Treasury Regulations (Amendment)

Overview

The Statutory Rules of 1915, specifically No. 25, pertains to an amendment of the Treasury Regulations under the Audit Act 1901-1912. This legislative instrument was enacted by the Governor-General in Council, following advice from the Federal Executive Council. The regulation aims to amend the existing Treasury Regulations to exclude certain sales of government property from the requirement of being reported to the Auditor-General. The specific exclusions are sales made by the Government Printer in Melbourne to a State Government and sales of printed matter made by the Government Printer to any individual. The policy objective is to streamline the reporting process by excluding routine transactions that do not necessitate detailed oversight by the Auditor-General. This amendment was issued under the authority of the Governor-General, R. M. Ferguson, and countersigned by the Treasurer, Andrew Fisher, ensuring the legitimacy and swift implementation of the changes. The regulation was published by Albert J. Mullett, the Government Printer for the State of Victoria, and is available at a price of three pence. The intent behind the regulation is to address a specific gap in the reporting requirements under the Audit Act by refining the schedule of transactions that need to be communicated to the Auditor-General.

Scope and Application

The statutory rules amend the Treasury Regulations under the Audit Act 1901-1912, impacting the requirements for reporting government property sales to the Auditor-General. Specifically, the amendment clarifies that a schedule of all government property authorised for sale must be forwarded to the Auditor-General in Form 41, with two notable exceptions. Sales of government property made by the Government Printer in Melbourne to another state government, as well as sales of printed matter made by the Government Printer in Melbourne to any individual, are excluded from this reporting requirement. This amendment is effective immediately upon its publication, ensuring compliance with the Audit Act while allowing certain transactions to proceed without additional administrative burden. The regulation applies to the Commonwealth of Australia and is intended to streamline reporting processes while maintaining oversight over government property transactions.

Key Provisions

The main operative sections of this legislative instrument pertain to the amendment of Treasury Regulation No. 143 under the Audit Act 1901-1912. This amendment specifically addresses the requirement to forward a schedule of all government property authorised to be sold to the Auditor-General in Form 41, but with an exception. Section 1 of the instrument introduces the amendment by adding a specific exclusion to the aforementioned requirement (1). The exclusion pertains to sales made by the Government Printer in Melbourne to the government of a state and sales of printed matter made by the Government Printer in Melbourne to any person (1). The Act imposes obligations on the government entities involved in the sale of government property. The primary obligation is for these entities to forward a schedule of all government property authorised for sale to the Auditor-General in Form 41. However, the Act exempts the Government Printer in Melbourne from this requirement when the sales are made to the government of a state or to any person for printed matter (1). This distinction is critical for ensuring that the Auditor-General is informed about the sale of government property, except in the specified circumstances. In terms of consequences for breach, the legislative instrument does not explicitly detail offences, penalties, or consequences for non-compliance with the new provision. Given that this is a regulatory amendment, it is likely that non-compliance could result in administrative penalties or other enforcement actions as per the general provisions of the Audit Act 1901-1912 or other relevant legislation. However, the specific penalties or consequences are not outlined in this particular statutory rule. The focus of this amendment appears to be more on procedural clarity rather than punitive measures.