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House of Representatives                                Ch 16                                                 p 567

Financial initiative

A private Member may not initiate a bill imposing or varying a tax or requiring the appropriation of revenue or moneys. This would be contrary to the constitutional and parliamentary principle of the financial initiative of the Executive—that is, that no public charge can be incurred except on the initiative of the Government. ¹

The financial initiative in regard to appropriation is expressed in section 56 of the Constitution, and is extended in standing order 180 as follows:

(a) All proposals for the appropriation of revenue or moneys require a message to the House from the Governor-General recommending the purpose of the appropriation in accordance with section 56 of the Constitution.

(b) For an Appropriation or Supply Bill, the message must be announced before the bill is introduced.

(c) For other bills appropriating revenue or moneys, a Minister may introduce the bill and the bill may be proceeded with before the message is announced and standing order 147 (message recommending appropriation) applies.

(d) A further message must be received before any amendment can be moved which would increase, or extend the objects and purposes or alter the destination of, a recommended appropriation.

It would not be possible for a private Member to obtain the Governor-General’s recommendation for an appropriation. Furthermore, of those bills requiring a Governor-General’s message, only those brought in by a Minister may be introduced and proceeded with before the message is announced. Therefore, only a Minister may bring in a bill which appropriates public moneys.

The financial initiative in regard to taxation, which restricts private Members from initiating taxing bills, is expressed in, and given effect by, standing order 179:

(a) Only a Minister may initiate a proposal to impose, increase, or decrease a tax or duty, or change the scope of any charge.

(b)  Only a Minister may move an amendment to the proposal which increases or extends the scope of the charge proposed beyond the total already existing under any Acts of Parliament.

(c) A Member who is not a Minister may move an amendment to the proposal which does not increase or extend the scope of the charge proposed beyond the total already existing under any Acts of Parliament.

In 1988, following presentation of an Income Tax Assessment Amendment Bill initiated by a private Member, the Chair noted that the bill sought to restore an earlier interpretation of a provision of the Act. The Chair understood that the bill did not seek to increase or alleviate tax, although it could be argued that a reduction would occur in the sum a person might pay because of the restored interpretation. The Chair stated that it was felt appropriate to permit the Member to initiate the proposal, although its validity in procedural terms was not clear. ² Private Members’ bills have sought to amend the Customs and Excise Tariff Acts to introduce mechanisms by which a decrease in duty could be effected by subsequent parliamentary action. ³ In 2002 a private Member’s bill made provision for the Taxation Commissioner to assess certain amounts, which were stated in the objects clause of the bill as intended to be used in the calculation of a tax to be imposed and administered by another Act; and in the calculation of increased expenditure to be appropriated by another Act. ⁴ In the same year, having introduced a bill providing for the assessment and collection of a levy, a Member presented as a document a copy of a proposed companion bill providing for the imposition of the levy. ⁵

This principle and its significance is discussed in the Ch. on ‘Financial legislation’.

H.R. Deb. (10.11.88) 2790-1; VP 1987-89/875.

H.R. Deb. (5.3.2001) 24900, 24904.

Tobacco Excise Windfall Recovery (Assessment) Bill 2002, H.R. Deb. (16.9.2002) 6224-6. As noted in the explanatory memorandum, the introduction of the other two bills of the proposed package was dependent on government action.

Plastic Bag Levy (Assessment and Collection) Bill 2002. The document presented was the Plastic Bag Levy Imposition Bill 2002. H.R. Deb. (21.10.2002) 8121-3; VP 2002-2004/510-11.