WARNING:
This Digest is prepared for debate. It reflects the legislation as
introduced and does not canvass subsequent amendments.
This Digest was available from 23 May 1996.
CONTENTS
Date introduced: 8 May 1996
House: House of Representatives
Portfolio: Finance
Commencement: Royal Assent
To authorise the Minister for Finance to issue $14 659 174 000
from the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) for the ordinary annual
services of government for the 1996-97 financial year.
The Supply Bill (No. 1) 1996-97, together with the Supply Bill
(No. 2) 1996-97 and the Supply (Parliamentary Departments) Bill
1996-97, provide interim appropriations for the period between the
start of the 1996-97 financial year and the passage of the 1996-97
Appropriations Bills, which are introduced in the 1996 Budget. The
amounts appropriated by the Supply Bills are incorporated with
those made under the Appropriation Acts to form the yearly
expenditure.
Supply Bills are required as a result of the timing factors in
the Budget cycle. The Commonwealth financial year begins on 1 July,
but the Budget pertaining to this year will not be presented until
August and it is usually not until November that the Appropriation
Bills have been enacted. Since the Appropriation Bills of the
previous financial year lapse on 30 June, a hiatus of approximately
five months duration appears in the financial activities of the
Government. This hiatus necessitates interim appropriations. This
is achieved through the passing of Supply Bills shortly before the
end of the previous financial year.
The appropriations set out in the Supply Bills usually represent
a pro-rata extrapolation of the previous year's annual
appropriations to cover a five-month period.
It should be noted that the 1996-97 Supply Bills do not
pre-empt the savings the Government has foreshadowed will be made
in the August Budget. The Minister for Finance in the
Second Reading Speech to the Bill says:
However, The Government is committed to a fundamental review of
its activities and inclusion of a specific amount in the Supply
Bills will not pre-empt the Government from effecting further
savings in the August Budget in order to meet our commitments to
the Australian people.
Clause 4 will authorise the Minister for
Finance to issue $14 659 174 000 from the CRF for the purposes
detailed in the Schedule to this Bill. The Schedule lists the
Departments and programs to which funds are allocated, including
appropriations for:
- Department of Defence - $4 615 960 000. This
principally consists of $2 261 141 000 for administrative running
costs and $1 819 776 000 for equipment and stores.
Comment: Running costs currently encompass six notional items.
These are Senior Executive Service (SES) Salaries, non-SES
salaries, administration, recurrent property operating expenses,
property operating expenses of a capital nature and the cost of
legal services provided by the Attorney-General's Department. The
non-running cost elements of agency finance are referred to as
program costs.
Administrative running costs for the Department of Defence are
estimated to total $5 174 947 000 in 1995-96.
- Department of Employment Education and Training - $1
500 548 000. This principally consists of $928 279 000 for
Labor Market and Training Assistance and $424 895 000 for
administrative running costs.
Comment: Labor Market and Training Assistance includes programs
such as JobStart, JobSkills and SkillShare.
Administrative running costs for the Department of Employment
Education and Training are estimated to total $993 365 000
1995-96.
- Department of Health and Family Services - $1 379 528
000. This principally consists of $504 230 000 for
assistance for families with children (including expenditure under
the Child Care Act 1972) and $170 566 000 for assistance
for people with disabilities (including payment to the
Rehabilitation Service Trust Account and expenditure under the
Disability Services Act 1986).
Comment: Administrative running costs for the Department of
Health and Family Services Training are estimated to total $258 156
173 in
1995-96.
- Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade - $1 028 731
000. This principally consists of $186 772 000 for
administrative running costs and 180 703 000 for the Australian
Trade Commission.
Comment: Administrative running costs for the Department of
Foreign Affairs are estimated to total $471 154 000 in 1995-96.
Clause 5 will allow additional appropriations
in respect of increases in salaries. For
1996-97, the Minister for Finance may, before 1 December 1996,
issue funds from the CRF to meet increases in salaries that become
payable after 23 April 1996. Additional appropriations are to be
reported to the Parliament.
Other provisions of this Bill deal with the financing of a
number of bodies that have been foreshadowed but have yet to
commence operations.
Ian Ireland Ph. 06 277 2438
Chris Field Ph 06 277 2439
17 May 1996
Bills Digest Service
Parliamentary Research Service
This Digest does not have any official legal status. Other
sources should be consulted to determine whether the Bill has been
enacted and, if so, whether the subsequent Act reflects further
amendments.
PRS staff are available to discuss the paper's contents
with Senators and Members and their staff but not with members of
the public.
ISSN 1323-9032
© Commonwealth of Australia 1996
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,
1996.
This page was prepared by the Parliamentary Library,
Commonwealth of Australia
Last updated: 23 May 1996
Back to top