ATO Interpretative Decision
ATO ID 2003/1075 (Withdrawn)
Excise
Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme: on-road - vehicles for transporting passengers or goods - cherry pickersFOI status: may be released
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This ATO ID is withdrawn from 1 July 2012, the date the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme Act 2003 was repealed.
Despite its withdrawal, this ATO ID continues to be a precedential ATO view in respect of the period the Act was in force, 1 July 2003 up to and including 30 June 2012.This document incorporates revisions made since original publication. View its history and amending notices, if applicable.
This ATOID provides you with the following level of protection:
If you reasonably apply this decision in good faith to your own circumstances (which are not materially different from those described in the decision), and the decision is later found to be incorrect you will not be liable to pay any penalty or interest. However, you will be required to pay any underpaid tax (or repay any over-claimed credit, grant or benefit), provided the time limits under the law allow it. If you do intend to apply this decision to your own circumstances, you will need to ensure that the relevant provisions referred to in the decision have not been amended or repealed. You may wish to obtain further advice from the Tax Office or from a professional adviser.
Issue
Is a cherry picker a 'vehicle for transporting passengers or goods' for the purposes of section 43 of the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme Act 2003 (EGCSA)?
Decision
No. A cherry picker is not a 'vehicle for transporting passengers or goods' for the purposes of section 43 of the EGCSA.
Facts
A business operates a cherry picker for maintaining power lines.
The gross vehicle mass (GVM) of the cherry picker is between 4.5 tonnes and 20 tonnes, and it is powered by diesel fuel.
The cherry picker is a truck which has been permanently modified by the attachment of an elevated platform, and is fitted out as a mobile workshop with tool chests and compartments, which contain tools and equipment.
The cherry picker carries a line team which consists of two people who maintain the power lines.
State registration authorities require cherry pickers to be registered as special purpose vehicles.
Reasons for Decision
Subsection 43(1) of the EGCSA provides that a claimant is entitled to an on-road credit if they purchase diesel or on-road alternative fuel for use in a registered vehicle that has a GVM of 4.5 tonnes or more, but less than 20 tonnes. The circumstances under which a claimant will be eligible for an on-road credit in respect of fuel purchased for use in such a vehicle are set out in subsection 43(2) of the EGCSA. A further, over-riding requirement that must be satisfied in order for any on-road credit to be available under section 43, is set out in paragraph 43(1)(a). Paragraph 43(1)(a) states that the vehicle must be a vehicle for transporting passengers or goods.
In determining whether a vehicle is a 'vehicle for transporting passengers or goods' as required by paragraph 43(1)(a) of the EGCSA, the Explanatory Memorandum to the Diesel and Alternative Fuels Grants Scheme Bill 1999 should be considered, as the resultant Diesel and Alternative Fuels Grants Scheme Act 1999 contains the same terminology to that used in the EGCSA. When discussing the eligibility of 'vehicles for transporting passengers or goods', the Explanatory Memorandum refers to vehicles that are;
...designed for transporting passengers or goods... (emphasis added)
The Explanatory Memorandum to the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme Bill 2003 and the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2003 provides an example of a vehicle that is not for transporting goods or passengers.
Paragraph 2.8 of the Explanatory Memorandum states:
...If a vehicle is not for transporting goods or passengers (e.g. special purpose vehicles such as mobile cranes)...
Based on the two explanatory memoranda, a vehicle will be a 'vehicle for transporting goods or passengers' provided it is designed for the purpose of transporting goods or passengers and is not a special purpose vehicle.
Section 4 of the EGCSA defines 'goods' as including a substance and a tangible thing. Although the tools carried by the cherry picker fall within this definition, and the cherry picker is capable of carrying them, the cherry picker is not a vehicle that has been designed for transporting passengers or goods. Rather, the cherry picker in question is designed specifically for the dual purpose of enabling the line team to access power lines via an elevated platform and as a mobile workshop fitted out with the tools and equipment needed by the line team to carry out special purpose work, being repairs and maintenance of power lines.
Furthermore, cherry pickers are regarded by state registration authorities as special purpose vehicles.
Therefore, as the cherry picker is not designed for the purpose of transporting passengers or goods and is generally regarded as a special purpose vehicle, it is not considered to be a 'vehicle for transporting passengers or goods' for the purposes of section 43 of the EGCSA.
Date of decision: 18 November 2003
Legislative References:
Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme Act 2003
section 4
subsection 43
paragraph 43(1)(a)
subsection 43(2)
ATO ID 2003/815
ATO ID 2003/884
ATO ID 2003/1043
Other References:
Explanatory Memorandum to the Diesel and Alternative Fuels Grants Scheme Bill 1999
Explanatory Memorandum to the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme Bill 2003 and the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2003
Keywords
EGCS on-road
Vehicle for transporting passengers or goods
ISSN: 1445-2782
| Date: | Version: | |
| 18 November 2003 | Original statement | |
| You are here | 1 July 2012 | Archived |
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