2019

The Parliament of the

Commonwealth of Australia

THE SENATE

Presented and read a first time

Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Amendment (Waiver of Debt and Act of Grace Payments) Bill 2019

No.      , 2019

(Senator Gallagher)

A Bill for an Act to amend the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013, and for related purposes

Contents

1............ Short title............................................................................................. 1

2............ Commencement................................................................................... 1

3............ Schedules............................................................................................ 2

Schedule 1—Amendments                                                                                                3

Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013                       3

A Bill for an Act to amend the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013, and for related purposes

The Parliament of Australia enacts:

1  Short title

                   This Act is the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Amendment (Waiver of Debt and Act of Grace Payments) Act 2019.

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Note:          This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally enacted.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  Schedules

                   Legislation that is specified in a Schedule to this Act is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this Act has effect according to its terms.

Schedule 1—Amendments

Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013

1  Subsection 46(1) (note)

After “Note”, insert “1”.

2  At the end of subsection 46(1) (after the note)

Add:

Note 2:       The Department must include information in its annual report relating to authorisations waiving amounts owed to the Commonwealth and authorisations of act of grace payments (see section 65A).

3  After section 65

Insert:

65A  Annual report to include information about waiver of amounts and act of grace payments

                   The annual report prepared by the Department and given to the Finance Minister under section 46 for a reporting period must include:

                     (a)  in relation to authorisations waiving amounts under section 63:

                              (i)  the number of such authorisations during the period; and

                             (ii)  the total amount that was waived as a result of those authorisations; and

                     (b)  in relation to authorisations of payments under section 65:

                              (i)  the number of such authorisations during the period; and

                             (ii)  the total amount that was paid as a result of those authorisations.

4  Application provision

The amendments made by this Schedule apply in relation to any reporting period that begins on or after 1 July 2019.