Family Responsibilities Commission

Report to the Family Responsibilities Board and
The Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships

Quarterly Report
No. 38

October 2017 to December 2017

Report prepared by the Family Responsibilities Commission under the leadership of Commissioner David Glasgow

Executive Summary
Quantified in the table below are the activities undertaken by the Commission during quarter 38 with comparisons shown to the previous quarter.
Table 1: Activity from 1 July 2017 to 31 December 2017.
Activity	Qtr 37	Qtr 38	Movement	
Within jurisdiction agency notices received	1109	1761	Increased	
Conferences held	600	623	Increased	
Family Responsibility Agreements entered into	6	1	Decreased	
Orders made to attend community support services	34	32	Decreased	
Conditional Income Management Orders made	57	67	Increased	
Voluntary Income Management Agreements entered into	4	2	Decreased	
Clients case managed	155	139	Decreased	
Referrals made	41	33	Decreased	
Applications to Amend or End received	6	17	Increased	
Show Cause conferences held	0	0	No Change	

The Commission’s annual School Awards ceremonies were conducted in December in each of the five communities. Prizes were awarded for attendance achievements and included certificates, medals and in some cases gift vouchers. Each year the Local Commissioners present the awards to provide positive recognition and support for those students (and their families) who regularly attend school, and also to provide an incentive for those students who wish to improve their school attendance.

The FR Board held its thirty-fourth meeting on 3 November 2017 in Brisbane. Papers presented for Board consideration included: the Commissioner’s report to the Board on various issues including school attendance in each community; highlights and outcomes of the 2016-17 financial year; a report on the impact of the domestic violence trigger for the period 1 October 2016 to 30 September 2017; a report on the Commission’s financial budget for the 2017-18 year and estimated financial position as at 30 June 2017; and endorsement was provided by the FR Board for Quarterly Report No 37.

On 21 December 2017 the Governor in Council under the Family Responsibilities Commission Act 2008 approved various appointments as follows:
•	David Glasgow as the FRC Commissioner for the period 2 January 2018 to 31 July 2018 and
•	Rodney Curtin as the Deputy Commissioner for the period 2 January 2018 to 31 December 2018.

In addition, the following Local Commissioners were appointed for the period 2 January 2018 to 31 December 2018:
•	Edgar Kerindun, Vera Koomeeta, Doris Poonkamelya, Dorothy Pootchemunka, Ada Woolla and Keri Tamwoy as Aurukun Local Commissioners
•	Elaine Liddy, Maureen Liddy, Alison Liddy, May Kepple, Peter Peter and Garry Port as Coen Local Commissioners
•	Elaine Cairns, Guy Douglas, Karen Jupiter, Christopher Logan, Eleanor Logan and Kaylene O’Keefe as Doomadgee Local Commissioners
•	Erica Deeral, Victor Gibson, Doreen Hart, Cheryl Cannon and Selina Bowen as Hope Vale Local Commissioners and
•	Karen Gibson, Karen Shuan and Loretta Spratt as Mossman Gorge Local Commissioners.

As an adjunct to the completion of the Commission’s Code of Conduct training completed in July 2017, and in order to support high standards of professional conduct and honest and ethical business practices within the Commission all employees completed fraud and corruption training through the Department of Communities, Disability Services and Seniors iLearn program in November of this quarter.

Significant policy work was carried out this quarter with the review of the external and internal Complaints Management policies, Discipline in the Workplace Policy, Privacy Policy, Information Sharing Protocol, Travel Policy, Service Charter, Induction Manual and Local Commissioner Handbook and Conference Guidelines.
•	

Table of contents

1.  Activities and Trends		5
2.  Future Direction and Challenges	15
3.  Financial Operations		16

Abbreviations
CIM		Conditional Income Management
DATSIP		Department of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships
DET		Former Department of Education and Training
DJAG		Department of Justice and Attorney-General
DV		Domestic Violence
DVB		Domestic Violence Breach
DVO		Domestic Violence Order
FRA		Family Responsibilities Agreement
FRC		Family Responsibilities Commission
QPS		Queensland Police Service
VIM		Voluntary Income Management
Also:		
Family Responsibilities Commission (the Commission)
Family Responsibilities Commission Act 2008 (the Act)
Family Responsibilities Commission Registry (the Registry)
Family Responsibilities Board (the Board)

Family Responsibilities Commission
Welfare Reforms

Report to 31 December 2017.
1.  Activities and Trends

Notices
In quarter 38 the Commission received 2,624 agency notices. Some individuals may have been the subject of more than one agency notice. Of that figure 1,761 notices (67 percent) were within the Commission’s jurisdiction and 863 notices (33 percent) were outside the Commission’s jurisdiction.

Table 2: In jurisdiction notices by type and community 1 October 2017 to 31 December 2017.
Type of Notice	AU	CO	DM	HV	MG	Total	
District Court notices	5	0	0	18	0	23	
Magistrates Court notices	206	15	0	109	15	345	
Domestic Violence Breach notices	6	1	0	9	3	19	
Domestic Violence Order notices	47	6	0	19	4	76	
School Attendance notices	332	72	506	311	20	1241	
School Enrolment notice	0	0	0	0	0	0	
Child Safety and Welfare notices	8	2	31	10	0	51	
Housing Tenancy notices	1	0	0	3	2	6	
Total	605	96	537	479	44	1761	

Further details of notices within jurisdiction for each community are set out below:
•	Aurukun’s 605 notices constitute 34.36 percent of the total notices in jurisdiction across the welfare reform communities.
•	Coen’s 96 notices constitute 5.45 percent of the total notices in jurisdiction.
•	Doomadgee’s 537 notices constitute 30.49 percent of the total notices in jurisdiction.
•	Hope Vale’s 479 notices constitute 27.20 percent of the total notices in jurisdiction.
•	Mossman Gorge’s 44 notices constitute 2.5 percent of the total notices in jurisdiction.

Table 3: Not within jurisdiction notices by type and community 1 October 2017 to 31 December 2017.
Type of Notice	AU	CO	DM	HV	MG	Total	
Supreme Court notices	0	0	0	0	0	0	
District Court notices	5	0	0	0	0	5	
Magistrates Court notices	217	0	0	92	131	440	
Domestic Violence Breach notices	22	0	0	2	3	27	
Domestic Violence Order notices	4	0	0	19	23	46	
School Attendance notices	15	6	281	28	0	330	
School Enrolment notice	0	0	0	0	0	0	
Child Safety and Welfare notices	10	2	3	0	0	15	
Housing Tenancy notices	0	0	0	0	0	0	
Total	273	8	284	141	157	863	

Table 4: Magistrate Court locations for in jurisdiction DVB and DVO notices 1 October 2017 to 31 December 2017.
Court Location	Number of DVB notices	Number of DVO notices	Total	
Aurukun	6	43	49	
Cairns	3	6	9	
Coen	1	2	3	
Cooktown	4	21	25	
Mossman	5	3	8	
Weipa	0	1	1	
Total	19	76	95	

Since its commencement the Commission has received 36,113 agency notices within its jurisdiction. Total notices increased from 1,902 in quarter 37 to 2,624 in quarter 38. Of those notices in jurisdiction Magistrates Court, Domestic Violence Breach and School Enrolment notices decreased, whilst District Court, Domestic Violence Order, School Attendance, Child Safety and Welfare and Housing Tenancy notices increased.

District Court notices increased this quarter to 23 from 21 received in the previous quarter. Hope Vale increased by 17 notices, whilst Aurukun and Mossman Gorge decreased by 4 notices and 11 notices respectively for the quarter. Coen remained unchanged with zero notices received for the quarter. The Commission does not receive District Court notices for Doomadgee.

Magistrates Court notices decreased this quarter to 345 from 364 received in the previous quarter. Three out of the four communities which have the Magistrates Court trigger experienced an increase in notices this quarter. Aurukun, Coen and Mossman Gorge increased by 2, 4 and 5 notices respectively, however Hope Vale decreased by 30 notices. The Commission does not receive Magistrates Court notices for Doomadgee.

Domestic Violence Breach notices decreased from 30 in quarter 37 to 19 in quarter 38. Three out of the four communities which have the Domestic Violence Breach trigger, experienced a decrease in notices this quarter. Aurukun, Coen and Mossman Gorge decreased by 8 notices, 1 notice and 5 notices respectively whilst Hope Vale increased by 3 notices. The Commission does not receive Domestic Violence Breach notices for Doomadgee.

Domestic Violence Order notices increased from 56 in quarter 37 to 76 in quarter 38. Aurukun increased by 15 notices, Coen increased by 1 notice, Hope Vale increased by 4 notices and Mossman Gorge remained unchanged with 4 notices received for the quarter. The Commission does not receive Domestic Violence Order notices for Doomadgee.

School Attendance notices increased from 593 in quarter 37 to 1241 in quarter 38. Four out of the five communities which have the School Attendance trigger experienced an increase in notices this quarter. Aurukun, Coen, Doomadgee and Hope Vale increased by 94, 61, 253 and 240 notices respectively, whilst Mossman Gorge remained unchanged with 20 notices received for the quarter. As previously reported the reason for the low number of school attendance notices for quarter 37 was due to the Commission not receiving any school attendance notices from the former Department of Education and Training from 4 August 2017 until 3 October 2017 (at the commencement of quarter 38) when the Commission received the remaining 8 weeks of term 3 school attendance data. During quarter 38 the Commission resumed receiving school attendance data from the former Department of Education and Training on a weekly basis.

School Enrolment notices decreased from 3 in quarter 37 to 0 in quarter 38 with Aurukun, Hope Vale and Mossman Gorge decreasing by 1 notice each.

Child Safety and Welfare notices increased from 39 in quarter 37 to 51 in quarter 38. Aurukun decreased by 6, Hope Vale decreased by 4 and Mossman Gorge decreased by 3 notices, with Doomadgee increasing by 25 notices. Coen remained unchanged with 2 notices received for the quarter.

Housing Tenancy notices increased to 6 from 3 received in the previous quarter. Aurukun, Hope Vale and Mossman Gorge all increased by 1 notice each. Coen remained unchanged with zero notices received for the quarter. The Commission does not receive Housing Tenancy notices for Doomadgee.

The Commission receives school attendance data from former Department of Education and Training. This data is published on the Commission’s web page at http://www.frcq.org.au when available.

Table 5: In jurisdiction notices by type and quarter 1 October 2016 to 31 December 2017.
Notices by Agency Processed	Qtr 34	Qtr 35	Qtr 36	Qtr 37	Qtr 38	
District Court	42	8	3	21	23	
Magistrates Court	224	269	271	364	345	
Domestic Violence Breach	7	9	16	30	19	
Domestic Violence Order	50	42	36	56	76	
School Attendance	720	3319	1257	593	1241	
School Enrolment	1	0	1	3	0	
Child Safety	79	33	74	39	51	
Housing Tenancy	4	13	9	3	6	
TOTAL	1127	3693	1667	1109	1761	

Table 6: In jurisdiction notices by community and quarter 1 October 2016 to 31 December 2017.
Community	Qtr 34	Qtr 35	Qtr 36	Qtr 37	Qtr 38	
Aurukun	484	1420	681	512	605	
Coen	58	54	54	31	96	
Doomadgee	293	1685	567	259	537	
Hope Vale	255	479	331	249	479	
Mossman Gorge	37	55	34	58	44	
TOTAL	1127	3693	1667	1109	1761	

Since commencement in July 2008, 87.4 percent of clients have received more than one notice with 63.2 percent of clients receiving more than five notices. Frequently this illustrates multiple child school absences for the one family or multiple Magistrates Court notices relating to one incident. Conversely, 12.6 percent of clients have received only one notice.

Table 7: FRC clients by number of notices 1 July 2008 to 31 December 2017.
Number of Notices Received	Number of Clients	
1	281	
2	187	
3	149	
4	115	
5	91	
>5	1412	
TOTAL	2235	
(Note:  Counting rules stipulate that where multiple charges are received each charge is counted as an individual notice or each child’s absence is counted as one notice – i.e. if three children from the one family were absent, that was counted as three notices).

Conferences
A total of six hundred and twenty-three conferences pertaining to all matters were held across the five communities in quarter 38 resulting in 1 FRA being entered into, 32 orders made to attend community support services and 67 CIM orders issued. When compared to last quarter, this represents a decrease of 5 FRA’s and 2 orders to attend community support services and an increase of 10 CIM orders. Other outcomes as a result of conferencing during the quarter were decisions for no further action, rescheduling and scheduling to return for review with compliance. Sixty new clients were added to the Commission’s database during the quarter. Conferences increased from 600 in quarter 37 to 623 in quarter 38.

Table 8: Conferences by community and quarter 1 October 2016 to 31 December 2017.
Community	Qtr 34	Qtr 35	Qtr 36	Qtr 37	Qtr 38	
Aurukun	228	260	186	225	248	
Coen	43	30	33	34	21	
Doomadgee	200	176	241	204	223	
Hope Vale	122	81	147	101	92	
Mossman Gorge	37	57	35	36	39	
TOTAL	630	604	642	600	623	

Conferences for Domestic Violence related matters
As a subset of the total number of conferences conducted for the quarter, 71 domestic violence conferences were conducted in Aurukun, Coen, Hope Vale and Mossman Gorge in quarter 38, representing an increase of 11 from the previous quarter. Domestic violence conferences in the communities during the quarter were as follows: Aurukun increased by 11, Coen increased by 2 and Mossman Gorge increased by 4 whilst Hope Vale decreased by 6 domestic violence conferences.

Table 9: Number of conferences held in relation to domestic violence notices (breaches and orders) per community 
1 October 2017 to 31 December 2017.
Number of Domestic Violence Conferences	AU	CO	HV	MG	Total	
Relating to both a DVB and a DVO notice	2	0	0	1	3	
Relating to a DVB notice	6	1	1	3	11	
Relating to a DVO notice	37	7	9	4	57	
Total	45	8	10	8	71	

Table 10: Number of conferences held in relation to domestic violence notices (breaches and orders) per quarter 
1 October 2016 to 31 December 2017.
Number of Domestic Violence Conferences	Qtr 34	Qtr 35	Qtr 36	Qtr 37	Qtr 38	
Relating to both a DVB and a DVO notice	0	1	2	5	3	
Relating to a DVB notice	12	7	11	13	11	
Relating to a DVO notice	44	51	37	42	57	
Total	56	59	50	60	71	

Table 11: DV conferences by community and quarter 1 October 2016 to 31 December 2017.
Community	Qtr 34	Qtr 35	Qtr 36	Qtr 37	Qtr 38	
Aurukun	33	25	21	34	45	
Coen	8	5	9	6	8	
Hope Vale	10	17	16	16	10	
Mossman Gorge	5	12	4	4	8	
TOTAL	56	59	50	60	71	

Referrals
The total number of referrals to service providers decreased from 41 in quarter 37 to 33 in quarter 38, relating to 33 clients. Since commencement the Commission has referred 1002 clients to service providers resulting in approximately 44.5 percent of clients on 12 month service referral plans. Referrals in the communities during the quarter were as follows: Aurukun decreased by 3; Coen remained unchanged with 4 referrals; Doomadgee increased by 5; Hope Vale decreased by 5 and Mossman Gorge also decreased by 5 referrals.

Table 12: Referral pathways by referral type and quarter 1 October 2016 to 31 December 2017.
Referral Type	Qtr 34	Qtr 35	Qtr 36	Qtr 37	Qtr 38	
MPower	14	3	2	3	2	
WBC - RDFS	30	21	26	32	21	
WBC – NWRH	5	5	9	0	3	
SCM	4	2	0	0	3	
Parenting Program	27	9	7	5	2	
QLD Health	0	4	1	0	1	
Save the Children	2	0	0	1	1	
TOTAL	82	44	45	41	33	

Referrals for Domestic Violence related matters
As a subset of the total number of referrals in the quarter, 18 referrals were made in relation to domestic violence conferences in quarter 38, representing an increase of 1 from the previous quarter.

Table 13: Number of referrals in relation to domestic violence notices (breaches and orders) per community 
1 October 2017 to 31 December 2017.
Notice Type	Community	Referral	Provider Total	
DVB	Aurukun	Wellbeing Centre	1	
	Hope Vale	Wellbeing Centre	1	
	DVB Total		2	
DVO	Aurukun	MPower	1	
	Aurukun	Wellbeing Centre	10	
	Coen	Wellbeing Centre	2	
	Hope Vale	Strong Families – Parenting Program	1	
	Hope Vale	Wellbeing Centre	1	
	Mossman Gorge	QLD Health	1	
	DVO Total		16	
GRAND TOTAL			18	

Conditional Income Management
A total of sixty-seven CIM orders were made in quarter 38, an increase of 10 from quarter 37. Since the commencement of the Commission 2,246 CIM orders inclusive of original orders, extensions and amendments have been made relating to 837 clients. Further activity during the quarter is as follows: Aurukun and Coen increased by 20 and 1 CIM order respectively, whilst Doomadgee and Hope Vale decreased by 8 and 3 CIM orders respectively, with Mossman Gorge remaining unchanged with 5 CIM orders for the quarter.

As at 31 December 2017, 37.1 percent of the Commission’s clients have been subject to a CIM order over the past nine and a half years. As at 31 December 2017 there were 177 clients subject to a CIM order which equates to 7.9 percent of clients on a CIM order at a point in time. Commissioners continue to negotiate with clients to achieve desirable outcomes or to demonstrate motivation and commitment to make appropriate life choices. Demonstrated positive steps toward taking responsibility provide the Commissioners with sufficient reason to consider revoking CIM orders when requested by the client.

Table 14: Number of times a client has been placed on a conditional income management order per community 
1 July 2008 to 31 December 2017.
Number of CIMs	CIM’d only once	CIM’d 
2-5 times	CIM’d
6-10 times	CIM’d
11+ times	Total	
Aurukun	146	211	52	8	417	
Coen	33	25	0	0	58	
Doomadgee	34	43	0	0	77	
Hope Vale	86	102	14	0	202	
Mossman Gorge	31	32	19	1	83	
Total	330	413	85	9	837	

Table 15: Conditional Income Management orders by community and quarter 1 October 2016 to 31 December 2017.

Community	Qtr 34	Qtr 35	Qtr 36	Qtr 37	Qtr 38	
Aurukun	21	40	23	28	48	
Coen	8	4	2	0	1	
Doomadgee	18	14	26	19	11	
Hope Vale	6	11	4	5	2	
Mossman Gorge	6	10	3	5	5	
TOTAL	59	79	58	57	67	

Conditional Income Management for Domestic Violence related matters
As a subset of the total number of CIM’s in the quarter, 11 CIM orders inclusive of alterations were made in relation to domestic violence conferences in quarter 38, representing an increase of 2 from the previous quarter.

Voluntary Income Management
The Commission processed 2 VIM agreements this quarter and since the commencement of the Commission in 2008, 127 clients have had an active VIM agreement. Those clients that request a VIM agreement use income management as a savings and budget tool, often for a specified period and to deter family members from accessing their income.

Case Management
As at 31 December 2017, 139 clients were being case-managed, a decrease from 155 in quarter 37. Aurukun, Hope Vale and Mossman Gorge decreased by 13, 6and 1 respectively, whilst Coen and Doomadgee both increased by 2.

Show Cause Notices
During quarter 38, and similar to the past four quarters, no Show Cause hearings have been held.

Applications to Amend or End Agreements or Orders
Seventeen Applications to Amend or End a Family Responsibilities Agreement or Order were received in quarter 38, an increase of 11 from quarter 37. Outcomes of the 17 applications received are as follows:

	7 Applications granted and Income Management agreements and orders revoked
	1 CIM order revoked and client placed on a case plan
	1 CIM order at 75 percent revoked and client placed on a new order
			at 60 percent for 12 months
	2 CIM orders at 90 percent revoked and clients placed on a new order
			at 60 percent for 12 months
	3 Applications dismissed
	2 Applications dismissed and clients given a warning
	1 Application received at the end of the quarter decision pending.

The Commission continues to encourage clients to participate in the Amend or End process. Commissioners report increasing client confidence to question decisions and the reasons behind decisions, both for decisions delivered by the Commission and decisions delivered by external agencies and bodies.

Table 16: Applications to Amend or End FRA or Order by community and quarter 1 October 2016 to 31 December 2017.

Community	Qtr 34	Qtr 35	Qtr 36	Qtr 37	Qtr 38	
Aurukun	4	7	1	3	10	
Coen	2	0	6	0	0	
Doomadgee	3	3	2	1	5	
Hope Vale	4	5	2	1	0	
Mossman Gorge	0	1	2	1	2	
TOTAL	13	16	13	6	17	

2.  Future Direction and Challenges

In the absence of up-to-date school attendance data for term 4 of the 2017 school year, the Commission can report that for terms 1, 2 and 3 across the Welfare Reform communities, attendance in Aurukun and Doomadgee has remained a challenge. The Commission will be hosting a Local Coordinator conference (workshop) on 15 January 2018. The purpose of this workshop is to review the goals which were set for the 2017 school year, what strategies were successful and what challenges presented. Each Coordinator is to then deliver a report on their community, a report from the School Principal detailing issues they see affecting their school, any priorities set for the 2018 school year, and how the Principal sees the FRC interacting with them to increase the educational experience for their children. The Local Coordinator reports are to then form the foundation for discussions regarding new strategies and relationships to be built for the 2018 school year. 

On 14 February 2017 the Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources Parliamentary Committee gained jurisdiction under Schedule 6 of the Standing Orders to oversee the Family Responsibilities Commission. The committee’s oversight functions include:

a) 	to monitor and review the performance by the entity of the entity’s functions; 
b) 	to report to the Legislative Assembly on any matter concerning the entity, the entity's functions or the performance of the entity’s functions that the committee considers should be drawn to the Legislative Assembly’s attention; 
c) 	to examine the annual report of the entity tabled in the Legislative Assembly and, if appropriate, to comment on any aspect of the report; and 
d) 	to report to the Legislative Assembly any changes to the functions, structures and procedures of the entity that the committee considers desirable for the more effective operation of the entity or the Act which establishes the entity.

In August of quarter 37 the committee presented Report number 52 on the oversight of the Commission, which highlighted issues for consideration by the Legislative Assembly. During this period the committee met with Commissioner Glasgow on three occasions to gain an appreciation of the Commission’s work, assess the gains it has achieved to date and the challenges it continues to face. Only one recommendation was made in Report number 52. This recommendation stated that, “…Queensland Government service delivery departments which have a statutory relationship with the Family Responsibilities Commission consult with the Family Responsibilities Commission in regard to any proposed changes to operations and reporting that may impact the Commission”. The recommendation was made in light of past operational and legislative changes that have affected the Commission’s operations. The Commission acknowledges that DATSIP has since written to relevant departments reporting to the FRC in regard to this recommendation.

Of particular comment in the committee’s report is their concern that sufficient consideration be given to succession planning for the FRC Commissioner and Local Commissioners in 2018.

The committee acknowledged, “…the challenging work undertaken by the FRC and is greatly impressed with the significant results which the FRC has achieved and is achieving in the welfare reform communities in which it operates. The FRC over its period of operation has built strong relationships within the welfare reform communities and has become a valuable conduit for the work of many Queensland Government service agencies”. 

3.  Financial Operations

Governance

Part 12 of the Act provides for the establishment of the Family Responsibilities Board (the Board).

The Board has a mandate to give advice and make recommendations to the Minister about the operation of the Commission and similarly to give advice and make recommendations to the Commissioner about the performance of the Commission’s functions.

The Board must meet at least every six months. The meeting may be held by using any technology available which will allow for efficient and effective communication, however, the Board members must meet in person at least once a year. A quorum for the Board is comprised of two members. The Board’s membership consists of the following members:

•	Ms Tammy Williams	Acting Director-General, Department of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships (Chair)
•	Mr Troy Sloan	First Assistant Secretary, Policy, Analysis and Evaluation Division, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
•	Mr Noel Pearson		Founder and Director, Cape York Institute.

Operational

In meeting obligations under Part 3 of the Act, the Family Responsibilities Commission Registry (the Registry) commenced operations on 1 July 2008 with a central Registry office established in Cairns and local Registry offices operating in each of the five welfare reform communities.

The Registry, managed by the Registrar, provides corporate and operational support to the Commissioner, the Local Commissioners and the Local Coordinators.

Financial

Income:
•	Income received by the Commission for the period 1 October 2017 to 31 December 2017 totalled $1,038,380. This income consisted of:
•	$421,750 Queensland Government funding
•	$156,500 Queensland Government funding – Doomadgee
•	$450,000 Australian Government funding
•	$8,047 interest received
•	$2,083 received in sundry income.
The balance of available funds in the bank as at 31 December 2017 is $1,559,180.

Expenditure:
•	Expenditure for the period 1 October 2017 to 31 December 2017 was $946,473. This total represents 22 percent of the projected annual expenditure of $4,238,964.

Table 17: Expenditure in quarter 38.
1 October 2017 to	Expenditure	1 October 2017 to	Expenditure	
31 December2017	Qtr 38	31 December 2017	Qtr 38	
				
Employee salaries – FRC staff	$447,339	Internet & IT	$36,167	
Employee salaries – Local Commissioners	$88,300	Motor vehicle	$13,242	
Employee on costs – FRC staff	$85,112	Property	$53,596	
Employee on costs – Local Commissioners	$14,193	Travel	$48,561	
Other employment costs	$18,755	General operating	$65,995	
Communications	$4,505	Other expenses	$70,708	
		Total	$946,473	

Quarter 38 disbursement of expenditure by category and percentage of total expenditure.

Table 18: FRC operating costs 1 October 2017 to 31 December 2017

Expenditure Category	Percentage of Total Expenditure	
Employee salaries – FRC staff	47.27%	
Employee salaries – Local Commissioners	9.33%	
Employee on costs – FRC staff	8.99%	
Employee on costs – Local Commissioners	1.50%	
Other employment costs	1.98%	
Communications	0.48%	
Internet & IT	3.82%	
Motor vehicle	1.40%	
Property	5.66%	
Travel	5.13%	
General operating	6.97%	
Other expenses	7.47%	
Total	100.0%	

Regional operational expenditure by location and quarter.

Table 19: Operating costs by remote location 1 October 2016 to 31 December 2017.

Community	Qtr 34	Qtr 35	Qtr 36	Qtr 37	Qtr 38	
Aurukun	$117K	$119K	$118K	$167K	$144K	
Coen	$34K	$29K	$52K	$33K	$34K	
Doomadgee	$136K	$145K	$215K	$137K	$149K	
Hope Vale	$72K	$65K	$98K	$74K	$72K	
Mossman Gorge	$38K	$36K	$47K	$30K	$37K	
TOTAL	$397K	$394K	$530K	$441K	$436K	

Cairns Registry expenditure for quarter 38 compared to the previous four quarters.

Table 20: Quarterly operating costs Cairns 1 October 2016 to 31 December 2017.

Community	Qtr 34	Qtr 35	Qtr 36	Qtr 37	Qtr 38	
Corporate Services	$221K	$226K	$263K	$253K	$248K	
Operations	$213K	$257K	$263K	$234K	$213K	
Gov/Board Reporting	$36K	$36K	$36K	$56K	$49K	
Abnormal Expenditure	$2K	$6K	$7K	$0K	$0K	
TOTAL	$472K	$525K	$569K	$543K	$510K	

APPENDIX A			

	SITTING CALENDAR 2017
FAMILY RESPONSIBILITIES COMMISSION
1 January 2017 to 31 December 2017		
Week Beginning	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Other	
2 January	Public Holiday					2 New Year’s Day	
9 January						Cooktown Circuit	
16 January						Aurukun Cape B & Coen Cape A Circuit
Doomadgee – Gulf Circuit	
23 January		24	25	Public Holiday		26 Australia Day	
		24	25				
		24					
30 January		31					
		31	1	2			
6 February		7	8			Cooktown Circuit	
		7					
		7					
13 February		14	15	16		Aurukun Cape B Circuit
Doomadgee – Gulf Circuit	
20 February		21	22			21 ASC Meeting	
		21					
		21					
27 February		28	1	2			
6 March		7	8			Cooktown Circuit	
		7					
		7					
13 March		14				Aurukun Cape B & Coen Cape A Circuit
Doomadgee – Gulf Circuit	
		14	15	16			
20 March		21	22			21 ASC Meeting	
		21					
		21					
27 March		28	29	30			
3 April						Cooktown Circuit	
10 April					Public Holiday	14 Good Friday
Aurukun Cape B Circuit
Doomadgee – Gulf Circuit	
17 April	Public Holiday	18	19	20		17 Easter Monday 18 ASC Meeting	
			19	20			
24 April		Public Holiday	26	27		25 Anzac Day
28 FR & WRA Board Meetings	
				27			
1 May	Public Holiday					1 Labour Day
Commissioner Development Week
Cooktown Circuit	

	SITTING CALENDAR 2017
FAMILY RESPONSIBILITIES COMMISSION
1 January 2017 to 31 December 2017		
Week Beginning	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Other	
8 May		9	10			Doomadgee – Gulf Circuit	
		9					
		9					
15 May	15		17	18		16 ASC Meeting
Aurukun Cape B & Coen Cape A Circuit	
22 May		23	24				
		23	24 ½ day				
		23					
29 May		30				2 Mabo Day	
		30	31	1			
5 June		6	7			Cooktown Circuit
Doomadgee – Gulf Circuit	
		6					
		6					
12 June		13	14	15		Aurukun Cape B Circuit	
19 June		20	21			20 ASC Meeting	
		20					
		20 ½ day					
26 June							
3 July						Cooktown Circuit
Doomadgee – Gulf Circuit	
10 July		11				Aurukun Cape B & Coen Cape A Circuit	
		11	12	13			
17 July		18	19		Public Holiday	Estimates 18-21 July and 25-27 July
21 Cairns Show Day
18 & 19 ASC Meeting	
		18		20 ½ day			
		18					
24 July		25	26	27		24 Mossman Show
28 Cooktown Show and Coen Public Holiday
28 July FR & WRA Board Meeting	
31 July		1	2 ½ meeting day		Public Holiday	4 Aurukun Day
Cooktown Circuit	
		1		3 ½ day			
		1					
7 August		8	9	10		Doomadgee - Gulf Circuit	
14 August		15	16			15 ASC Meeting
Aurukun Cape B Circuit	
		15		17 ½ day			
		15					
21 August		22			Public Holiday	25 Doomadgee Day	
		22	23	24			
28 August		29	30				
		29		31 ½ day			
		29					

	SITTING CALENDAR 2017
FAMILY RESPONSIBILITIES COMMISSION
1 January 2017 to 31 December 2017		
Week Beginning	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Other	
4 September		5	6	7		Cooktown Circuit	
11 September		12	13			12 ASC Meeting
Aurukun Cape B & Coen Cape A Circuit
Doomadgee - Gulf Circuit	
		12		14 ½ day			
		12					
18 September							
25 September							
2 October	Public Holiday		4	5		2 Queens Birthday
Cooktown Circuit	
		3		5 ½ day			
		3					
9 October		10				Doomadgee - Gulf Circuit	
		10	11	12			
16 October		17	18			Aurukun Cape B Circuit	
		17		19 ½ day			
		17					
23 October	23		25	26		24 ASC Meeting
27 FR & WRA Board Meetings	
30 October		31	1				
		31		2 ½ day			
		31					
6 November		7	8	9		Cooktown Circuit	
13 November		14	15			Aurukun Cape B & Coen Cape A Circuit
Doomadgee - Gulf Circuit	
		14		16 ½ day			
				16			
20 November		21	22	23		21 ASC Meeting	
		21					
27 November		28	29			CYAAA schools finish 1/12/2017	
		28		30 ½ day			
4 December		5	6			Doomadgee and Mossman schools finish 8/12/2017
Cooktown Circuit
Doomadgee - Gulf Circuit	
		5					
11 December						12 ASC Meeting
Aurukun Cape B Circuit	
18 December							
25 December	Public Holiday	Public Holiday				25 Christmas Day, 26 Boxing Day
27, 28, 29 Office closed for Xmas	

LEGEND

	Office Days	
	Public Holidays	
	Aurukun Sitting	
	Coen Sitting	
	Doomadgee Sittings	
	Hope Vale Sitting	
	Hope Vale Half Day Meeting	
	Mossman Gorge Sitting	
	Mossman Gorge Half Day Meeting	
ASC	Aurukun Shire Council Meeting	
DSC	Doomadgee Aboriginal Shire Council Meeting	
0	Cancelled Conference	

OFFICE	CONTACT NAME	Phone	Mobile	Facsimile	
Cairns – Commissioner	Mr David Glasgow	4081 8413	0439 776 798	4041 0974	
Cairns – Registrar	Ms Maxine McLeod	4081 8412	0409 461 624	4041 0974	
Cairns – Acting Client Manager	Mrs Anne Crampton	4081 8410	0419 647 948	4041 0974	
Cairns – Finance Manager	Ms Tracey Patterson	4081 8411	0429 495 353	4041 0974	
Aurukun Local Coordinator	Mr Bryce Coxall	4060 6185	0428 985 106	4060 6094	
Coen Local Coordinator	Ms Sandi Rye		0417 798 392	4041 0974	
Doomadgee Local Coordinator	Mr Robbie Hazeldine	4745 8111	0418 666 204	4745 8366	
Hope Vale Local Coordinator	Mr Matt Thompson	4060 9153	0408 482 026	4060 9137	
Mossman Gorge Local Coordinator	Ms Sandi Rye		0417 798 392	4041 0974