Review of the Roles and Functions of Native Title Organisations March 2014 Review of the Roles and Functions of Native Title Organisations General use restriction This report is prepared solely for the use of the Australian Government Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C). The report was originally commissioned by the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA). In September 2013 the responsibility for Indigenous Affairs was transferred to PM&C. This report is not intended to and should not be used or relied upon by anyone else and we accept no duty of care to any other person or entity. The report has been prepared to provide a review of the roles and functions of native title organisations based on input from consultations and public submissions. You should not refer to or use our name or the advice for any other purpose. Except where otherwise indicated, the opinions, comments and/or analysis expressed in this report are those of the author or authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Minister for Indigenous Affairs nor the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, and cannot be taken in any way as expressions of government policy. Deloitte Access Economics Review of Native Title Organisations Contents Glossary ..................................................................................................................................... i Acronyms ................................................................................................................................. iii Executive Summary ................................................................................................................... 1 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 5 2 The native title system .................................................................................................... 7 2.1 Native Title Representative Bodies and Service Providers .................................................. 8 2.2 Native title holders ......................................................................................................... 11 2.3 Support for native title holders ....................................................................................... 14 2.4 Role and impact of private agents ................................................................................... 17 3 The native title system in the future .............................................................................. 20 4 Towards functional RNTBCs ........................................................................................... 21 4.1 RNTBC pathways ............................................................................................................. 21 4.2 RNTBC funding ................................................................................................................ 22 4.3 Additional RNTBC resourcing........................................................................................... 26 5 Implications for NTRBs/NTSPs ....................................................................................... 28 5.1 Future roles and functions of NTRBs/NTSPs ..................................................................... 28 5.2 A contestable market for RNTBC support in a post-determination environment .............. 30 5.3 Models for NTRB/NTSP support to RNTBCs ..................................................................... 31 5.4 Non-NTRB/NTSP support ................................................................................................ 33 5.5 Rationalisation ................................................................................................................ 34 5.6 Recognition .................................................................................................................... 37 6 Implications for private agents ...................................................................................... 39 7 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 41 References .............................................................................................................................. 45 Appendix A : Terms of Reference ............................................................................................ 48 Appendix B : Background on the native title system ................................................................ 49 B.1 The Native Title Act and Indigenous Affairs policy ........................................................... 50 B.1.1 History and objectives of the native title system ............................................................. 50 B.1.2 The benefits of native title .............................................................................................. 50 B.1.3 Policy context ................................................................................................................. 52 B.1.4 Recent reforms ............................................................................................................... 53 Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation. 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Please see www.deloitte.com/au/about for a detailed description of the legal structure of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited and its member firms. © 2014 Deloitte Access Economics Pty Ltd Review of Native Title Organisations B.2 Background on NTRBs/NTSPs .......................................................................................... 55 B.2.1 Roles and functions of NTRBs/NTSPs ............................................................................... 55 B.2.2 Activities of NTRBs/NTSPs ............................................................................................... 57 B.2.3 NTRB/NTSP resourcing .................................................................................................... 67 B.3 Background on RNTBCs ................................................................................................... 73 B.3.1 Roles and functions of RNTBCs ........................................................................................ 73 B.3.2 Activities of RNTBCs ........................................................................................................ 74 B.3.3 Benefits of RNTBC activities ............................................................................................ 84 B.3.4 Evidence of constrained RNTBC capacity ......................................................................... 85 B.4 Background on support for native title holders ................................................................ 93 B.4.1 NTRB/NTSP support for native title holders ..................................................................... 93 B.4.2 Other support for RNTBCs ............................................................................................. 100 B.5 Current models of NTRB/NTSP assistance for RNTBCs ................................................... 104 B.5.1 RNTBC support integrated with other activities ............................................................. 104 B.5.2 RNTBC support unit / support officer ............................................................................ 105 B.5.3 Shared services provided on a fee-for-service basis ....................................................... 107 B.5.4 Regional Default PBC operated by the NTRB/NTSP ........................................................ 109 B.6 Models of RNTBC groupings .......................................................................................... 111 B.6.1 Federation of Victorian Traditional Owner Corporations (Victoria) ................................ 111 B.6.2 Gur A Baradharaw Kod Torres Strait Sea and Land Council Torres Strait Islander Corporation .................................................................................................................. 113 B.6.3 Central Services Corporation (WA) ................................................................................ 114 B.6.4 Other PBC groupings ..................................................................................................... 114 B.7 Background on private agents ....................................................................................... 116 B.7.1 Areas of private agent assistance to RNTBCs ................................................................. 116 B.7.2 Structural causes of private agent issues ....................................................................... 118 B.7.3 Obligations for NTRBs/NTSPs and private agents ........................................................... 121 Appendix C : Reference Group .............................................................................................. 123 Appendix D : Consultation schedule ...................................................................................... 124 Appendix E : Submissions ...................................................................................................... 131 Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation. Deloitte refers to one or more of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu