WARNING:
This Digest was prepared for debate. It reflects the legislation as
introduced and does not canvass subsequent amendments. This Digest
does not have any official legal status. Other sources should be
consulted to determine the subsequent official status of the
Bill.
CONTENTS
Passage History
Purpose
Background
Main Provisions
Contact Officer and Copyright Details
Appropriation (Parliamentary
Departments) Bill 1999-2000
Date Introduced: 11 May 1999
House: House of Representatives
Portfolio: Treasury
Commencement: Royal Assent
To appropriate
$159.226 million for the expenditure of the Parliamentary
Departments for Departmental outcomes, administered expenses and
capital items during 1999-2000.
As with the executive Departments, the 1999-2000
Budgets for the Parliamentary Departments have been prepared using
an accrual basis and provide funding for Departmental outcomes,
administered expenses and capital items, whereas previous
appropriations have been stated in terms of running costs and other
services. For further information on aspects of the change to
accrual accounting, refer to the Digest for the Appropriation Bill
(No. 1) 1999-2000.
Since 1982, the appropriations for the
Parliamentary Departments have been effected by a separate Bill.
This followed the Fraser Government's consideration of the Report
of the Senate Select Committee (the Select Committee) on
Parliamentary Appropriations and Staffing tabled on 18 August
1981.
Under current arrangements, the executive
government maintains control over the contents of the Bill as
introduced. As the Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Bill
is not for the ordinary annual services of the government, it may
be amended by the Senate.
The Public Service Act 1922 provides
that the administration of the Parliament is undertaken by five
Parliamentary Departments - the Department of the Senate, the
Department of the House of Representatives, the Joint House
Department, the Department of the Parliamentary Reporting Staff
(DPRS) and the Department of the Parliamentary Library.
The Department of the House of Representatives
and the Department of the Senate are responsible for the provision
of procedural, information and administrative services to Members
and Senators respectively. The Joint House Department performs
building management, maintenance and catering functions associated
with Parliament House. DPRS provides reporting, information
technology, telecommunications and broadcasting services to the
Parliament through Hansard, the Parliamentary Information Systems
Office (PISO) and the Sound and Vision Office (SAVO). The
Department of the Parliamentary Library is responsible for the
provision of library, reference and research services to the
Parliament.
The allocations to the various Departments are
contained in the Schedule to the Bill. Appropriations for
1999-2000, with the previous year's figures in brackets, are:
|
House of Representatives
|
$27.845m
|
($25.153m)
|
|
Senate
|
$31.471m
|
($27.911m)
|
|
Joint House Department
|
$41.025m
|
($42.725m)
|
|
Parliamentary Reporting Staff
|
$42.222m
|
($36.446m)
|
|
Parliamentary Library
|
$16.663m
|
($14.902m)
|
Clause 6 provides that for
Departmental items, the Finance Minister may issue from the
Consolidated Revenue Fund amounts that do not exceed that listed in
the Schedule to the Bill and that such funds must be used for the
departmental expenses of the Parliamentary Department. Where the
amount is for remuneration or allowances payable under the
Remuneration Tribunal Act 1973 or the Remuneration and
Allowances Act 1990, the Minister for Finance must issue the
amount.
For administered expenses, clause
7 provides that the Finance Minister may issue the lesser
of the amount specified and the amount the Minister determines to
be the administered expenses incurred by the Parliamentary
Department.
Clause 8 will authorise the
Finance Minister to issue an amount that does not exceed the
amounts specified in the Schedule.
The responsible Presiding Officer/s will be able
to increase the amount allocated to an item to a total maximum of
$200 000 for both the House of Representatives and the Senate (for
these Departments this power is exercisable by the Speaker for the
House of Representatives and by the President for the Senate) and
to a total maximum of $200 000 for all the remaining Departments
combined (exercisable jointly by the Speaker and
President)(clause 10).
Clause 11 is similar to clause
10 but deals with increases in items due to unforeseen
circumstances. The maximum increase under clause 11 is a total of
$300 000 for the Senate; $300 000 for the House of Representatives;
and a total of $1 million for the other Departments combined.
Clause 14 will formally
appropriate the funds for the Bill.
Chris Field
2 June 1999
Bills Digest Service
Information and Research Services
This paper has been prepared for general distribution to
Senators and Members of the Australian Parliament. While great care
is taken to ensure that the paper is accurate and balanced, the
paper is written using information publicly available at the time
of production. The views expressed are those of the author and
should not be attributed to the Information and Research Services
(IRS). Advice on legislation or legal policy issues contained in
this paper is provided for use in parliamentary debate and for
related parliamentary purposes. This paper is not professional
legal opinion. Readers are reminded that the paper is not an
official parliamentary or Australian government document.
IRS staff are available to discuss the paper's contents with
Senators and Members
and their staff but not with members of the public.
ISSN 1328-8091
© Commonwealth of Australia 1999
Except to the extent of the uses permitted under the
Copyright Act 1968, no part of this publication may be
reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including
information storage and retrieval systems, without the prior
written consent of the Parliamentary Library, other than by Members
of the Australian Parliament in the course of their official
duties.
Published by the Department of the Parliamentary Library,
1999.
Back to top