Appropriation (Fuel Security Response) Act (No. 2) 2025-2026

Appropriation (Fuel Security Response) Act (No. 2) 2025‑2026

No. 24, 2026

An Act to appropriate additional money out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund for certain expenditure for the purposes of responding to circumstances relating to the Fuel Security Response, and for related purposes

Contents

Part 1—Preliminary

1 Short title

2 Commencement

3 Definitions

4 Portfolio statements

5 Notional transactions between entities that are part of the Commonwealth

Part 2—Appropriation items

6 Summary of appropriations

7 State, ACT, NT and local government items

8 Administered items

9 Administered assets and liabilities items

10 Other departmental items

11 Corporate entity items

Part 3—Advance to the Finance Minister

12 Advance to the Finance Minister

Part 4—Miscellaneous

13 Crediting amounts to special accounts

14 Conditions etc. applying to State, ACT, NT and local government items

15 Appropriation of the Consolidated Revenue Fund

16 Repeal of this Act

Schedule 1—Payments to or for the States, ACT, NT and local government

Schedule 2—Services for which money is appropriated

Appropriation (Fuel Security Response) Act (No. 2) 2025-2026

No. 24, 2026

An Act to appropriate additional money out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund for certain expenditure for the purposes of responding to circumstances relating to the Fuel Security Response, and for related purposes

[Assented to 1 April 2026]

The Parliament of Australia enacts:

Part 1—Preliminary

1  Short title

  This Act is the Appropriation (Fuel Security Response) Act (No. 2) 2025‑2026.

2  Commencement

 (1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.

Note: This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this Act.

 (2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this Act.

3  Definitions

  In this Act:

administered assets and liabilities item means an amount set out in Schedule 2 in relation to a non‑corporate entity opposite the heading “Administered Assets and Liabilities”.

administered item means an amount set out in Schedule 2 opposite an outcome for a non‑corporate entity under the heading “New Administered Outcomes”.

corporate entity means:

 (a) a corporate Commonwealth entity within the meaning of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013; or

 (b) a Commonwealth company within the meaning of that Act.

corporate entity item means the amount set out in Schedule 2 in relation to a corporate entity under the heading “Non‑operating”.

current year means the financial year ending on 30 June 2026.

expenditure means payments for expenses, acquiring assets, making loans or paying liabilities.

Finance Minister means the Minister administering this Act.

item means any of the following:

 (a) a State, ACT, NT and local government item;

 (b) an administered item;

 (c) an administered assets and liabilities item;

 (d) an other departmental item;

 (e) a corporate entity item.

non‑corporate entity means:

 (a) a non‑corporate Commonwealth entity within the meaning of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013; or

 (b) the High Court.

other departmental item means an amount set out in Schedule 2 in relation to a non‑corporate entity opposite the heading “Equity Injections”.

Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements means the Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements that were tabled in the Senate or the House of Representatives in relation to the Bill for the Appropriation Act (No. 3) 2025‑2026 and the Bill for the Appropriation Act (No. 4) 2025‑2026.

Portfolio Budget Statements means the Portfolio Budget Statements that were tabled in the Senate or the House of Representatives in relation to the Bill for the Appropriation Act (No. 1) 2025‑2026 and the Bill for the Appropriation Act (No. 2) 2025‑2026.

portfolio statements means:

 (a) the Portfolio Budget Statements; and

 (b) the Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements.

special account has the same meaning as in the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.

State, ACT, NT and local government item means an amount set out in Schedule 2 opposite an outcome for a non‑corporate entity under the heading “Payments to States, ACT, NT and local government”.

4  Portfolio statements

  The portfolio statements are declared to be relevant documents for the purposes of section 15AB of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.

Note: See paragraph 15AB(2)(g) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 which provides that the material that may be considered in the interpretation of a provision of an Act includes any document that is declared by the Act to be a relevant document.

5  Notional transactions between entities that are part of the Commonwealth

  For the purposes of this Act, notional transactions between non‑corporate entities are to be treated as if they were real transactions.

Note: This section applies, for example, to a “payment” between non‑corporate entities that are both part of the Commonwealth. One of the effects of this section is that the payment will be debited from an appropriation for the paying non‑corporate entity, even though no payment is actually made from the Consolidated Revenue Fund. This is consistent with section 76 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.

Part 2—Appropriation items

6  Summary of appropriations

  The total of the items specified in Schedule 2 is nil.

Note 1: Items in Schedule 2 can be adjusted under Part 3 of this Act.

Note 2: Sections 74 to 75 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 also provide for the adjustment of amounts appropriated by this Act.

7  State, ACT, NT and local government items

 (1) The amount specified in a State, ACT, NT and local government item for an outcome for a non‑corporate entity may be applied for the purpose of making payments to or for the States, the Australian Capital Territory, the Northern Territory and local government authorities for the purpose of contributing to achieving that outcome.

 (2) If the portfolio statements indicate that activities of a particular kind were intended to be treated as activities in respect of a particular outcome, then expenditure for the purpose of carrying out those activities is taken to be expenditure for the purpose of contributing to achieving the outcome.

8  Administered items

 (1) The amount specified in an administered item for an outcome for a non‑corporate entity may be applied for expenditure for the purpose of contributing to achieving that outcome.

 (2) If the portfolio statements indicate that activities of a particular kind were intended to be treated as activities in respect of a particular outcome, then expenditure for the purpose of carrying out those activities is taken to be expenditure for the purpose of contributing to achieving the outcome.

9  Administered assets and liabilities items

 (1) The amount specified in an administered assets and liabilities item for a non‑corporate entity may be applied for expenditure for the purpose of contributing to achieving any outcome specified for the entity:

 (a) in Schedule 2 to this Act; or

 (b) in Schedule 1 to the Appropriation (Fuel Security Response) Act (No. 1) 2025‑2026.

 (2) If the portfolio statements indicate that activities of a particular kind were intended to be treated as activities in respect of a particular outcome, then expenditure for the purpose of carrying out those activities is taken to be expenditure for the purpose of contributing to achieving the outcome.

10  Other departmental items

  The amount specified in an other departmental item for a non‑corporate entity may be applied for the departmental expenditure of the entity.

11  Corporate entity items

 (1) The amount specified in a corporate entity item for a corporate entity may be paid to the entity to be applied for the purposes of the entity.

 (2) If:

 (a) an Act provides that a corporate entity must be paid amounts that are appropriated by the Parliament for the purposes of the entity; and

 (b) Schedule 2 contains a corporate entity item for that entity;

then the entity must be paid the full amount specified in the item.

Part 3—Advance to the Finance Minister

12  Advance to the Finance Minister

 (1) This section applies if the Finance Minister is satisfied that there is an urgent need for expenditure, in the current year, that is not provided for, or is insufficiently provided for, in Schedule 2:

 (a) because of an erroneous omission or understatement; or

 (b) because the expenditure was unforeseen until after the last day on which it was practicable to provide for it in the Bill for this Act before that Bill was introduced into the House of Representatives.

 (2) This Act has effect as if Schedule 2 were amended, in accordance with a determination of the Finance Minister, to make provision for so much (if any) of the expenditure as the Finance Minister determines.

 (3) A determination made under subsection (2) must relate to expenditure for the purposes of responding to circumstances relating to fuel security.

 (4) The total of the amounts determined under subsection (2) cannot be more than $1,200 million.

 (5) A determination made under subsection (2) is a legislative instrument, but neither section 42 (disallowance) nor Part 4 of Chapter 3 (sunsetting) of the Legislation Act 2003 applies to the determination.

Part 4—Miscellaneous

13  Crediting amounts to special accounts

  If any of the purposes of a special account is a purpose that is covered by an item (whether or not the item expressly refers to the special account), then amounts may be debited against the appropriation for that item and credited to that special account.

14  Conditions etc. applying to State, ACT, NT and local government items

 (1) This section applies to any payment made out of money appropriated by a State, ACT, NT and local government item for an outcome specified in column 2 of the table in Schedule 1.

 (2) The payment:

 (a) must be made on the terms and conditions (if any) from time to time determined, in the way described in subsection (3), as applying to payments made:

 (i) in relation to the outcome; and

 (ii) to or for a State, the Australian Capital Territory, the Northern Territory or a local government authority; and

 (iii) out of money appropriated by an annual Appropriation Act; and

 (b) must be made in accordance with any determination in writing made by the Minister specified, in column 4 of the table in Schedule 1, for the outcome as to amounts and times of payments.

 (3) The way of determining the terms and conditions applying to payments described in paragraph (2)(a) is for the Minister specified, in column 3 of the table in Schedule 1, for the outcome to make the determination in writing before or after the commencement of this Act.

 (4) Determinations mentioned in paragraph (2)(a) and determinations made under paragraph (2)(b) are not legislative instruments.

 (5) This section does not limit the Commonwealth’s power to:

 (a) apply terms and conditions to payments made out of money that is not appropriated by a State, ACT, NT and local government item; or

 (b) determine the amounts and times of those payments.

15  Appropriation of the Consolidated Revenue Fund

  The Consolidated Revenue Fund is appropriated as necessary for the purposes of this Act, including the operation of this Act as affected by the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.

16  Repeal of this Act

  This Act is repealed at the start of 1 July 2028.

Schedule 1—Payments to or for the States, ACT, NT and local government

Note: See section 14.

Schedule 2—Services for which money is appropriated

Note: See sections 6 and 15.

[Minister’s second reading speech made in—

House of Representatives on 30 March 2026

Senate on 1 April 2026]