A History of Commonwealth Superannuation1922ComSuper 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 working of the first superannuation scheme for Commonwealth employees. The Board directly hired staff to assist it in administering the scheme, and this is where we began.
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 ($9,500,000 in 1997 dollars), and the cost of administration was £2,261 ($170,000 in 1997 dollars). The record suggests that things were relatively uncomplicated during the 1920s. The administrative functions revolved around the collection of contributions and payment of benefits. 1930
1937In 1937 the Provident Account scheme was introduced for returned soldiers or 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 inevitable consequence of these manual workloads was a build up in arrears, and a falling behind in accounting, actuarial work and, finally, 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. 19481948 saw the introduction of the Defence Force 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. 1972In 1972, the Office was administering superannuation for 227,000 members and 30,450 pensioners with a staff of 386. The major administrative issue reported in the Office’s 50th Annual Report to Parliament was that member communication:
1973In 1973 the 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. 1976The 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 Dept 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 temporaries. During the early 1980s a range of resource management functions was transferred from the Dept of Finance. The most significant being that the Commissioner for Superannuation assumed Departmental Secretary powers and control of the staff of AGRBO. The EightiesA 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'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 Dept of Social Security. Direct deposit of pensions payments, lump sums and employers' payments also took place during this period.
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 could choose either the CSS or PSS scheme. Eligibility for membership was also extended to casuals. Prior to 1990, 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 RBO, and the Secretariat within RBO was extended to service the MSBS Board. The DFRDB Scheme was closed to new members and existing members were given a choice between DFRDB or MSBS.
ComSuper staff have had a strong client service focus throughout the organisation’s history. This has been maintained despite considerable challenges at various times. ComSuper now administers complex benefit provisions for nine Public Service and Australian Defence Force superannuation schemes. There are 135 benefit options in the CSS and PSS alone. In addition, ComSuper must now manage an extensive web of accountability relationships in its daily operations with 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 has developed from one of compliance and accountability to one which also takes in performance (particularly customer focused performance), improved productivity, quality and finally best practice. It is also adopting a role in superannuation awareness and promotion, though its representation on industry peak bodies, through a schools' superannuation awareness program, and through retirement and retrenchment presentations. 1997ComSuper celebrated it's 75th anniversary.
2003
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