Guidelines 2.1 Expiry of existing appointments The Secretary is responsible for keeping a record of all statutory appointments in the Commission. The record will be maintained publicly on the Attorney-General’s Department website. The Secretary will notify the Attorney-General, in writing, of an upcoming expiry of an appointment at least eight months before the expiry date. The Secretary must also notify the APS Commissioner of an upcoming expiry of appointment. The Secretary will seek the Attorney-General’s advice on whether: • • • the incumbent is to be offered reappointment (if allowed by legislation) 3, or the incumbent is not to be reappointed, or the Attorney-General wishes to test the field through advertising the position (which may or may not result in the incumbent being reappointed). Where the Attorney-General decides to advertise the position, an open and merit-based selection process must apply. The Secretary will consult with the Attorney-General on details such as the scope of advertising and selection criteria. However, there are minimum requirements detailed in sections 2.7.1 and 2.7.2 below that must be met. The Attorney-General is responsible for advising the incumbent in writing at least six months before the expiry of their appointment that they will: • • • be reappointed, or not be reappointed, or not be reappointed because the Attorney-General wishes to test the field of potential candidates but the incumbent is able to apply (if reappointment is allowed by the legislation). The Secretary must advise the APS Commissioner of the Attorney-General’s decision. The selection process should be commenced no less than six months prior to the conclusion of the term of the incumbent Commissioner. 2.2 Reappointments The term of appointment of the President and Commissioners cannot exceed 7 years, pursuant to the legislation. An incumbent can only be reappointed where the total term they have been appointed for, inclusive of any reappointment, is no more than 7 years. The President and Commissioners may be reappointed under their enabling legislation and/or the Australian Human Rights Commission Act to their position after their initial term has expired, extending their term to a maximum total of 7 years. This recognises that the incumbents appointed 3 The total term of appointment, including any reappointment, cannot exceed 7 years. 7