Universities spend $280 million a year on regulatory compliance and reporting to Federal and State Governments, according to a submission by Universities Australia.
The submission, to the Opposition's Deregulation Taskforce, highlights examples of excessive red tape and calls for a plan to streamline government reporting requirements and regulation.
"Australia's university sector is one of the most regulated in the country, imposing an enormous cost and administrative burden," said Universities Australia's Chief Executive, Belinda Robinson.
"While we support the need for effective accountability, the existing regulatory and reporting regime is characterised by unchecked creep, duplication, fragmentation, inefficiency, and waste.
"This is highlighted by the fact that we estimate that $280 million is spent every year on Federal and State Government red tape," Ms Robinson said.
The estimated $280 million a year cost of compliance and reporting requirements is based on the impact of university compliance departments typically having 15 to 20 dedicated staff to meet the demands of 100 separate State and Federal Acts directly regulating their operations. Universities incur direct regulatory compliance costs estimated to be at least $3 million per university or $120 million a year for the sector.
A typical university is also required to report over 50 different data sets to the Department of Industry, Innovation, Climate Change, Science, Research and Tertiary Education (DIICCSRTE) annually, comprising 200 reporting instances per year, and over 50 data sets to other Government departments. Total reporting costs are estimated at $4m per university, or about $160 million annually for the sector. Combined, this equates to $280 million.
Other examples of the impact of unnecessary red-tape include:
- Universities must provide annual financial reports to at least six different government departments - most of which have detailed 140+ page guidelines on what is reported, how it is audited and who approves it. The requirements and templates all differ, forcing universities to rework the same information multiple times.
- About 60 staff, costing over $6 million a year, are employed to report in the event of a university defaulting on a course for an international student, despite the fact no university has been known to have defaulted.
- Universities in Queensland are required to report to the State Government every time a staff member travels overseas or whenever the university enters a contract over $10,000.
- Universities with Cooperative Research Centres (CRCs) may incur 50 or more reporting instances per year using twelve or more different templates - and required to report quarterly on research progress.
- A university researcher typically spends 4-6 weeks a year preparing applications for research grants that have on average a 20 to 30 per cent success rate.
To minimise costly red tape, Universities Australia's submission proposes:
- A new national university data centre managed by a single government department to administer all data collections from universities;
- The Productivity Commission conduct a review of the regulatory burden on universities including duplication between jurisdictions;
- The Minister to implement the Productivity Commission's recommendations;
- DIICCSRTE audit and report annually on regulations, including any increases; and
- A national target for reducing regulations set by the government.
A copy of the submission can be found at: www.universitiesaustralia.edu.au.