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The Electoral and Administrative Review Commission (1989–1993) was an agency of the Government of Queensland, Australia to investigate the electoral system and public administration of the state and local government authorities of Queensland.
On 3 July 1989, the Commission of Inquiry into Possible Illegal Activities and Associated Police Misconduct (better known as the Fitzgerald Report) recommended the establishment of an Electoral and Administrative Review Commission. The Queensland Government acted on the recommendation by passing the Electoral and Administrative Review Act 1989 to establish the commission, whose purpose was to investigate and report on:[1]
and to monitor the implementations of any reforms arising.
The Commission was fully constituted on 21 March 1990 under the chairman, Tom Sherman. Tom Sherman resigned on 25 February 1992 and Prof Colin Hughes acted in the role of chairman, until David Solomon was formally appointed to the role on 15 June 1992. Having completed its role outlined in the Fitzgerald Report, the commission was wound up on 30 September 1993.[1]
The Fitzgerald Royal Commission is regarded as one of the most successful in Australian history in part because of the work of EARC and the other Commission that helped to implement its recommendations, the Criminal Justice Commission (CJC).[2] "It was the EARC process which took Queensland out of the era..in which politics and public administration were largely unaccountable".[3]
EARC reviews began with the release of Issues papers to promote debate. These were widely circulated, including to public libraries across the state. This was followed by a period during which the public could make submissions. Public hearings were held. All submissions were published. EARC Reports were considered and reported on by a parliamentary committee (PEARC).[3]
In its short lifespan EARC produced 23 reports. They were tabled in Parliament and in succeeding years the Table Office rendered them into pdf format, so they can now be downloaded from the Parliament web site. The full list is:-
The commission's report External Boundaries of Local Authorities tabled on 19 March 1992 made a series of recommendations to adjust the boundaries between various local government authorities, but, more significantly and more controversially, to amalgamate a number of local government authorities. This work was not included in the Fitzgerald Report or the EARC enabling legislation but was added later. Not all of the EARC recommendations were acted upon by the Queensland Government and others were implemented differently. The local authorities recommended for amalgamation and the outcomes of the recommendations where:[4]
Although some of the recommendations were not implemented, many were implemented in subsequent reforms of local government boundaries.
