Download PDFHouse: House of Representatives
Portfolio: Finance
Purpose
To authorise the Minister for Finance to issue an additional $834 166 000 from the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) in addition to the funds appropriated by the Appropriation Act (No. 1) 1991- 92.
Background
Annual authorisations for expenditure are contained in the Appropriation Act (No. 1), which authorises expenditure for the ordinary services of government, and the Appropriation Act (No. 2), which deals with expenditure on capital works and services, payments to the States and other purposes not authorised by special legislation. The Parliamentary Departments are covered by the Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Act. Additional appropriations may be sought in further Appropriation Bills, usually known as the additional estimates, when the appropriation sought in the Appropriation Acts is insufficient for the financial year.
The Appropriation Acts lapse on 30 June at the end of the relevant financial year, and authorisation for expenditure between the end of the financial year and the passage of the next years Appropriation Acts is contained in the Supply Acts, which are normally passed a month or so before the Appropriation Acts lapse.
The major additional appropriations sought by this Bill involve:
* Department of Defence - $219.834 million. The major item for which additional funds are sought is equipment and stores ($112.6 million). The other major items are running costs ($61.97 million) and compensation and legal expenses ($22.6 million).
* Department of Employment, Education and Training - $159.77 million. The major category for the additional expenditure is labour market assistance programs ($87.415 million). There are also increases in expenditure in programs related to Aborigines, with $40.366 million being allocated to operating expenses of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission and $11.579 million being budgeted for additional payments in direct assistance for Aboriginal education. $16.891 million is allocated for the running costs of the Department.
* Department of Health, Housing and Community Services - $138.124 million. The major additional expenditure sought is for residential care for older people ($50 million). The other major item additional funds are sought for is child care fee relief ($43.183 million).
* Department of Transport and Communications - $67.995 million. The main areas of additional expenditure are the road safety improvement program ($25 million) and $20 million for waterfront reform.
* Department of Industry, Technology and Commerce - $53.375 million. The additional appropriations are sought principally for the computer bounty ($20.651 million), running expenses of the Australian Customs Service ($14.481 million) and textiles, clothing and footwear development strategy ($11 million).
Main Provisions
Clause 3 will authorise the Minister for Finance to issue $834 166 000 from the CRF for the 1991- 92 financial year.
Clause 4 will deem this amount to have been appropriated from 1 July 1991 for the purposes specified in the Schedule to the Bill. The Schedule lists the Departments and programs that are to receive additional funds.
The remaining main provision of the Bill deal with changes in the allocation of funds within Departments.
Bills Digest Service
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Commonwealth of Australia 1992
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Published by the Department of the Parliamentary Library, 1992.