Brigalow Lands Agreement Amendment Act 1977

Legislation au C2004A01786 Not in force Act

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BRIGALOW LANDS AGREEMENT AMENDMENT ACT 1977

No. 148 of 1977

An Act to amend the Brigalow Lands Agreement Act 1962.

BE IT ENACTED by the Queen, and the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Australia, as follows:

Short title

1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Brigalow Lands Agreement Amendment Act 1977.

(2) The Brigalow Lands Agreement Act 1962 is in this Act referred to as the Principal Act.

Commencement

2. This Act shall come into operation on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.

3. After section 3b of the Principal Act the following section is inserted:

Execution of agreement authorized

“3c. The execution, by or on behalf of the Commonwealth, of an agreement between the Commonwealth and the State of Queensland substantially in accordance with the form contained in the Fourth Schedule is authorized.”.

Financial assistance

4. Section 4 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting “, and by an agreement (if any) executed in pursuance of section 3c,” after “Second Amending Agreement”.

Fourth Schedule

5. The Principal Act is amended by adding at the end thereof the Schedule set out in the Schedule to this Act.

SCHEDULE    Section 5

FOURTH SCHEDULE  Section 3c

AN AGREEMENT made the   day of   One thousand nine hundred and seventy-                                          between—

THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA (in this agreement called “the Commonwealth”) of the one part, and THE STATE OF QUEENSLAND (in this agreement called “the State”) of the other part.

SCHEDULE—continued

WHEREAS—

(a) by an agreement between the Commonwealth and the State made the first day of December 1962 (in this agreement called “the Agreement”) provision was made for the Commonwealth to grant financial assistance to the State for the purpose of the further development of land in the Fitzroy River Basin;

(b) by further agreements between the Commonwealth and the State made the second day of December 1965 and the twenty-seventh day of April 1967 (called respectively “the Amending Agreement” and “the Second Amending Agreement” and referred to in this agreement as “the Amending Agreements”) the plan of development provided for by the Agreement was amended, the operation of the Agreement was extended to the development of additional land and for an additional period of time and the terms and conditions on which the assistance was provided under the Agreement were varied;

(c) the Agreement and the Amending Agreements have been approved and the payment of financial assistance to the State on the terms and conditions provided thereby has been authorized by the Parliament of the Commonwealth by the Brigalow Lands Agreement Act 1962 as amended by the Brigalow Lands Agreement Act 1965 and the Brigalow Lands Agreement Act 1967;

(d) the Agreement and the Amending Agreements have been approved and their implementation provided for by the Parliament of the State by “The Brigalow and Other Lands Development Acts, 1962 to 1967”;

(e) it is proposed that, subject to the approval of the Parliament of the Commonwealth and of the State, the terms and conditions on which financial assistance is provided under the Agreement as amended by the Amending Agreements be further varied as set out in this agreement:

NOW IT IS HEREBY AGREED as follows:—

1. This agreement shall have no force or effect and shall not be binding on either party unless the execution of it on behalf of the parties shall have been authorized, or having been executed on behalf of the parties, that execution is approved, by the Parliament of the Commonwealth and the Parliament of the State.

2. When this agreement comes into force, the Agreement as amended by the Amending Agreements (in this agreement called “the Principal Agreement”) shall be construed and take effect as further amended by this agreement, which shall be known as the Third Amending Agreement.

3. Clause 7 of the Principal Agreement, which was amended by clause 4 of the Second Amending Agreement, is further amended by inserting after sub-clause (2) the following sub-clause—

“(2a) Notwithstanding sub-clause (1), interest shall not accrue under this clause in respect of any payment or advance or any amount referred to in paragraph (a) of sub-clause (2) during the period which commences on the sixteenth day of July, 1977 and ends on the fifteenth day of July, 1978 and accordingly no amount shall be payable under paragraph (c) of sub-clause (2) on the fifteenth day of January, 1978 or on the fifteenth day of July, 1978.”

4. Clause 8 of the Principal Agreement, being the clause that was inserted by clause 5 of the Second Amending Agreement, is amended by inserting after sub-clause (3) the following sub-clauses—

“(3a) Notwithstanding sub-clause (1) of this clause, instalments shall not be payable by the State under that sub-clause on the fifteenth day of January, 1978 and on the fifteenth day of July, 1978.

“(3b) Subject to sub-clause (4), the half-yearly instalments payable by the State under this clause on and after the fifteenth day of January, 1979 shall be of amounts that are as far as practicable equal and will repay the unpaid balance of each payment or advance as at that date or pay the amount or balance of each amount referred to in paragraph (b) of sub-clause (2) of the last preceding clause by the number of instalments of such number that, when the number is added to the number of instalments that have been paid in accordance with sub-clause (1) of this clause and the number of instalments which are not payable by virtue of sub-clause (3a) of this clause, produces a total of 54 instalments.”

SCHEDULE—continued

5. The State will arrange for the benefits that ensure to the State by virtue of the amendments that are made to the Principal Agreement by this agreement to be accorded in an appropriate manner and an appropriate extent to the persons who are for the time being the holders of blocks that have been allotted subject to the repayment, with interest, to the State of the cost of development and stocking of the blocks.

 

Overview

The Brigalow Lands Agreement Amendment Act 1977 was enacted to amend the Brigalow Lands Agreement Act 1962, addressing the need for adjustments to the financial assistance provided for the development of land in the Fitzroy River Basin. This Act was introduced by the Parliament of the Commonwealth to further vary the terms and conditions of financial assistance to the State of Queensland, ensuring that the development initiatives remain aligned with evolving objectives and circumstances. The policy objective of this Act is to facilitate the continuation and enhancement of land development projects within the specified basin, ensuring that the financial arrangements are updated to reflect current economic and developmental needs. This amendment authorises the execution of a new agreement between the Commonwealth and the State of Queensland, modifying the existing financial assistance provisions to include changes in interest accrual and instalment payment schedules. The Act ensures that these modifications are only effective upon approval by both the Commonwealth and State Parliaments, thereby maintaining the legislative oversight and accountability necessary for such significant financial commitments.

Scope and Application

The Brigalow Lands Agreement Amendment Act 1977 pertains to the amendment of the Brigalow Lands Agreement Act 1962, which was enacted to facilitate financial assistance from the Commonwealth to the State of Queensland for the development of land in the Fitzroy River Basin. This Act applies to the Commonwealth and the State of Queensland, specifically in the context of their agreement concerning financial aid for land development projects. The geographic and jurisdictional reach of this Act is confined to the Commonwealth and Queensland, thus it operates within the Commonwealth jurisdiction but pertains to state-specific agreements. The Act does not explicitly mention any exclusions or exemptions, but it does extend its application through the insertion of a new section and the amendment of existing sections in the Principal Act, thereby altering the terms of the financial assistance agreement. This Act is effective upon receiving the Royal Assent and authorises the execution of an agreement substantially in accordance with the form set out in the Fourth Schedule. The agreement outlined in the Fourth Schedule further modifies the terms of the original and subsequently amended agreements regarding interest and instalments, which are to be approved by the Parliaments of the Commonwealth and Queensland.

Key Provisions

The Brigalow Lands Agreement Amendment Act 1977 (section 1) amends the Brigalow Lands Agreement Act 1962 (referred to as the Principal Act). The Act commences on the day it receives Royal Assent (section 2). The primary addition is the authorization for the execution of an agreement between the Commonwealth and the State of Queensland (section 3c). This agreement is to be substantially in accordance with the form outlined in the Fourth Schedule, which is added to the Principal Act (section 5). Additionally, section 4 of the Principal Act is amended to include financial assistance provided under any agreement executed pursuant to section 3c. The Act imposes specific obligations on both the Commonwealth and the State of Queensland. The execution and subsequent approval of the agreement by both the Commonwealth and Queensland Parliaments are mandatory for the agreement to have any legal effect (Fourth Schedule, clause 1). The agreement further amends the existing Principal Agreement, specifically altering the terms of interest accrual and instalment payments (Fourth Schedule, clauses 3 and 3a). The State is also required to ensure that any benefits from these amendments are appropriately allocated to the holders of development blocks, subject to the repayment of development and stocking costs (Fourth Schedule, clause 5). Breach of any provisions within this Act could result in various legal consequences. While the Act does not explicitly detail penalties, failure to adhere to the legislative requirements could lead to civil or criminal proceedings depending on the nature of the breach. For instance, non-compliance with the mandated agreement execution and approval process could be challenged in court, potentially leading to orders for specific performance or other remedies. Additionally, any failure to appropriately allocate benefits to block holders as required could result in disputes and litigation concerning the terms of the agreement and its amendments.

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Environmental Law
Finance & Banking Law
Instrument
Act
Concepts
Commencement Provisions
Repeal & Amendment
Reporting & Disclosure Obligations
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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.