and resources it had prepared for such an event, many of which are discussed in this annual report (particularly in the report on performance for Program 2.1).

The AEC’s performance in conducting the 2010 federal election will be discussed in detail in the annual report for 2010–11.

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AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10 AEC OVERVIEW 25

Developments since the end of the financial year that affect the AEC’s operations (continued)

High Court decision on cut-off dates for enrolment

In the case of Rowe and Another v. Electoral Commissioner and Another, which commenced on 26 July 2010, the High Court considered the validity of certain provisions of the Electoral Act effecting cut-off dates for the consideration of applications for enrolment and transfers of enrolment as an elector.

The plaintiff had challenged provisions that were introduced to the Electoral Act by the Integrity Act, namely: ■■ s.102(4), which prevents the Electoral Commissioner from considering claims for

enrolment lodged after 8 pm on the date of the issue of writs for an election for the House of Representatives or the Senate until after the close of polling

■■ s.102(4AA), which prevents consideration of claims for transfer of enrolment from one divisional roll to another from 8 pm on the date of the close of the rolls for an election until after the close of polling

■■ s.155, which provides that the rolls close on the third working day after the date of the writs.

In its decision, announced on 6 August 2010, the High Court declared that the provisions of the Integrity Act which introduced the challenged provisions into the Electoral Act were invalid. The declaration also covered certain consequential amendments made by the Integrity Act, including other provisions effecting cut-off dates relating to the enrolment of persons living outside Australia (s.94A(4)(a)) and itinerant electors (s.96(4)), and the eligibility of spouses, de facto partners or children of eligible overseas electors for enrolment (s.95(4)).

As well as altering the parameters for the processing of enrolment applications in the longer term, the High Court’s decision had immediate implications for the processing of applications lodged before the 2010 federal election, effectively extending the cut-off date for lodgement of applications by seven days. The AEC’s response to the effects of the decision will be discussed in the annual report for 2010–11.

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■■ Outcome 1 overview ■■ Program 1.1 – Electoral roll management ■■ Program 1.2 – Support services for electoral redistributions

REPORT On PERFORMAnCE: OUTCOME 1 Arch

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28 REPORT ON PERFORMANCE: OUTCOME 1 AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10

Outcome 1 overview

Voter entitlement for Australians and support for electoral events and redistributions through maintaining an accurate and up-to-date electoral roll

Program structure In 2009–10, Outcome 1 was delivered through two programs, as shown in Table 6.

Table 6 Outcome 1 programs and deliverables

Outcome 1 Voter entitlement for Australians and support for electoral events and redistributions through maintaining an accurate and up-to-date electoral roll.

Programs 1.1 Electoral roll management 1.2 Support services for electoral redistributions

Objective Facilitate correct electoral enrolment by eligible people so that they can properly exercise their franchise. This is achieved by ongoing maintenance and review of the electoral roll so that it is accurate and up-to-date for the conduct of elections. In addition, provide accurate and appropriate electoral roll products to eligible people and organisations.

Provision of high-quality support services to the various committees carrying out electoral boundary redistributions so that redistributions result in boundary alignment that meets legislative objectives.

Deliverables Program 1.1 will deliver letters and other forms of contact to electors to encourage them to enrol or to update their enrolment based on data indicating elector change of address, new eligibility, or failure to participate.

Fieldwork involving visits to habitations to encourage electors to enrol or to update their enrolment based on data indicating elector change of address, new eligibility, or failure to participate.

Program 1.2 will deliver support for the redistributions culminating in the AEC providing updated electoral boundary redistribution maps and advice to impacted electors.

Performance report

Pages 31–48 Pages 49–51

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AEC ANNUAL REPORT 2009–10 REPORT ON PERFORMANCE: OUTCOME 1 29

Performance On 30 June 2010, 13 901 840 people were enrolled to vote, a net increase of 9 278 since 30 June 2009. The AEC estimates that this represents 89.7 per cent of those who were eligible to enrol and vote. The participation rate has declined from a high of 92.3 per cent at the time of the 2007 federal election, and decreased since 2008–09.

The gap between the number of people enrolled and those eligible to enrol has increased in recent years. The growth in the estimated number of people not enrolled reflects the fact that the Australian population continues to grow at a faster rate than the rate of enrolment. This remains one of the more significant challenges for the AEC.

In part, the decline is due to the mandatory removal from the electoral roll over the course of the year of some 346 000 electors whom the AEC had determined no longer lived at their enrolled address and had not lived at that address for at least one month.

The AEC processed 16.8 per cent more enrolment transactions in 2009–10, an increase of some 336 000 transactions, compared to 2008–09. A significant portion of these transactions resulted from electors who updated their enrolment details following a move, frequently after being contacted by the AEC. In the absence of this contact, a significant number of electors may have been removed from the electoral roll.

Recognising that no single process or program of enrolment can cover the needs of all electors, the AEC conducts a wide range of activities that seek to engage with and enrol electors around Australia. These activities employ a mixture of mail, online, phone, SMS, email and in-person contact, and may be individually targeted or more generic.

Mail review activity continued to be the primary source of enrolment transactions during 2009–10, contributing a significant proportion of transactions for changes in

enrolment details, new enrolments and reenrolments. The number of letters sent to people who are not enrolled and electors who have moved without updating their enrolment increased considerably, from 2.5 million letters in 2008–09 to 4.6 million letters, including 1.2 million reminder letters sent to people who did not respond to the first letter they received. The AEC improved the efficiency and effectiveness of mail review activities by: ■■ making better use of postal address

data to contact electors at their preferred mailing address

■■ redesigning letters to provide electors with clearer and more explicit information about their enrolment obligations and options to enrol.

The AEC enrolment SmartForm was introduced in September 2009, enabling electors to apply online. Around 70 per cent of electors who used the online service also sent a signed hard copy of the form to the AEC within seven days, to complete their enrolment.

The Joint Commonwealth–State Roll Management Group was established during 2009–10 to support the growth, maintenance, integrity and accuracy of the electoral roll – the factors that underpin the successful conduct of electoral events. A multi-level approach is applied to collectively managing the electoral roll, as the group includes members from each state and territory electoral commission in addition to the AEC.

During 2009–10, the AEC provided timely and accurate electoral roll products for more than 70 electoral events, some 400 roll products to state and territory electoral commissions under joint roll arrangements, and 2 474 roll products to selected recipients with entitlements specified in the Electoral Act.

Three redistribution processes were active during 2009–10. The AEC provided support and analysis to the augmented Electoral Commissions for New South Wales and Queensland and the Redistribution Committee for Victoria.

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Outlook During 2010–11, the AEC will focus on ensuring that the electoral roll is as up-to-date and accurate as possible by: ■■ continuing to improve its methods of

contacting and seeking enrolment from eligible members of the community

■■ making it easier for electors to access AEC services

■■ employing technology to modernise processes, including modifying IT systems to better use existing data

■■ expanding its partnerships and collaborative working arrangements, for example with state and territory transport authorities

■■ working with the New South Wales Electoral Commission and the Victorian Electoral Commission to ensure that changes to state legislation are implemented in an ‘electorcentric’ manner

■■ implementing new practices enabled by provisions of the Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Pre-poll Voting and Other Measures) Bill 2010 and Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Modernisation and Other Measures) Bill 2010

■■ strengthening the Indigenous Electoral Participation Program to improve the participation of Indigenous Australians in the electoral process

■■ addressing the recommendations of the Mobilise the Franchise report

■■ implementing the recommendations made by the Australian National Audit Office in Performance audit report no. 28 of 2009–10 – The Australian Electoral Commission’s Preparation for and Conduct of the 2007 Federal General Election

■■ implementing any government-supported recommendations of the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters inquiry into the New South Wales Parliamentary Electorates and Elections Amendment (Automatic Enrolment) Act 2009, once the Australian Government has tabled its response to the inquiry.

The redistribution of federal electoral boundaries in Victoria will conclude during 2010–11 with a report detailing the new boundaries to be released in late 2010.

A redistribution of federal electoral boundaries in South Australia will commence in 2010–11, as seven years has elapsed since the previous redistribution was determined (on 17 December 2003). Ar

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Program 1.1 – Electoral roll management

Facilitate correct electoral enrolment by eligible people so that they can properly exercise their franchise. This is achieved by ongoing maintenance and review of the electoral roll so that it is accurate and up- to-date for the conduct of elections. In addition, provide accurate and appropriate electoral roll products to eligible people and organisations.

Overview The electoral roll is the record of people entitled to vote at federal, state and territory and local government elections. The AEC manages the electoral roll by: ■■ preparing, maintaining and revising the

electoral roll used for federal elections ■■ maintaining the electoral rolls for state,

territory and local government elections, through joint roll arrangements

■■ making the electoral roll available for public inspection

■■ providing roll products and services to authorities, people and organisations as specified under the Electoral Act.

Maximising the integrity of the electoral roll is integral to ensuring Australia’s democratic electoral processes function effectively. Key elements of integrity are: ■■ completeness – all individuals who are

entitled to be enrolled are enrolled ■■ accuracy – the individual is enrolled for

the address at which they are entitled to be enrolled

■■ entitlement – the individual meets all legislative qualifications for enrolment on the electoral roll (information provided by the individual is tested to detect and prevent enrolment fraud)

■■ processing correctness – information provided by individuals and organisations is entered correctly and completely on the roll.

Performance Table 7 summarises the AEC’s results against the performance information set out for Program 1.1 in the 2009–10 Portfolio Budget Statements.

Elector numbers and participation rate

At 30 June 2010, 13 901 840 electors were enrolled to vote, an increase of 9 278 from the 13 892 562 electors enrolled at 30 June 2009.

The number enrolled at 30 June 2010 represented a participation rate of 89.7 per cent. The participation rate is based on an estimate of the total number of people eligible to enrol, which is calculated using the Australian Bureau of Statistics population data derived from the census.

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30 Ju

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Figure 3 Size of the electoral roll and estimated participation rate, October 2004 to June 2010

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13.6

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91.5%

92.0%

92.5%

93.0%

Federal election 2004

Federal election 2007

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Table 7 Program 1.1 – Electoral roll management: performance results

Key performance indicators Targets Results

Proportion of eligible people on the electoral roll

95% of eligible people are on the electoral roll

89.7% of eligible people were on the electoral roll at 30 June 2010.

Accurate and timely enrolment processing

99.5% of enrolment transactions correctly processed

98.8% of enrolment transactions were correctly processed.a

99% of enrolment transactions processed within three business days

90.3% of enrolment transactions were processed within three business days.

Engaging with electors through the enhanced use of technology

Those eligible to enrol have enhanced capability to access certain enrolment services electronically by 30 June 2010

The AEC enrolment SmartForm has been operational since September 2009.

Accurate and timely provision of roll products

At least 98% of roll products accurate

99.9% of roll products delivered were accurate.

At least 98% of roll products delivered by agreed deadline

99.9% of roll products were delivered by the agreed deadline.

a Any errors in processing detected by the AEC are corrected and the record is amended.

Electors enrolled Proportion of eligible Australians enrolled

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While the number of electors on the electoral roll was greater than in previous years, the eligible Australian population is continuing to grow at a faster rate than the electoral roll. As a consequence, the overall participation rate has continued to decline. Figure 3 shows the trend in the number of electors enrolled and the participation rate for each year since the 2004 federal election.

This figure shows that: ■■ The AEC is yet to achieve its target

participation rate of 95 per cent. ■■ The size of the electoral roll has increased

since the 2004 and 2007 elections. ■■ The decline in the participation rate since the

2007 election has continued.

The continuing decline in the participation rate reflects growth in the population eligible to enrol and apparent reduced motivation among eligible electors to enrol and to maintain correct enrolment without an election imminent at either the federal level or the state/territory level. State elections in South Australia and Tasmania during 2009–10 saw some limited growth in the number of electors on the roll for each of those states; however, the growth was small in terms of contributing to the national participation rate as those states are home to a relatively small number of eligible electors.

Enrolment activity

In 2009–10, the AEC processed 2 328 661 transactions concerning electors’ enrolment details. Some 1.3 million of these transactions (53.9 per cent) involved changes to enrolment details where electors provided new information, usually because they had moved residence.

Figure 4, which shows components of enrolment activity, indicates that changing enrolment details has consistently been more than half of the AEC’s roll management workload for each of the past six years.

In comparing the makeup of activity between years, differences which can be observed for 2009–10 are: ■■ the proportion of activity resulting from

processing new enrolments decreased ■■ the proportion of activity resulting from

processing re-enrolments increased ■■ the proportion of activity resulting from

processing objections was double that of 2008–09 and 2007–08

■■ when new enrolments and re-enrolments are considered jointly (both activities result in the addition of individuals to the electoral roll), approximately 20 per cent of transactions over the past three years have led to electors being added to the electoral roll.

Table 8 summarises enrolment activity during 2009–10 for the types of transactions presented in Figure 4, as well as by state and territory.

Overall, there was an increase of 16.8 per cent in the number of transactions processed, compared to 2008–09. An increase in the overall level of transactions is to be expected in the lead-up to a federal election. In addition, the AEC significantly increased its actions to contact electors who are eligible to enrol but have yet to do so and electors believed to reside at an address other than the address for which they are enrolled.

This increase in activity to contact electors prompted increases in transactions for: ■■ re-enrolments, from 82 756 in 2008–09 to

153 618 in 2009–10 (85.6 per cent increase) ■■ intrastate movements, from 444 683

in 2008–09 to 515 106 in 2009–10 (15.8 per cent increase)

■■ intra-division amendments or movements, from 598 132 in 2008–09 to 620 760 in 2009–10 (3.8 per cent increase)

■■ objections, from 144 739 in 2008–09 to 346 057 in 2009–10 (139.1 per cent increase).

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Figure 4 Components of enrolment activity, 2004–05 to 2009–10

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New enrolments Re-enrolments Change in enrolment details

No change to enrolment details Objections Deaths

Note: The enrolment activities presented in this figure are: ■■ new enrolments – additions to the electoral roll of individuals who have become eligible to enrol and who have not previously

been on the electoral roll ■■ re-enrolments – additions to the electoral roll of i

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