Budget Information

The Department of Justice Budget is contained in the Tasmanian State Budget which is available on-line via the Department of Treasury and Finance:

Current State Budget

Financial Statements for the Department of Justice are prepared in accordance with the Financial Management and Audit Act 1990 and form part of our Annual Report which is tabled in the Tasmanian Parliament prior to 31 October each year:

Current Department of Justice Annual Report

Additional Information

The following additional information provides a snapshot of some of the items of expenditure in the Department of Justice. 

This information has been compiled in response to frequently asked questions and is provided as a routine disclosure of information in accordance with the Right to Information Act 2009.

This information will be updated in July of each year.

Physical Resources

Mobile Phones

The Department has 461 Mobile Network Services:

• 361 Mobile Phones and
• 100 Wireless Broadband Services

(this is an increase of 16 Mobile Phones and 15 Wireless Broadband Services during the 12 months to June 2011)

Of the 361 Mobile Phones:

• 100 are PDAs (smartphones), allowing access to email services away from the office environment
• 71 phones are issued to staff who are on call or regularly work outside of business hours
• 82 phones are not issued to an individual, but are made available to staff when they are travelling or visiting clients away from the office

The average cost per service is $34.50 per month and the average total cost is around $16,000 per month for the whole of the Department.

Motor Vehicles

As at 30 June 2011, the Department of Justice has a fleet of:

• 130 Light Motor Vehicles leased from LeasePlan;
• 37 Light Commercial Vehicles leased from LeasePlan;
• 5 Trucks;
• 1 Bus; and
• 4 Tractors.

Of the 130 light motor vehicles, 55 are private plated and made available for private use in accordance with contracts of employment or instruments of employment.

Average cost per month for the fleet is $156,000 (including fuel, servicing, repairs, registration, management and lease costs).

In 2010/11 Department of Justice drivers received 19 speed camera infringements notices (down from 22 the previous year) and no vehicles were in an accident where more than $10,000 damage occurred.

Computers

The Department of Justice leases its computer hardware from Equi Group. As at 30 June 2011 the Department leased 887 Desktop computers, 276 Notebook computers.  The average lease cost is $475 per annum for each desktop, $890 for notebooks.

(Note: the average leasing costs listed here include additional internal charges for the provision of support servcies)

Human Resources

Staffing Numbers

As at 30 June 2011 the Department of Justice employed 1169 people in 1096.8 fulltime equivalent positions (this includes those employed by the Department who are working in the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Office of the Ombudsman).

53% of the people employed in the Department are female and 30% of the female staff are working in part time positions, whereas only 6% of male staff are working in part time positions. 2010/11 is the first year that more females than males have been employed in the Department.

6% of female employees earn more than $100,000 per year, whereas as 14% of males earn more than $100,000 per year.

Boards, Tribunals and Committees

As at June 2011, the Department of Justice was responsible for 35 boards, committees, commissions, councils, trusts and tribunals with a total of 369 members.

Of the 369 members, 140 are female.

Senior Officers Remuneration

There are 43 staff in the Department of Justice holding Head of Agency, Senior Executive Service (SES), Equivalent Specialist and Senior Legal Practitioner, or Statutory Office Holder positions.

Salaries for these positions range from $115,978 to $356,974.

Magistrates and Judges are paid in accordance with a salary scale set by legislation and calculated by the Auditor General on a yearly basis. 

In 2010/11 the salaries for Magistrates and Judges were in the range of $240,566 to $395,993.

Worker's Compensation

Types of workers compensation claims: 

Number and cost of workers compensation claims:

Other

Travel Costs

For the Period July 2010 to May 2011 the Department of Justice expended $844,457 on travel, including airfares, accommodation, meals, allowances and other related costs. 

Electricity Costs

The Department of Justice is responsible for electricity costs on 23 separate sites across the State and pays an average of approximately $138,000 per month for electricity.

Credit Cards

143 Credit Cards have been issued to staff of the Department of Justice.  Of those 125 have a credit limit of $5,000 or less.

The staff who require a higher limit are responsible for purchasing or making frequent travel bookings (eg for witness travel).

The cards are issued by Westpac as part of a whole of Government arrangement and their use is strictly controlled in accordance with Treasurer's Instruction 705.  All purchases must be supported by Tax Invoices.

Recent Information

The following budget information has been released as either an assessed disclsoure or active disclsoure of information under the Right to Information Act 2009 during the current year.

Cost of Communication Campagns in the Department of Justice.

The Department has undertaken two major communications campaigns in the six months from 1 July. 

• The first of these related to the estabilshment of Tasmania's Asbestos Compensation Scheme and the raising of awareness about the dangers of Asbestos in workplaces and homes.  The campaign was funded by funds from the Nominal Insurer under the Workers Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988.  This campaign cost $335,000 including the cost of a 2 month Television and Newspaper campaign, the production of Brochures, guides and training materials, the production of a training DVD and the delivery of training.
  
• The second campaign was the Monetary Penalties Enforcement Campaign which included Television and Bus advertisements at a cost of around $66,000.  This campaign reminds Tasmanians not to ignore fines owed to the State Government and has contributed to an increase in the collection rate during this financial year.

Cost of Office Fitouts in the Department of Justice.

The Department has undertaken a number of office fit outs during the six months from 1 July 2011:

• Workplace Standards Tasmania (WST) – approximately $50,000 (many small jobs) arising from a rationalisation of office space at Rosny between WST and the Department of Infrastructure Energy and Resources (DIER) (who share the lease), DIER have reduced their space within the building;
  
• Tasmanian Planning Commission (TPC) - $121,151.53 for reconfiguring the space over two floors to allow for the integration of staff transferred from Sullivan’s Cove Waterfront Authority to TPC.  This allowed for these staff to be integrated into existing space at 144 Macquarie St. with no increase in leased space or lease costs. Works were completed in August 2011;
  
• Community Corrections - $153,576.57 to fit out new accommodation at Highfield House leased from 1 February 2011.  This allow for the relocation of staff into one office resulting in reduction in ongoing lease costs. Works were completed in December 2011; and
  
• Crown Law - $7,000 to reconfigure part of open plan space on level 9, Executive Building; and
  
• Tasmanian Prison Service – $231,834.31 conversion of unused hospital building into offices at Risdon Prison site, this alleviated over crowding around other buildings on the site.