Public Accounts Committee Amendment Act 1979

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Legislation au C2004A02197 In force Act

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Public Accounts Committee Amendment Act 1979

No. 187 of 1979

An Act to amend the Public Accounts Committee Act 1951.

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

Short title, &c.

1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Public Accounts Committee Amendment Act 1979.

(2) The Public Accounts Committee Act 1951 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 6 of the Principal Act the following section is inserted:

Meetings of Committee

“6a. (1) The Committee may meet at such times and at such places within Australia as the Committee, by resolution, determines or, subject to any resolution of the Committee, as the Chairman determines, but shall not meet at any place outside Australia.

“(2) At any time when the Chairman is absent from Australia or is, for any reason, unable to perform the duties of his office or there is a vacancy in the office of Chairman, the Vice-Chairman may exercise the powers of the Chairman under sub-section (1).

“(3) The Committee may meet and transact business notwithstanding any prorogation of the Parliament.”.

Quorum and voting

4. Section 7 of the Principal Act is amended by omitting from sub-section (1) “a majority of the members constitutes a quorum” and substituting “4 members constitute a quorum”.

Duties of the Committee

5. Section 8 of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by omitting “The duties” and substituting “Subject to sub-section (2), the duties”;


(b) by omitting paragraph (a) and substituting the following paragraphs:

“(a) to examine the accounts of the receipts and expenditure of the Commonwealth including the financial statements transmitted to the Auditor-General under sub-section (4) of section 50 of the Audit Act 1901;

“(aa) to examine the financial affairs of authorities of the Commonwealth to which this Act applies and of intergovernmental bodies to which this Act applies;

“(ab) to examine all reports of the Auditor-General (including reports of the results of efficiency audits) copies of which have been laid before the Houses of the Parliament;”; and

(c) by adding at the end thereof the following sub-sections:

“(2) The duties of the Committee do not extend to—

(a) an examination of the financial affairs of the Northern Territory or of the Administration of an External Territory (including the financial affairs of the Administration of an External Territory contained in any of the accounts and financial statements referred to in paragraph (a) of sub-section (1)); or

(b) an examination of a report of the Auditor-General that relates to, or in so far as it relates to—

(i) the financial affairs of the Northern Territory or of the Administration of an External Territory (including the financial affairs of the Administration of an External Territory contained in any of the accounts and financial statements referred to in paragraph (a) of sub-section (1)); or

(ii) the results of an efficiency audit of operations of the Administration of an External Territory.

“(3) For the purpose of this section, an authority of the Commonwealth to which this Act applies is—

(a) a body corporate or an unincorporated body established for a public purpose by, or in accordance with the provisions of, an enactment, not being an inter-governmental body;

(b) a body established by the Governor-General or by a Minister otherwise than in accordance with an enactment; or

(c) an incorporated company over which the Commonwealth is in a position to exercise control.

“(4) Where the parties to an agreement relating to the establishment of an inter-governmental body consent to the examination, by the Committee, of the financial affairs of that body, the Minister shall notify the fact that they have so consented in the Gazette and the body shall thereupon become an inter-governmental body to which this Act applies.


“(5) Where a party to an agreement relating to the establishment of an inter-governmental body (being an inter-governmental body which, by virtue of sub-section (4), is an inter-governmental body to which this Act applies) withdraws its consent to the examination, by the Committee, of the financial affairs of that body, the Minister shall notify the fact that that party has withdrawn its consent in the Gazette and the body shall thereupon cease to be an inter-governmental body to which this Act applies.

“(6) In this section, unless the contrary intention appears—

‘enactment’ means—

(a) an Act;

(b) an Ordinance of the Australian Capital Territory; or

(c) an instrument (including rules, regulations or by-laws) made under an Act or under such an Ordinance;

‘inter-governmental body’ means a body corporate or an unincorporated body established by, or in accordance with the provisions of, an agreement between the Commonwealth and a State or States or between the Commonwealth and the government of another country or the governments of other countries;

‘State’ includes the Northern Territory.”.

Sectional committees

6. Section 9 of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by omitting from sub-section (1) “Subject to the next succeeding sub-section, the Committee” and substituting “The Committee”; and

(b) by omitting sub-section (2).

 

 

Overview

The Public Accounts Committee Amendment Act 1979 was enacted by the Commonwealth Parliament to amend the Public Accounts Committee Act 1951, addressing the need to modernise and clarify the procedures and duties of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). The Act aims to ensure that the PAC can effectively scrutinise the financial affairs of the Commonwealth and related authorities, enhancing accountability and transparency in government financial management. It introduces provisions to allow the PAC to meet outside scheduled parliamentary sittings, specifies the quorum requirements for meetings, and delineates the PAC’s duties more explicitly, including the examination of financial affairs of Commonwealth authorities and intergovernmental bodies, while excluding certain territories and specific audit reports from its purview. This legislative amendment reflects a policy objective of strengthening the oversight role of the PAC in the financial governance of the Commonwealth.

Scope and Application

The Public Accounts Committee Amendment Act 1979 amends the Public Accounts Committee Act 1951 to modify the duties, meeting procedures, and quorum requirements of the Public Accounts Committee. This Act applies to the Public Accounts Committee and any sectional committees established under the Principal Act. The amendments extend the Committee's jurisdiction to include the examination of the financial affairs of authorities of the Commonwealth and intergovernmental bodies, provided the relevant parties consent to such examination. Notably, the Committee’s duties do not extend to examining the financial affairs of the Northern Territory or the Administration of an External Territory, or reports of the Auditor-General relating to these entities. The Act applies within Australia and does not permit meetings outside the country. The Act also adjusts the quorum requirement for meetings, stipulating that four members constitute a quorum instead of a majority. The Act came into effect on the day of Royal Assent and does not explicitly extend or restrict its application through subordinate instruments.

Key Provisions

The Public Accounts Committee Amendment Act 1979 (Act) makes several amendments to the Public Accounts Committee Act 1951 (Principal Act). Key changes include the ability of the Committee to meet at times and places within Australia as determined by resolution (s 6a(1)), and the amendment of the quorum requirement from a majority of members to four members (s 7). The duties of the Committee are expanded to include examining the financial affairs of certain Commonwealth authorities and intergovernmental bodies, excluding the financial affairs of the Northern Territory or External Territories unless consent is given (s 8). Additionally, the Act allows for the establishment of sectional committees (s 9). The Act imposes specific obligations on the Public Accounts Committee. The Committee is required to meet within Australia and must consist of at least four members to form a quorum. The duties of the Committee are expanded to include examining the financial affairs of specified Commonwealth authorities and intergovernmental bodies, with exclusions for the Northern Territory and External Territories unless consent is provided. The Act also mandates that the Committee must not examine the financial affairs of certain authorities unless consent is given by the parties involved in the establishment of the intergovernmental body. Breaches of the requirements and duties outlined in the Act may result in various consequences. While the Act itself does not explicitly state penalties for non-compliance, failure to adhere to the provisions could potentially lead to legal challenges or other repercussions under the broader legislative framework governing the Public Accounts Committee. The Act focuses on defining the scope and authority of the Committee rather than imposing specific penalties for non-compliance.

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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.