Determination to Reduce Appropriations Upon Request (No. 29 of 2008-2009)

Overview

The Determination to Reduce Appropriations Upon Request (No. 29 of 2008-2009) was enacted in 2009 to address specific funding requirements identified by various government departments and agencies. This legislative instrument was issued by the authority of the Minister for Finance and Deregulation and was made under the legislative authority of subsection 10(2) of the annual Appropriation Act (No. 1) 2008-2009. The policy objective of this instrument was to align departmental appropriations with actual needs, thereby facilitating efficient and effective use of government resources. The reductions were made following requests from relevant ministers to address issues such as excess funding for the Australian Federal Police’s deployment in Afghanistan, lower than anticipated prosecution levels for serious cartel conduct, reduced service delivery costs for Centrelink, and savings identified during mid-year economic and fiscal outlook updates.

Scope and Application

The Determination to Reduce Appropriations Upon Request (No. 29 of 2008-2009) applies specifically to appropriations for certain Commonwealth government agencies, namely the Australian Federal Police (AFP), the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR), and Medicare Australia (MA). The instrument serves to reduce the departmental budget items for these agencies as per the requests of their respective responsible Ministers, and is made under the authority of the Appropriation Act (No. 1) 2008-2009. The reductions are a direct response to specific circumstances such as excess funding requirements for the deployment of AFP personnel to Afghanistan, lower than expected prosecution numbers for ODPP, reduced service delivery costs for DEEWR, and funding savings identified during the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) and Additional Estimates updates for MA. The instrument is limited in scope to the specified agencies and budgetary adjustments, and does not extend to other departments or broader fiscal policy changes. The reductions outlined in this instrument are disallowable, meaning they can be subject to disallowance by either house of the Parliament.

Key Provisions

The primary sections of this legislation (F2009L02554) are contained within Schedule 1, which lists the specific reductions to various departmental appropriations as requested by their respective Ministers. According to Schedule 1, Item 1, the Australian Federal Police's (AFP) departmental item is reduced by $7,590,087 (Section 1(1)). Similarly, Schedule 1, Item 2 reduces the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions' (ODPP) departmental item by $572,944 (Section 1(2)). Schedule 1, Item 3 reduces the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations' (DEEWR) departmental item by $40,000,000 (Section 1(3)), and Schedule 1, Item 4 reduces Medicare Australia's (MA) departmental item by $3,210,000 (Section 1(4)). These determinations were made in response to specific requests from the respective Ministers, as outlined in the explanatory statement. The obligations imposed on the parties by this Act are primarily procedural. The Finance Minister is required to make a determination to reduce appropriations only upon receiving a written request from the responsible Minister for the relevant agency, as stipulated by subsection 10(2) of the Appropriation Act (No. 1) 2008-2009. Additionally, the Act mandates consultation with the affected agencies—AFP, ODPP, DEEWR, and MA—as per the Legislative Instruments Act 2003, ensuring transparency and collaboration in the process. These obligations ensure that any reduction in departmental appropriations is both justified and formally requested by the relevant Minister. Any breach of the provisions in this legislation could have significant legal ramifications. As a Legislative Instrument, the determination is disallowable, meaning it can be annulled by either House of Parliament. The Act itself does not specify particular offences or penalties for non-compliance, but the general legal consequences of disallowance could include the nullification of the determination and the potential need for re-evaluation of the appropriations. This underscores the importance of adhering to the legislative process outlined in the Appropriation Act (No. 1) 2008-2009.