Pursuant to section 124(1)(d) of the Social Security Act 1964, the Minister for Social Development and Employment makes the following amendment to the Special Needs Grants Programme (as established and approved on 18 December 1998*).
Dated at Wellington this 9th day of September 2008.
HON RUTH DYSON, Minister for Social Development and Employment.
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A m e n d m e n t
1. Title—This amendment is the Special Needs Grants Amendment (No. 4) 2008.
2. Commencement—This amendment comes into effect on 15 September 2008.
3. Programme amended—This amendment amends the Special Needs Grants Programme.
4. Other Emergency Grants—Clause 14 is amended by adding the following clauses:
“14.5 This clause applies where an applicant seeks
a grant under clause 14.1—
(a) for the purpose of paying an application fee for a New Zealand birth certificate that is required by the chief executive as supporting evidence under section 11D(2)(b) of the Act; or
(b) for the purpose of paying an application or any other fee for a document of identification that is required by the chief executive as supporting evidence under section 11D(2)(b) of the Act.
14.6 Where clause 14.5 applies, clause 4.1 of the programme applies to clause 14.1 as if it did not include reference to section 76 of the Act.
14.7 The chief executive must not make a grant
under clause 14.1 for the purpose set out in
clause 14.5(b) unless the applicant’s birth is not registered in New Zealand.”
5. Grants to Farmers, Orchardists, etc.†—(1) Clause 18.2 is amended by revoking paragraph (c).
(2) Clause 18.3A is amended by revoking paragraph (c).
(3) The table in clause 18.8 is amended by omitting
“75 percent of” in each place it appears.
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Explanatory Note
This note is not part of the programme, but is intended to explain its general effect.
This amendment to the Special Needs Grants Programme, which comes into effect on 15 September 2008, allows an applicant to be granted a special needs grant for the purpose of paying the application fee for a New Zealand birth certificate or a document of identification as supporting evidence for an application for a benefit under the Act, before that person is released from prison. A grant for the purpose of paying the application fee for an identification document other than a New Zealand birth certificate is only available where the applicant’s birth is not registered in New Zealand.
This instrument also makes amendments to the Part of the programme that provides for Special Assistance to the Rural Sector. Criteria that a farmer has made a decision to sell their land-based industry at a price the chief executive considers to be realistic, or is in the process of actively evaluating the ongoing viability of the land based industry before assistance can be granted, are omitted from the programme. The maximum amount of assistance available is also raised from 75 percent to 100 percent of the applicable rate of unemployment benefit and sickness benefit.
* New Zealand Gazette, 28 January 1999, No. 8, page 202
† New Zealand Gazette, 29 March 2001, No. 35, page 776