Insurers will get a chance to say what they think about the millions of dollars they spend each year funding Australia’s financial services regulators – and the large surpluses that get side-tracked into consolidated revenue. Assistant Treasurer Helen Coonan, who is also the Minister for Revenue, last Friday announced the terms of reference for a review of financial sector levies.

The levies are set annually to cover the operational costs of APRA and market integrity and consumer protection functions of ASIC and the Australian Taxation Office. They are paid by regulated financial institutions and generally levied as a percentage of assets held by each entity.

But in case anyone is expecting something exposing bureaucratic inefficiency and fiscal larceny, it should be understood that the review will be chaired by the Treasury “and undertaken jointly by Treasury and APRA in consultation with ASIC and the ATO”.

Senator Coonan said the inquiry will “balance accountability, efficiency, transparency and equity with simplicity of administration and collection”.

“It will also ensure that recommended options have the capacity to provide stable and effective funding for the regulator on a sustainable basis and to meet the evolving needs of prudential supervision into the future at a reasonable cost.”

The Treasury and APRA will seek submissions from relevant industry groups shortly. These will be used to help prepare a discussion paper that will form the basis for “further extensive consultation”. A written report of the review is to be provided to Senator Coonan by April 1 next year.