AUSTRALIAN ELECTORAL COMMISSION Annual Report 2011–12 Produced by: Australian Electoral Commission Project managed by: Bernadette Rose Printed by: Blue Star Print Limited Edited by: WordsWorth Writing Pty Ltd Designed by: Tim McLaren Web address of this report: annualreport.aec.gov.au/2012 Contact officer: Assistant Commissioner, Education & Communications Branch 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 4458 Email: [email protected] Website: www.aec.gov.au ISSN: 0814–4508 @ Commonwealth of Australia 2012 This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au The Australian Electoral Commission asserts the right to be recognised as author of the original material in the following manner: © Commonwealth of Australia (Australian Electoral Commission) 2012. Enquiries regarding the licence and any use of this document are welcome at: Assistant Commissioner, Education and Communications Australian Electoral Commission PO Box 6172 Kingston ACT 2604 Email: [email protected] Warning. This report may contain the names and images of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people now deceased. Letter of transmittal Letter of transmittal Letter Australian Electoral Commission Annual Report 2011–12 ii iii Australian Electoral Commission Annual Report 2011–12 Contents Contents Letter of transmittal iii Financial Statements 111 About this report vi Independent Auditors Report 112 Year in review 1 Statement by the Electoral Commissioner and Chief Commissioner’s review 2 Finance Officer 114 2011–12 highlights 5 Statement of comprehensive income 115 Key performance results 5 Balance sheet 116 About us 7 Statement of changes in equity 117 Our role, outcome and values 8 Cash flow statement 118 Our organisation 8 Schedule of commitments 119 Our programs 12 Schedule of contingencies 120 Our legislation 14 Administered schedules 121 Notes to the Financial Statements 123 Report on performance 15 Engaging Australians 16 Improving our efficiency 157 Our partnerships 64 Our workforce 158 Supporting staff 171 Our governance and Information and communications compliance 91 technology 174 Governance 92 Appendixes 175 Accountability 94 Appendix A – Workplace health Legal services 100 and safety 176 External scrutiny 102 Appendix B – Agency resources 180 Managing our finances Appendix C – Consultancies 183 and assets 107 Appendix D – Advertising and market research 185 Financial performance analysis 108 Appendix E – Environmental Assets management 108 performance 186 Purchasing 109 Grants 110 References 189 Contractual arrangements 110 List of abbreviations 190 List of requirements 192 Index 195 Australian Electoral Commission Annual Report 2011–12 iv About this reportAbout About this report This report describes the performance of the AEC for the financial year ending 30 June 2012. The aim of the report is to inform members of parliament, Australians, political parties, interest groups, candidates, electoral authorities, government agencies, students, teachers, and the media about the services we provided in 2011–12. The report includes performance against our outcome, deliverables and key performance indicators as outlined in the Portfolio Budget Statements 2011–12. We prepared the report in accordance with the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet’s Requirements for Annual Reports. Structure Our governance and compliance ‘Our governance and compliance’ describes our Year in review management and accountabilities that guides our ‘Year in review’ is the Electoral Commissioner’s processes and performance. The section includes reflection on the year, our challenges and workplace health and safety and external scrutiny developments. arrangements. About us Managing our finances and assets ‘About us’ is information about our role, outcome, ‘Managing our finances and assets’ is our financial values, organisation, programs and legislation. performance analysis, financial statements, an independent auditor’s report, and information Report on performance on how we manage our assets and contractual arrangements. ‘Report on performance’ describes our program of work for the Australian community and our Improving our efficiency partnerships. The section includes achievements against key performance indicators, grouped under ‘Improving our efficiency’ details how we manage, two headings ‘Engaging Australians’ and ‘Our invest in, recruit and retain staff. The section partnerships’. also includes how we manage our information technology and our environmental performance to improve our efficiency. v Australian Electoral Commission Annual Report 2011–12 About this reportAbout QR codes For people who are deaf There are QR codes throughout this annual report. By using a smart phone, you can scan or have a hearing or the codes to view videos that relate to particular speech impairment sections of the report. If you are deaf, or have a hearing or speech impairment, contact us through the National Contact us Relay Service (www.relayservice.com.au): Assistant Commissioner, ■ TTY users: phone 133 677, then ask for Education and Communications Branch 13 23 26. Australian Electoral Commission ■ Speak and Listen users: phone 1300 555 727, PO Box 6172 then ask for 13 23 26. Kingston ACT 2604 ■ Internet relay users: connect to the National Phone: (02) 6271 4411 Relay Service, then ask for 13 23 26. Fax: (02) 6271 4558 Email: [email protected] For people who Website: www.aec.gov.au/contact speak a language other than English If you speak a language other than English, a telephone interpreter service is available in 18 languages to assist you. Visit the AEC website at www.aec.gov.au to find the number to call to speak your language. Australian Electoral Commission Annual Report 2011–12 vi Year in review > Commissioner’s review 2 > 2011–12 highlights 5 > Key performance results 5 Commissioner’s review The Year of Enrolment > Year in review > Year To help us grapple with this challenge, and try new ways to drive our enrolment message, we designated 2012 the Year of Enrolment. The year marks two significant federal electoral events: the centenary of compulsory enrolment and the 50th anniversary of the right of Indigenous Australians to vote in federal elections. The Year of Enrolment, which continues to the end Commissioner’s review review Commissioner’s of 2012, involves a comprehensive program of new initiatives to prompt people to enrol or update their enrolment. It has a clear aim – increase enrolment. The program was launched at Parliament House in March to coincide with the actual anniversaries. The aim was to enlist the support of members of parliament to spread the enrolment message. A stamp to commemorate 100 years of compulsory enrolment was launched by Australia Post at Ed Killesteyn, Electoral Commissioner the event. The Count Me In campaign commenced in Electoral administrators are often asked ‘what May 2012 with a postcard mailed to more than do you do between elections?’ The answer, ‘you nine million households throughout Australia. The get ready for the next one’, has typified the AEC’s purpose of the mail-out was to reach all Australians activities over the past 12 months. Indeed, in and encourage them to enrol or update their 2011–12 the implications of a hung parliament enrolment details. The mail-out was supported meant we needed to be ready to deliver an election by an online advertising campaign specifically at any time. targeted at people aged 18–24, where enrolment levels remain persistently low. For this reason, we brought forward a range of election-critical activities in parallel with an Early evaluation of the campaign indicates our ambitious program of reform to the way we deliver efforts have achieved some success. In the electoral services, structure our divisional office first two weeks of the campaign, enrolment network, and manage the electoral roll. transactions doubled compared with the same time last year. Enrolment for the month of June Traditionally, maintenance and growth of the grew by almost 30 per cent to about 18 000, electoral roll comes into greater focus between compared with 14 000 for each of the previous elections. All at the AEC are driven by a sense of two months. responsibility for ensuring Australians have the chance to exercise their key democratic right At the same time, we launched AEC Twitter and to vote. The first step in securing that right is Facebook accounts to better engage young enrolment. Declining participation in the electoral Australians, who make up a large portion of those process starts with enrolment and this presents missing from the roll. We believe social media will one of our biggest challenges. We estimate that the increase the speed and frequency of our public number of people not on the roll is approximately engagement and offers great potential for us to 1.5 million, up from about 1.4 million at this time listen, answer customer questions, improve service last year. delivery and build participation through dialogue. 2 Australian Electoral Commission Annual Report 2011–12 Engaging with Modernisation – JSCEM Indigenous Australians recommendations It is 50 years since Indigenous Australians won Much of our modernisation agenda is driven by the right to vote in federal elections; however, the legislative reform recommended by the Joint Indigenous Australians are still less likely to