Division 4.2Appropriations
4.6Money to be paid out of Consolidated Fund or Special
Deposits Account only if authorised
(1)
Money must not be paid out of the Consolidated
Fund except under the authority of an Act.
Note—
See also Part 5 of the Constitution Act 1902, which requires
certain kinds of government money to form one Consolidated
Fund.
(2)
Money must not be paid out of an SDA account
except for the purposes of the account and under the authority that may be
applicable to the constitution of the account.
(3)
To avoid doubt—
(a)
money is not paid out of the Consolidated Fund
merely because—
(i)
the money is deposited in a banking account of
the State or a GSF agency if the deposited money continues to be held by, for
or on behalf of the State, or
(ii)
the money is used to purchase securities if the
securities continue to be held by, for or on behalf of the State (regardless
of whether the value of those securities increases or decreases after their
purchase), and
(b)
money is not paid out of an SDA account merely
because—
(i)
the money is deposited in a banking account of
the State or a GSF agency if the deposited money continues to be held for use
for the purposes of that account, or
(ii)
the money is used to purchase securities if the
securities continue to be held for use for the purposes of that account
(regardless of whether the value of those securities increases or decreases
after their purchase).
(4)
In this section—
securities has the same
meaning as in section 39 of the Constitution Act
1902.
4.7Deemed appropriations of certain money received by GSF
agencies
(1)
The lead Minister for a GSF agency is taken to
have been given an appropriation out of the Consolidated Fund under the
authority of this section, at the time the agency receives or recovers any
deemed appropriation money, for an amount equivalent to the money that is
received or recovered by the agency.
(2)
An appropriation under this section is taken to
have been given—
(a)
if the receiving GSF agency is a special
office—for the services of the receiving GSF agency,
or
(b)
otherwise—for the services of the lead
Department for the GSF agency.
(3)
Deemed appropriation
money means—
(a)
government money that a GSF agency receives or
recovers, including from the Commonwealth or another entity, of a kind
prescribed by the regulations, that—
(i)
forms part of the Consolidated Fund,
and
(ii)
is not appropriated under the authority of an
Act, or
(b)
government money that a GSF agency receives or
recovers, from another GSF agency, of a kind prescribed by the regulations,
that—
(i)
forms part of the Consolidated Fund,
and
(ii)
is appropriated under the authority of an Act to
the lead Minister for the other GSF agency for—
(A)
if the other GSF agency is a special
office—the services of the other GSF agency, or
(B)
otherwise—the services of the lead
Department for the other GSF agency.
(4)
Without limiting subsections (3)(a) and (b) and
(6)(a), the regulations may—
(a)
prescribe deemed appropriation money to include
government money that was received or recovered before the commencement of
this section, and
(b)
specify when (and the purposes for which) an
appropriation is taken to have been given for the purposes of this section in
respect of deemed appropriation money.
(5)
However, the regulations cannot prescribe deemed
appropriation money to include—
(a)
any money from taxes or fines that a GSF agency
receives or recovers for the benefit of the State generally (as opposed to the
benefit of that particular agency), or
(b)
any money payable as a royalty for the mining,
extraction or capture of a natural resource, or
(c)
any money from a general purpose Commonwealth
grant received by a GSF agency.
(6)
An appropriation under this section
is—
(a)
subject to any terms or conditions that may be
prescribed by the regulations, and
(b)
taken to be for the annual reporting period for
the NSW Government in which it is taken to be
given.
(7)
At the time a receiving GSF agency receives or
recovers deemed appropriation money referred to in subsection (3)(b), the
appropriation to the lead Minister referred to in subsection (3)(b)(ii) is
taken to have been reduced by an equivalent sum to the sum received or
recovered by the receiving agency.
(8)
In this section—
lead Department, for a
GSF agency, means—
(a)
if the GSF agency is a Public Service executive
agency within the meaning of the Government Sector
Employment Act 2013—the Department specified as
being the related Department for the GSF agency under that Act, Schedule 1,
Part 2, or
(b)
if paragraph (a) does not apply and there is only
1 responsible Minister for the GSF agency—the Department responsible to
the responsible Minister for the GSF agency, or
(c)
if paragraph (a) and (b) do not apply and there
is more than 1 responsible Minister for the GSF agency and the same single
Department is responsible to the responsible Ministers—the Department
responsible to the responsible Ministers, or
(d)
if paragraphs (a)–(c) do not
apply—the Department specified for the GSF agency in a written
determination made by the Treasurer and published in the
Gazette.
lead Minister, for a GSF
agency, means—
(a)
if amounts are appropriated, under the relevant
annual Appropriation Act, to a Minister for the services of the GSF
agency—the Minister to whom the amounts are appropriated under the
relevant annual Appropriation Act, or
(b)
otherwise—the Minister to whom amounts are
appropriated, under the relevant annual Appropriation Act, for the services of
the GSF agency’s lead Department.
receiving GSF
agency means a GSF agency that receives or recovers deemed
appropriation money.
relevant annual
Appropriation Act means the annual Appropriation Act under
which appropriations are made for the reporting period for a GSF agency in
which the GSF agency receives deemed appropriation money.
special office means a
GSF agency that is a special office in relation to which an appropriation is
made under the relevant annual Appropriation Act.
s 4.7: Am 2022 No 63,
Sch 1[1]–[5].
4.8Unused appropriations for annual reporting
period
(1)
Every unused appropriation for an annual
reporting period for the NSW Government lapses and ceases to have effect for
any purpose at the end of that period, except as provided by this
section.
(2)
An unused
appropriation for an annual reporting period for the NSW
Government is that part of an appropriation out of the Consolidated Fund
(including under section 4.7) that has not been applied by the end of the
period.
(3)
An unused appropriation under section 4.7 for an
annual reporting period for the NSW Government does not lapse at the end of
the period unless the regulations provide differently.
4.9Appropriations affected by transfer of functions between
Ministers or GSF agencies
(1)
This section applies to an appropriation to a
Minister made under an annual Appropriation Act for an annual reporting period
for the NSW Government for a service, function or program if responsibility
for the service, function or program is, during that period,
transferred—
(a)
from one Minister to another Minister,
or
(b)
from one GSF agency to another GSF
agency.
(1A)
The appropriation does not lapse merely because
the responsibility for the service, function or program is transferred from
one Minister to another Minister, or from one GSF agency to another GSF
agency, during that period.
(2)
The appropriation may be applied by a Minister,
in accordance with any determination that may be made by the Treasurer in the
same annual reporting period for the NSW Government, for or towards the
transferred service, function or program.
(3)
A determination may extend to the application of
the appropriation before the determination is made and operates to validate
that application.
(4)
The Treasurer must cause details of any
appropriation to which a determination relates to be included in the Budget
Papers for the next annual reporting year for the NSW
Government.
s 4.9: Am 2022 No 63,
Sch 1[6]–[8].
4.9ADeemed appropriations affected by transfer of functions
between GSF agencies
(1)
This section applies to a deemed appropriation
taken to have been given to the lead Minister for a GSF agency if
responsibility for a service, function or program is transferred—
(a)
from the Minister to another Minister,
or
(b)
from the GSF agency to another GSF
agency.
(2)
The deemed appropriation may be applied by a
Minister, in accordance with any determination that may be made by the
Treasurer, for or towards the transferred service, function or
program.
(3)
A determination may extend to the application of
the deemed appropriation before the determination is made and operates to
validate that application.
(4)
The Treasurer must cause details of any deemed
appropriation to which a determination relates to be included in the Budget
Papers for the next annual reporting period for the NSW Government after the
annual reporting year for the NSW Government in which the determination was
made.
(5)
In this section—
deemed
appropriation means an appropriation taken to have been
given to a lead Minister under section 4.7.
lead Minister, for a
GSF agency, has the same meaning as in section 4.7.
s 4.9A: Ins 2022 No
63, Sch 1[9].
4.10Payments authorised on lapse of
appropriation
(1)
This section applies if an annual Appropriation
Act for an annual reporting period for the NSW Government is not enacted
before the period commences.
(2)
The Treasurer may, subject to this section,
authorise the payment of sums out of the Consolidated Fund to meet the
requirements of the annual reporting period.
(3)
The Treasurer’s authorisation under this
section ends on the earliest of the following occurring—
(a)
the first 3 months of the annual reporting period
ending,
(b)
the enactment of an annual Appropriation Act for
the annual reporting period.
(4)
Payments that are authorised to be made under
this section must not—
(a)
exceed, in total, an amount equivalent to one
quarter of the amount appropriated under the annual Appropriation Act for the
previous annual reporting period (adjusted for changes in consumer prices as
provided by the regulations), and
(b)
if estimates of expenditure for the current
annual reporting period have been presented to Parliament and the rate of
expenditure in those estimates is lower than the rate of expenditure
authorised in the annual Appropriation Act for the previous reporting
period—exceed those lower rates.
4.11Variations of annual appropriations for Commonwealth
grants
(1)
This section applies if the Commonwealth does any
of the following in an annual reporting period for the NSW
Government—
(a)
provides for the making of a specific purpose
payment not included in the Budget Papers of the State for that
period,
(b)
provides for an increase in the amount of a
specific purpose payment in excess of the amount included in the Budget Papers
of the State for that period,
(c)
does not provide the whole of the amount of a
specific purpose payment as included in the Budget Papers of the State for
that period.
(2)
If the Treasurer is satisfied that a matter
referred to in subsection (1) has occurred during an annual reporting period
for the NSW Government, the Treasurer may issue a certificate that certifies
that the matter has occurred and the amount involved.
(3)
To avoid doubt, the Treasurer may issue a
certificate under this section even if it is in respect of an annual reporting
period for the NSW Government that has ended unless the annual Appropriation
Act for the next annual reporting period has already given an appropriation
for it.
(3A)
If the Treasurer issues a certificate under this
section for an annual reporting period (the certified
period)—
(a)
for a new specific purpose payment that has been
certified in a certificate issued during the certified period—an
appropriation for the purpose of the payment is taken to have been made under
the authority of this section for the certified period,
and
(b)
for a new specific purpose payment that has been
certified in a certificate issued after the certified period—an
appropriation for the purpose of the payment is taken to have been made under
the authority of this section for the annual reporting period for the NSW
Government during which the certificate was issued, and
(c)
for a decreased or increased specific purpose
payment that has been certified (whether in a certificate issued during or
after the certified period)—the appropriation for the purpose of the
payment is taken to have been decreased or increased accordingly under the
authority of this section for the certified period.
(4)
The Treasurer must cause details of any
certificates issued under this section to be included in the Budget Papers for
the next annual reporting year for the NSW Government.
s 4.11: Am 2020 No 6,
Sch 1.1[1].
4.12Details of payments made from State contingencies
appropriation to Treasurer
(1)
This section applies if a sum is appropriated to
the Treasurer by an annual Appropriation Act for State contingencies (the
) for a particular annual
reporting period for the NSW Government.
(2)
The Treasurer must cause details of the payments
of sums from the Treasurer’s State contingencies appropriation to be
included in the Budget Papers for the next annual reporting year for the NSW
Government.
4.13Payments out of Consolidated Fund for exigencies of
Government
(1)
This section applies if the annual Appropriation
Act for an annual reporting period for the NSW Government has already been
enacted.
(2)
The Treasurer may, with the approval of the
Governor, determine that additional money is to be paid out of the
Consolidated Fund during the annual reporting period for the NSW Government in
anticipation of appropriation by Parliament if it is required to meet any
exigencies of Government during the current annual reporting period for the
NSW Government.
(3)
Any money determined under subsection (2) for an
exigency must be no more than is necessary in the public interest to fund
expenditure to meet the exigency.
(4)
The Treasurer must cause details of the payments
of money paid under this section to be included in the Budget Papers for the
next annual reporting year for the NSW Government.
4.14Payment of certain unclaimed money into Consolidated
Fund
(1)
Unless the regulations or Treasurer’s
directions provide differently, applicable related money must be paid to the
Treasurer to the credit of the Consolidated Fund if the account in which the
money is held has not been operated on for at least 3
months.
(2)
An account for the purposes of subsection (1) may
include—
(a)
money whose owner is not identifiable,
and
(b)
money owned jointly or severally by 2 or more
entities.
(3)
The Treasurer may repay to an entity any money
paid to the Treasurer under this section if—
(a)
the Treasurer is satisfied that the entity is the
owner of the money, and
(b)
the claim is made in accordance with any
requirements of the Treasurer’s directions concerning the making of
claims (including in respect of a period within which claims are to be
made).
(4)
The Treasurer is taken to have been given an
appropriation out of the Consolidated Fund under the authority of this section
for an amount equivalent to an amount that the Treasurer decides to repay
under subsection (3).
(5)
Section 4 (Operation on account) of the Unclaimed Money Act 1995 applies for the
purpose of this section in the same way as it applies for the purposes of that
Act.
(6)
In this section—
account includes a record of
money held on account of another entity.
applicable related
money means money that a GSF agency (or a government officer
of a GSF agency) holds on account for an entity other than another GSF agency,
but does not include money that the GSF agency holds on account if it
is—
(a)
unclaimed money to which the Unclaimed Money Act 1995 applies,
or
(b)
money in respect of which provision is made by or
under the constituent Act for the GSF agency for the regulation, payment or
appropriation of unclaimed money.
owner of money means the
person who is entitled to the money (or the person who would be so entitled
except for the operation of the Limitation Act
1969), and includes the person’s executors,
administrators and assigns and the lawful attorney or agent in the State of
the person, executor, administrator or assign.