Ms Edney-Brown said laser guided drone weapons only hit their target radius half the time while the kill radius of drone strikes can be up to 90 metres. No. AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), abc.net.au/news/pine-gap-defence-contractor-sued-employees-raytheon-secretive-nt/10959388, Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article, Australia's biggest drug bust: $1 billion worth of cocaine linked to Mexican cartel intercepted, 'Pincers are closing': Ukrainian forces under pressure as Russians shell roads out of Bakhmut, Four in hospital after terrifying home invasion by gang armed with machetes, knives, hammer, 'We have got the balance right': PM gives Greens' super demands short shrift, Crowd laughs as Russia's foreign minister claims Ukraine war 'was launched against us', The tense, 10-minute meeting that left Russia's chief diplomat smoking outside in the blazing sun, 'Celebrity leaders': Mike Pompeo, Nikki Haley take veiled jabs at Donald Trump in CPAC remarks. However, as a U.S. citizen or resident alien, you must file a U.S. income tax return reporting and paying taxes on your worldwide income, including your JDFPG employment income. The series is a political thriller, portraying the lives of the members of the joint AmericanAustralian intelligence team. Can the dogs of Chernobyl teach us new tricks when it comes to our own survival? Amentum Jobs - Jobs in Alice Springs, AUS 4 Jobs in Alice Springs, AUS Safety Specialist, Senior Alice Springs, Australia Project Manager (Australia) Alice Springs, Australia Project Coordinator - Australia Alice Springs, Australia Building Information Modeling Integrator Alice Springs, Australia Current Search Criteria Alice Springs, AUS Nationwide News Pty Ltd 2023. Job DetailsApplySave Print this jobEmail a FriendJob Title:RN - Wound Care, Lonesome Pine Hosp. It basically acts as a satellite tracking station and its remote location makes intercepting signals emitted from within more difficult to decipher. Speaking to news.com.au, he said security around the facility was very tight with police patrols taking place every 10 minutes. Officially, Pine Gap is a collaboration between the Australian Department of Defence and the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. The Consent to Disclose document makes clear, for example, that the IRS may notify your employer that you entered into a closing agreement with the IRS. In reality this conceals the real purpose of Pine Gap as a CIA-run spy base designed to collect signals from US surveillance satellites in geosynchronous orbit over the equator. A highly secretive defence intelligence facility, on the outskirts of Alice Springs, is likely gathering information about the escalating situation in Ukraine. Almost half of the workers are locals which includes government personnel, operations workers, AFP Protective Services officers, as well as Australian contractors. Your employees U.S. and Australian reporting and payment obligations will differ depending on whether he or she elects to exclude some or all of this income from U.S. tax under the foreign earned income exclusion in section 911 of the Internal Revenue Code.Added: 05-22-2019 Source: ATO/IRS, A2. What are the implications for me, as the employer, if my JDFPG employee does not enter into a closing agreement with the IRS in which the employee agrees not to claim the foreign earned income exclusion for JDFPG employment income? In a statement, the Department of Defence said it did not comment on staff composition or numbers of staff at different facilities. Security and intelligence expertJohn Blaxland said Pine Gap's work was vital. Pine Gap is actually the name of the location whcih is situated in the south-west of Alice Springs town in Australia. Q7. Two words showed something was wrong with the system, After centuries of Murdaugh rule in the Deep South, the family's power ends with a life sentence for murder, With Prince Andrew's sweetheart mansion rental ending, King Charles offers compromise that shocks his son, Flooding in southern Malaysia forces 40,000 people to flee homes. Professor Tanter said Pine Gap workedin conjunction with Menwith Hill, a similar base in Yorkshirein the United Kingdom. (If you have other income from Australian sources, you may have Australian tax reporting and payment obligations associated with that income. With the closing of the Nurrungar base in 1999, an area in Pine Gap was set aside for the United States Air Force's control station for Defense Support Program satellites that monitor heat emissions from missiles, giving first warning of ballistic missile launches. As a U.S. citizen or resident alien, do I have to pay income tax to the United States or Australia on JDFPG employment income? There was only 1 season of the political thriller which had six episodes. It is taxable in Australia because your employee earned the income while working in Australia. "Successive governments on both political persuasions have consistently endorsed, once they have been briefed on the capability and that iswhat Pine Gap delivers in terms of bolstered defence capabilitiesmore than offsets the remote risk of vulnerability," he said. Following a confrontation with Kath, Ethan manages to defuse the South China Sea standoff by convincing President Kerr that the Chinese would deploy nuclear weapons if the US were to use armed forces to rescue their downed pilot. He said the teams would be working to build a "full order of battle". Lawyer for the workers, Giri Sivaraman from Maurice Blackburn, said despite the base's secretive activities, he saw the dispute as a typical workers' rights conflict. While groups such as the Independent and Peaceful Australia Network argue Pine Gap and its value to the US makes us a target, the Australian Government maintains its presence here is crucial. The site conjures up images of secrecy and power and has attracted the odd conspiracy theory or two. As explained above, if you enter into a closing agreement with the IRS, your employer will not withhold Australian taxes on your JDFPG employment income, and you are not required to file an Australian tax return for that income. Run by both Australia and the United States, its official name is the Joint Defence . Pine Gap employs around 1000 people. Pine Gap is one of the largest ground satellite stations in the world, at the present time the facility currently contains eight large radomes, an extremely large computer room and 20 or so service, support buildings. I am a U.S. citizen or resident alien and an Australian citizen employed by a U.S. federal government contractor working at JDFPG. Politics and a joint defense intelligence base at Pine Gap are the main themes in this movie. As research and knowledge into the facility grows, we are starting to learn more about what goes on here, including: Run by both Australia and the United States, its official name is the Joint Defence Facility Pine Gap. Pine Gap is a satellite surveillance base and Australian Earth station approximately 18 km (11 mi) south-west of the town of Alice Springs, Northern Territory in the center of Australia. The IRS and ATO expect only that the employees income from employment at JDFPG is properly withheld, reported, and paid, as appropriate, in the United States and Australia. Pine Gap is an Australian television series that was released on Netflix and broadcast on ABC in 2018. "What he was using them for was politics and it was a way of trying to push back against the United States, which is clearly embarked on a very serious campaign of economic punishment and destabilisation," he said. Pine Gap, near Alice Springs, employs nearly 1,000 people, mainly from the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Reconnaissance Office. As a U.S. citizen or resident alien, you must report your worldwide income, including your JDFPG employment income, to the IRS on a timely filed tax return. The closing agreement applies for the U.S. taxable year(s) listed in the closing agreement as the taxable period(s) covered by the closing agreement. [10] Helen Razer of the Daily Review also gave the TV series a negative review, disparaging it as "a poor attempt at promoting favourable propaganda about AustraliaUnited States relations". Jas lands herself in trouble with Jacob when she hacks into the Australian Prime Ministers Chief of Staff Robert Boyles email account. A former US agent lifts the lid on some of the top secret projects he worked on while at Australia's remote Pine Gap "spy station". Gus and Jas repair their relationship and Zhou meets with Immy, hinting that she is working for Chinese intelligence. Pine Gap Jobs Electrical Inspector Amentum Australia The Electrical Inspector is the Code Compliance Manager for all electrical installations and electrical works carried out within the JDFPG. [1], Luke Buckmaster of The Guardian gave Pine Gap a critical review, writing that the series was "less a spy drama than an attempt to cure insomnia." An employer will, however, be liable for FBT if it has withholding obligations and provides taxable fringe benefits. The dispute was now being taken to court, with the workers claiming more than $2.6 million from Raytheon. But how much do we really know about this significant site? What are the implications for me, as the employer, if my JDFPG employee enters into a closing agreement with the IRS in which the employee agrees not to claim the foreign earned income exclusion for JDFPG employment income? Article 25 of the United States-Australia income tax treatyPDF (Treaty) allows the United States and Australia competent authorities to exchange information, including tax returns and return information, that is relevant to administering U.S. and Australian income tax laws. The work of the jointly run US and . Does the Treaty supersede the Pine Gap Agreement? Your Australian income tax reporting and payment obligations will differ depending on whether you elect to exclude your JDFPG employment income from U.S. tax under the foreign earned income exclusion. In one of the letters, John Kerr describes his alleged CIA connections as 'Nonsense of course', and assured the Queen of his continued loyalty.[22]. I am a U.S. citizen or resident alien employee of a U.S. federal government contractor working outside the United Statesbut not at JDFPG. However, another former employee of the joint defence facility said he did not believe there was a deliberate effort to hire more US nationals for positions at the base. More. . Discontented with her husband Ethan's secrecy, Belle befriends Zhou Lin while visiting an Arrernte sacred site. Is the income of my U.S. citizen or resident alien employee working at JDFPG exempt from taxation in the United States and Australia? Your family situation (for example, if your spouse is a resident of Australia or earns income in Australia from employment outside the JDFPG) also affects your Australian tax reporting and payment obligations. On September 30, 2005, NSG Det Alice Springs was administratively closed and was re-established on October 1, 2005 as the Navy Information Operations Detachment (NIOD) Alice Springs, Australia. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work. Why am I asked to sign a Consent to Disclose document when I sign a closing agreement with the IRS? He explicitly confirmed the western interest in Beijing's activities, saying Pine Gap - the installation near Alice Springs in the Northern Territory - was "crucial to, let's say . Join us for a flyby of the Pine Gap Joint Defence Facility near Alice Springs. A spokesperson from Maurice Blackburn said the two parties could enter into mediation over the matter. "It's quite frankly outrageous that a large, multinational defence contractor like Raytheon, who has lost the contract at Pine Gap through no fault of its workforce, is trying to get out of paying these workers their redundancies," he said. By logging into your account, you agree to Jora's, By creating an email alert, you agree to Jora's. Looking for an Early Childhood Teacher to inspire a room full of eager little learners. When they all refused to take on the new, less-skilled positions, Raytheon refused to pay out their redundancy entitlements, saying the employees had been offered other positions, which they had then declined. And forget taking a tour to learn more about it because youre not even getting close to seeing inside. In the Pine Gap Agreement, Australia agreed that the income of U.S. employees of U.S. federal government contractors at the JDFPG who are in Australia solely to work at the JDFPG would be exempt from income tax in Australia provided that income is taxed in the United States. Q12. "Once their positions were made redundant they were retrenched, they were entitled to redundancy payment.". Alice Springs author and journalist Kieran Finnane will be launching her latest book this morning exploring local dissent against military operations at Pine Gap facilities. Zhou is courting the Arrernte people for the gas extraction project, promising jobs. How long does the closing agreement apply? It provides intelligence on priorities such as terrorism, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and foreign military capability and weapons developments, he said. While roaming through land near to the Pine Gap facility, sudden activity in the grounds of the base would catch their attention. Under ordinary tax principles, your employer would withhold and remit U.S. and Australian income taxes on your behalf throughout the year to the IRS and ATO, respectively, as appropriate. Peter "Turbo" Teatoff is seen delivering heavy machinery to JDFPG in season 4's 11th episode of series Outback Truckers. Joshua Blundell-Thornton, the industrial officer for the Australian Manufacturers Workers' Union who is representing the employees, said it was disappointing to see such a large organisation refuse to pay redundancy entitlements. Do these FAQs and procedures apply to me? [7] Central Australia was chosen because it was too remote for spy ships passing in international waters to intercept the signal. The employee is responsible for IRS taxable income on the local market rental value of furnished housing and the associated utilities. A major defence contractor at one of Australia's most secretive intelligence facilities is being sued by former employees, who claim they were not paid out their proper redundancy entitlements. The show was set around the political scene between 2 different governments, Australia and America, and also with a joint defense intellect facility at Pine Gap. It is taxable in the United States because, as a U.S. citizen or resident alien, the employee is taxable on worldwide income. Prof Tanter, who has conducted years of research into the facility with ANU colleague and leading authority on Pine Gap, Desmond Ball, said it remains one of the most important intelligence facilities outside of the United States today. "It is starting to become more prevalent out there.". That's a really important question," he said. Your employees JDFPG employment income is taxable in the United States and Australia. Address: 15 WILKINSON ST ALICE SPRINGS, NORTHERN TERRITORY, 0870 Australia Phone: Employees (this site): Modelled Employees (all sites): Modelled Revenue: Modelled Year Started: Incorporated: ESG ranking: ESG industry average: What is D&B's ESG Ranking? Two words showed something was wrong with the system, After centuries of Murdaugh rule in the Deep South, the family's power ends with a life sentence for murder, With Prince Andrew's sweetheart mansion rental ending, King Charles offers compromise that shocks his son, Flooding in southern Malaysia forces 40,000 people to flee homes. The Pine Gap base near Alice Springs is expanding, and so is its importance to the US military. Those radomes you see (the big white balls) arent for decoration, they protect the satellite dish inside. No. The West is making a big miscalculation when it comes to a conflict with China and it could be a very costly mistake. [15][16], The Menwith Hill Station (MHS) in the UK is operated by the NSA and also serves as ground station for these satellite missions. As a U.S. citizen or resident alien, you are required to file a U.S. income tax return reporting and paying taxes on your worldwide income. This map shows the location of Alice Springs right in the centre of the Australian continent. "It is disappointing that a company this well-resourced is still trying to dodge their responsibilities and pay the redundancies entitled to these workers.". [3] The series is produced by Screentime. It is 200 km south of the centre of mainland Australia. The majority of Pine Gap's 1000 staff are Americans drawn from branches of the US military, including the National Security Agency, Army and Navy Information Operations Command, US Navy and Combined Support Group, Air Intelligence Agency, US Air Force, 704th Military Intelligence Brigade, 743rd Military Intelligence Battalion, Marine Cryptologic Pine Gap is a secretive facility nearly 20km south-west of Alice Springs which has been there since 1970. The U.S. You are not considered to be an employee of the United States government or of a U.S. government agency for purposes of the TreatyPDF. Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code states that tax returns and return information must be kept confidential by the IRS except as otherwise authorized by the Code. Q3. Pine Gap is a satellite surveillance base and Australian Earth station approximately 18km (11mi) south-west of the town of Alice Springs, Northern Territory in the center of Australia. [17][18] This was confirmed by an NSA document from 2013, which says that Pine Gap plays a key role in providing geolocation data for intelligence purposes, as well as for military operations, including air strikes. Pine Gap contributes to and collects data used for US drones in the Middle East and Pakistan. This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. Pine Gap is an international political thriller which is set around the Australian and American joint defence intelligence facility at Pine Gap, south-west of the town of Alice Springs, Australia. Generally, when countries enter into successive international agreements addressing the same subject matter, and an agreement indicates that its provisions are subject to the provisions of an earlier or later international agreement, the provisions of the earlier or later international agreement prevail. Starring: Parker Sawyers, Jacqueline McKenzie, Steve Toussaint. Alice Springs NT $32 - $60 an hour Full-time + 3 Weekend availability + 4 Hiring multiple candidates NDIS compliant: All services are NDIS coded, and mobility works with self, plan and agency managed participants of the NDIS. In 2004, the base began operating a new satellite system known as the Space-Based Infrared System, which is a vital element of US missile defense. If your JDFPG employment income is taxed in Australia, that income is considered foreign-source income for U.S. tax purposes and may be eligible for a foreign tax credit on your U.S. tax return, subject to any applicable limitations, including the restrictions on claiming foreign tax credits if you choose to exclude foreign earned income from your U.S. income. It collects a wide range of signals intelligence as well as providing information on early warning of ballistic missile launches. An official website of the United States Government. "They'll be listening to Russian military activity nationwide, precisely because that nuclear alert, they'll be watching all nuclear facilities," he said. What happens if I enter into a closing agreement with the IRS in which I agree not to claim the foreign earned income exclusion for JDFPG employment income? I am a U.S. federal government contractor with employees working at JDFPG. The only Australians at Pine Gap for most of its history were those hired as cooks and cleaners. Q4. [11], In late 1966, during the Cold War, a joint USAustralian treaty called for the creation of a US satellite surveillance base in Australia, to be titled the "Joint Defence Space Research Facility". In other words, where possible, treaties should be read harmoniously with other later enacted international agreements and domestic law. If the IRS issues a refund, can I assume that the IRS agrees with my tax position? Razer also criticized what she regarded as the tokenistic use of Aboriginal characters. Q13. According to Richard Tanter, a professor in the School of Political and Social Studies at the University of Melbourne, most Australians really dont know all that much about it. After ruling Moses out as a suspect, the Australia and US investigators question the Arrenrte law student Immy, who claims someone used her phone to send leaked footage of A-team ordering the Bangladesh drone strike. New Alice Springs jobs added daily. Unless you work at Pine Gap, or possess special invisible powers, you wont even get too close to it. Alice Springs is a city in the Northern Territory of Australia. Joint Defence Facility - Pine Gap, Alice Springs . Article 19 does not apply to income earned by employees of U.S. federal government contractors. [12] The purpose of the facility was initially referred to in public as "space research". The physical expansion of Alice Springs, and particularly its expansion west . Cast []. In The Secret History of Twin Peaks by Mark Frost, President Richard Nixon claims that Pine Gap is actually the site of an underground facility constructed by extraterrestrials. Edwina Wren as Eloise Chambers, an American, Michael-Anthony Taylor as Will Thompson, Gus's father, This page was last edited on 27 January 2023, at 09:46. Q1. Political expertRichard Tanter saidthe base would be playing a crucial role in gathering intelligence through covert communications from the Ukraine and border regions. One day, I'm all "this is a culturally inert toilet remarkable only for its willingness to be shat upon by empire". This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. (Note that because the United States and Australia use different taxable years (that is, January 1-December 31 in the United States, and July 1-June 30 in Australia), the closing agreement must cover the entire Australian income year to satisfy your withholding obligation as employer.) This is acknowledged in Article 1(1) of the Treaty, which states, This [treaty] shall not restrict in any manner any exclusion, exemption, deduction, rebate, credit or other allowance accorded from time to time . Pine Gap is an international political thriller which is set around the Australian and American joint defence intelligence facility at Pine Gap, south-west of the town of Alice Springs, Australia.. Any information exchanged under Article 25 is protected from disclosure under the limitations of Section 6105 of the Internal Revenue Code and Article 25(2) of the Treaty.Added: 05-22-2019 Source: IRS, A11. If you enter into a closing agreement with the IRS, your employer has no obligation to withhold Australian taxes on your income from employment at JDFPG for the taxable period(s) covered by the closing agreement, and you are not required to file an Australian tax return for that income. "It certainly isn't a WikiLeaks type of story," concedes David . Q4. According to Nautilus report released this year, Australians are "completely enmeshed into the management structure at the station". Click to reveal This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. The base is staffed by both Americans and Australians, who monitor satellite and communication transmissions in the area for potential threats to either country. The union representing the employees said it believed the Joint Defence Facility may be preferencing the employment of Americans over Australians. If your employee enters into a closing agreement with the IRS, the employee will generally also submit a Consent to Disclose document, which allows the IRS and the employees employer to discuss the closing agreement. In addition, an employer that provides fringe benefits will not be liable for Australian fringe benefits tax (FBT) if it has no withholding obligations. Ball described the facility as the ground control and processing station for geosynchronous satellites engaged in signals intelligence collection, outlining four categories of signals collected: Ball described the operational area as containing three sections: Satellite Station Keeping Section, Signals Processing Station and the Signals Analysis Section, from which Australians were barred until 1980. 29 days ago Access Control - TS/SCI with Poly new Leidos - Alice Springs NT Missing: defence On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. No. Your IP: When they established the facility in 1966, the governments signed an agreement (the Pine Gap Agreement). A national gathering of peace makers and anti war activists during the 50 Year Anniversary of Pine Gap.A series of independently organised events and artful non violent protest actions in and around Alice Springs. A highly secretive defence intelligence facility, on the outskirts of Alice Springs, is likely gathering information about the escalating situation in Ukraine. [9]:p 4546[10], The location is strategically significant because it controls United States spy satellites as they pass over one-third of the globe, including China, the Asian parts of Russia, and the Middle East. He also criticised the series for what he regarded as its poor story-writing and unsatisfactory acting, giving it one out of five stars. The facility does, however, employ hundreds of workers and make up a large part of the Alice Springs economy. "There was very little chance of Putin using those nuclear weapons in war," he said. By entering into a closing agreement with the IRS, the employee agrees that he or she will not claim the foreign earned income exclusion for the employees JDFPG employment income earned during those periods. Under these procedures, the employee may enter into a closing agreement with the IRS, in which the employee agrees that he or she will not claim the foreign earned income exclusion for the JDFPG income for the taxable period(s) covered by the closing agreement. As further discussed in FAQ Q4 below, if you enter into a closing agreement, you must pay tax on your JDFPG income in the United States, but you would not have to pay Australian tax on this income or report this income on an Australian tax return.