A history of Commonwealth Superannuation

1922

ComSuper has its origins in the Superannuation Fund Management Board. The Board was formed in Melbourne on 20 November 1922 under the authority of the Superannuation Act 1922 to deal with the general administration and workings of the first superannuation scheme for Commonwealth employees.

As the Board employed the staff directly, there was no separate administration agency, and so the President of the Board was the agency head. The first President was Mr F.J. Ross.

The main issue in that first year of operation was getting the new scheme up and working. With only six weeks between the date the Act commenced, and the date contributions were to commence, the Board had to work quickly to issue written information to Commonwealth employees. To do this, Mr Ross visited each state capital and spoke with employees and Commonwealth agencies directly.

At the end of their first year, the Superannuation Fund Management Board was administering superannuation for 26,876 members and 299 pensioners. Contributions received that year totaled £128,137 ($13,009,151 in 2008 dollars), and the cost of administration was £2,261 ($232,795 in 2008 dollars).

Records suggest that superannuation matters were relatively uncomplicated during the 1920s. The administrative functions revolved around the collection of contributions and payment of benefits.

Back to top

1930

In 1930 the Board moved to Canberra and changed its name to the Superannuation Board.

The first significant issue occurred in 1931 with the effects of the depression and in particular the introduction of the Financial Emergency Act. Our 10th Annual Report to Parliament gives an indication of the effect this had on the Superannuation Board. Under the Financial Emergency Act, salaries were reduced and, as a consequence, the Superannuation Act was amended to allow contributors to either retain the number of unit entitlements of their higher salary or reduce them to correspond with the lowered salary. Pensions were also reduced by up to 20%. There were substantial administrative efforts in processing wage and contributions changes. The overall result reduced the size of the Fund through lower receipts and lower interest rates.

Back to top

1937

In 1937 the Provident Account scheme was introduced for returned soldiers, public servants who could not meet Pension Scheme medical standards and new entrants over the age of 45 for whom the cost of Pension Scheme contributory units would be too high.

Arrears became particularly acute during the middle to late 1940s as the incidence of wage increases stepped up. In its 25th Annual Report to Parliament in 1947 the Board reported that there were no less than 16 general increase in salaries due to Arbitration Determinations and cost of living adjustments. The consequence of these manual workloads meant a build up in arrears and falling behind in accounting, actuarial work and reporting to parliament. The arrears problem continued in one form or another through the 1950s and 1960s, and did not dissipate until the introduction of a computerised contributions recording system in October 1978.

Back to top

1948

1948 saw the introduction of the Defence Forces Retirement Benefits scheme, and the creation of the DFRB Board. The Chairman of this Board, Mr P. Rees, was also President of the Superannuation Board. The scheme was introduced for all military members and resulted from the introduction of a revised uniform pay code for the three Services. Administration of the DFRB scheme was carried out by the Defence Division of the Dept of Treasury. Administration responsibility for the DFRB Scheme was transferred to the Superannuation Board in 1959.

Back to top

1972

In 1972, the Board's office was administering superannuation for 227,000 members and 30,450 pensioners with a staff of 386. The major administrative issue reported in the 50th Annual Report to parliament was around member communication:

"To ensure that members of the Fund, contributors and pensioners alike, may be better informed of the provisions of the superannuation legislation and are made fully aware of their rights and of the options available to them, the Board has embarked on a program for the development of an Advisory, Counseling and Training Service. An additional position has been provided for this purpose and an officer is now engaged full time in advisory, counseling and training activities, which include group addresses and retirement counseling, including interviews and written advice on personal superannuation problems.

As part of this program the Board has begun the preparation and issue of a series of brochures which will explain to contributors and persons interested in the Superannuation Scheme how various provisions of the Scheme are administered."

Back to top

1973

In 1973 the Board's office was renamed the Australian Government Retirement Benefits Office (AGRBO). The staff still formed part of Treasury’s establishment and the administration costs came from AGRBO’s annual appropriation.

1973 also saw the introduction of the Defence Force Retirement and Death Benefits Act which established the Defence Force Retirement and Death Benefits (DFRDB) Scheme. All running costs for the new scheme were met from AGRBO’s annual appropriation.

Back to top

1976

This was the year the Superannuation Act 1976 established the Commonwealth Superannuation Scheme (CSS), the Superannuation Fund Investment Trust (SFIT) for fund management, and created the position of Commissioner for Superannuation. The Commissioner was assisted in administration of the schemes by the staff of AGRBO who were part of the Department of Finance (formerly Treasury) establishment. The Pension Scheme and Provident Account were closed and members were compulsorily transferred to the CSS. The CSS also extended membership to all government statutory officers and improved joining opportunities for temporary employees.

Back to top

1980s

During the early 1980s a range of resource management functions were transferred from the Department of Finance. The most significant being that the Commissioner for Superannuation assumed Departmental Secretary powers and control of the staff of AGRBO.

A major change in the membership profile occurred in 1980-81 with the introduction of the Commonwealth Employees Redeployment and Retirement Act which provided for retirement at age 55. The Northern Territory Public Service established its own scheme in 1987-88 and the Streamlining Act in 1987-88 provided for substantial redundancy programs. A period of membership contraction had set in and this peaked in 1990 when large GBE (Government Business Enterprise)'s like Telecom, Australia Post and CAA established their own schemes. Around 30% of the membership transferred out in this move.

During the 1980s a major computer modernisation program saw the shift to on-line contributor maintenance and benefits processing, computerised registry, personnel, accounting, and numerous other administrative processes. In 1988 the computerised processes allowed payment of pensions to be resumed from the Department of Social Security. Direct deposit of pensions payments, lump sums and employers' payments also took place during this period.

Back to top

1990

In AGRBO shortened its name to the Retirement Benefits Office (RBO). 1990 also saw the introduction of the Superannuation Act 1990 which established the Public Sector Superannuation (PSS) Scheme.

A number of significant changes occurred with the Superannuation Act 1990. They included the closure of the CSS, the opening of the PSS to new members, the transfer out of certain GBE members, the establishment of two Boards of Trustees, the tightening of invalidity provisions for both CSS and PSS and extended eligibility provisions. All new members were required to join the PSS, and existing CSS members were given a choice between the CSS or PSS. Eligibility for membership was also extended to casual employees. Prior to 1990, the RBO did not have to comply with the regulatory framework for the superannuation industry. This delineation between private and public sector funds was removed from that year.

The Boards delegated certain of their powers of administration to the Commissioner for Superannuation and the staff of RBO, and a Secretariat was established within RBO to service the Boards.

In 1991 the Military Superannuation and Benefits Act was introduced to establish the Military Superannuation and Benefits Scheme (MSBS). The MSBS Board was established to administer all aspects of MSBS. The Board delegated certain of its powers to the Commissioner for Superannuation and the staff of the RBO, and the Secretariat within the RBO was extended to service the MSBS Board.

The DFRDB scheme was closed to new members and existing members were given a choice between the DFRDB or MSBS.

Back to top

1994

In 1994 RBO changed its name to Commonwealth Superannuation Administration (ComSuper) to reflect the office’s mission to provide high performance superannuation services for public sector and military employers and scheme members.

ComSuper now managed an extensive web of accountability relationships in its daily operations with the Boards of Trustees, scheme members, employing agencies, government ministers, the departments of Finance and Defence, investment advisors, master custodians and regulatory authorities.

ComSuper’s culture developed from one of compliance and accountability to one which also took in performance (particularly customer focused performance), improved productivity, quality and best practice. It also adopted a role in superannuation awareness and promotion. This was achieved though representation on industry peak bodies, a schools' superannuation awareness program and retirement and retrenchment presentations.

Back to top

1997

ComSuper celebrated it's 75th anniversary. The Commissioner for Superannuation at the time, Ms C M Goode, and the then Minister for Finance and Administration, Mr John Fahey, attended.

Back to top

 

 

 

 

1998

ComSuper moved to formally operate as business unit from 1 July 1998, under the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997, setting prices for its services and receiving most of its revenue from payments from the then CSS and PSS Boards of Trustees, and the Department of Defence for military scheme administration.

Back to top

2003

ComSuper relocated from Wing 1 to Wing 4 of Cameron Offices in April following an extensive refurbishment undertaken jointly by the building owners and ComSuper.

Features of the new premises included:

• a significantly better public reception area with adjoining interview rooms
• new facilities for conducting member and employer seminars
• a purpose designed Contact Centre
• enhanced disaster recovery capabilities designed into new computing facilities and
• upgraded staff amenities.

Back to top

2004

In 2004 ComSuper successfully completed the legislative obligations required under the Financial Services Reforms. This consisted of:

• educating staff about the difference between information and advice
• providing training and arranging for staff to become authorised representatives of the Boards
• vetting communication materials to ensure that they did not contain advice
• arranging for disclaimers to be placed on Board publications and communication materials and
• developing procedures for dealing with enquiries from clients.

By June 2004, 175 staff successfully met Australian Securities and Investments Commission Policy Statement 146 training requirements.

Back to top

2005

In July 2005 a new era for Australian superannuation began when Choice of Fund commenced. The PSS defined benefits scheme closed to new members on 30 June and a new scheme, PSS accumulation plan (PSSap), commenced on 1 July.

Back to top

2008

During 2007-08, ComSuper worked on a significant legislative change programme and introduced new processes and system changes to support the changes. The key legislative measures included:

• bedding down the Better Super changes that were announced in May 2007, involving changes to the taxation of benefits and pensions and contribution rules for pre-tax and post-tax components
• implementing changes to PSS Maximum Benefit Limits
• restoring pensions for former recipients of the DFRDB, DFRB and the Superannuation Act 1922 schemes whose payments had previously been ceased on remarriage (149 pensions were restored)
• implementing ARIA's allocation of earning policy for PSS and CSS members into our system and processes
• providing expanded early benefit access
• proportioning rules introduced to partial payments
• choice of fund for PSS members from 1 July 2008
• zero per cent member contributions for PSS and CSS members from 1 July 2008.

All legislative measures were successfully implemented.

Back to top

Last updated October 19, 2009

Site Map | Privacy and Security | Disclaimer Text size: Regular | Medium | Large | ABN 77 310 752 950