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Tied Grant
Section 96 of the Constitution of Australia authorises the Australian (Commonwealth) Parliament to grant financial assistance to any state on the terms and conditions that it sees fit, subject to acceptance by the state(s) concerned. The expanded use of the power under section 96 has added to Australia's vertical fiscal imbalance and enabled the Commonwealth to have a significant influence over matters that would otherwise be constitutionally State responsibilities. Text Tied grants Section 51 of the Australian Constitution enumerates the legislative powers of Commonwealth, with the residual powers being those of the States. However, section 96 provides the Commonwealth with the power to grant money to any state. These monetary grants are typically tied to certain terms and conditions (often legislative) that the states must adhere to in order to receive the grant. As these grants are linked to a particular purpose, they are known as 'tied grants'. In practice, section 96 ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Constitution Of Australia
The Constitution of Australia (or Australian Constitution) is a written constitution, constitutional document that is Constitution, supreme law in Australia. It establishes Australia as a Federation of Australia, federation under a constitutional monarchy and outlines the structure and powers of the Australian government's three constituent parts, the Government of Australia, executive, Parliament of Australia, legislature, and Judiciary of Australia, judiciary. The constitution was drafted between 1891 and 1898, through a series of Constitutional Convention (Australia), conventions conducted by representatives of the six self-governing British colonies in Australia. The final draft was then approved in a 1898–1900 Australian constitutional referendums, set of referendums from 1898 to 1900. The British government objected to some elements of the final draft, but a slightly modified form was enacted as section 9 of the ''Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act 1900'', an Ac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Parliament Of Australia
The Parliament of Australia (officially the Federal Parliament, also called the Commonwealth Parliament) is the legislature, legislative branch of the government of Australia. It consists of three elements: the monarch (represented by the Governor-General of Australia, governor-general), the Australian Senate, Senate and the Australian House of Representatives, House of Representatives.Constitution of Australia, Section 1 of the Constitution of Australia, section 1. The combination of two elected chambers, in which the members of the Senate represent the States and territories of Australia, states and territories while the members of the House represent electoral divisions according to population, is modelled on the United States Congress. Through both chambers, however, there is a Fusion of powers, fused executive, drawn from the Westminster system.. The upper house, the Senate, consists of 76 members: twelve for each state, and two each for the territories, Northern Terr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fiscal Imbalance In Australia
The fiscal imbalance in Australia is the disparity between the revenue generation ability of the three levels of governments in Australia relative to their spending obligations; but in Australia the term is commonly used to refer more specifically to the vertical fiscal imbalance, the discrepancy between the federal government's extensive capacity to raise revenue and the responsibility of the States to provide most public services, such as physical infrastructure, health care, education etc., despite having only limited capacity to raise their own revenue. In Australia, vertical fiscal imbalance is addressed by the transfer of funds as grants from the federal government to the states and territories. Vertical fiscal imbalance Vertical fiscal imbalance in Australia is largely the product of the Commonwealth's takeover of income taxes in 1942, during World War II, and rulings of the High Court of Australia that made various state taxes unconstitutional under the Australian Consti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Section 51 Of The Australian Constitution
Section 51 of the Constitution of Australia enumerates the legislative powers granted to Federal Parliament by the Australian States at Federation. The list contains 39 subsections, each referred to as a 'head of power' under which the parliament is empowered to make laws. The section is not an exhaustive list, as the federal parliament is authorized to enact legislation outside of those topics by certain other sections in the Constitution, such as sections 52 and 128. Australian States may still enact legislation upon the topics in section 51; but Federal law prevails to the extent of any conflict of laws. Powers of the Parliament Federation was intended to address problems caused by having the separate colonies on the one continent. Section 51 therefore encompasses a group of powers (known as heads of power) which reflect what powers the Commonwealth was viewed as needing to solve those problems. The most important heads of power in terms of supporting contemporary Common ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fiscal Imbalance
Fiscal imbalance is a mismatch in the revenue powers and expenditure responsibilities of a government. In the literature on fiscal federalism, two types of fiscal imbalances are measured: Vertical Fiscal Imbalance and Horizontal Fiscal Imbalance. When the fiscal imbalance is measured between the two levels of government (Center and States or Provinces) it is called Vertical Fiscal Imbalance. When the fiscal imbalance is measured between the governments at the same level it is called Horizontal Fiscal imbalance. This imbalance is also known as regional disparity. While Horizontal Fiscal Imbalance requires equalization transfers, Vertical Fiscal Imbalance is a structural issue and thus needs to be corrected by reassignment of revenue and expenditure responsibilities between the two senior order of the governments. Horizontal Fiscal Imbalances as Differences in Net Fiscal Benefits A horizontal fiscal imbalance (HFI) emerges when sub-national governments have different abilities to r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Section 51 Of The Australian Constitution
Section 51 of the Constitution of Australia enumerates the legislative powers granted to Federal Parliament by the Australian States at Federation. The list contains 39 subsections, each referred to as a 'head of power' under which the parliament is empowered to make laws. The section is not an exhaustive list, as the federal parliament is authorized to enact legislation outside of those topics by certain other sections in the Constitution, such as sections 52 and 128. Australian States may still enact legislation upon the topics in section 51; but Federal law prevails to the extent of any conflict of laws. Powers of the Parliament Federation was intended to address problems caused by having the separate colonies on the one continent. Section 51 therefore encompasses a group of powers (known as heads of power) which reflect what powers the Commonwealth was viewed as needing to solve those problems. The most important heads of power in terms of supporting contemporary Common ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
High Court Of Australia
The High Court of Australia is Australia's apex court. It exercises Original jurisdiction, original and appellate jurisdiction on matters specified within Constitution of Australia, Australia's Constitution. The High Court was established following passage of the ''Judiciary Act 1903''. It derives its authority from Chapter III of the Australian Constitution, which vests it responsibility for the judiciary, judicial power of the Commonwealth. Important legal instruments pertaining to the High Court include the ''Judiciary Act 1903'' and the ''High Court of Australia Act 1979''.. Its bench is composed of seven justices, including a Chief Justice of Australia, Chief Justice, currently Susan Kiefel. Justices of the High Court are appointed by the Governor-General of Australia, Governor-General on the Advice (constitutional law), advice of the Prime Minister of Australia, Prime Minister and are appointed permanently until their mandatory retirement at age 70, unless they retire ea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Australia V Commonwealth
''South Australia v Commonwealth'' ("the First Uniform Tax case"). is a decision of the High Court of Australia that established the Commonwealth government's ability to impose a scheme of uniform income tax across the country and displace the State. It was a major contributor to Australia's vertical fiscal imbalance in the spending requirements and taxing abilities of the various levels of government, and was thus a watershed moment in the development of federalism in Australia. Facts In 1942, during the Second World War, the Commonwealth government needed extra revenue for the war effort. At the time, income taxes were levied at both the State and federal level. The Commonwealth requested the States to transfer their taxing powers for the duration of the war to allow one uniform national income tax system, with grants given back to the states to compensate for the lost revenue. Doubting that the powers would be returned, the states rejected the request. In response, the Common ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Section 51(vi) Of The Australian Constitution
Section 51(vi) of the Australian Constitution, commonly called the defence power, is a subsection of Section 51 of the Australian Constitution that gives the Commonwealth Parliament the right to legislate with respect to the defence of Australia and the control of the defence forces. The High Court has adopted a different approach to the interpretation of the defence power, which emphasises the purpose of the legislation, primarily the defence of Australia, rather than the subject matter. Section 51(vi) and the Australian States The defence power is set out in section 51 of the Constitution as follows:51 The Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws for the peace, order, and good government of the Commonwealth with respect to: :(vi) the naval and military defence of the Commonwealth and of the several States, and the control of the forces to execute and maintain the laws of the Commonwealth; :(xxxii) the control of railways with respect to transport f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Victoria V Commonwealth (1957)
''Victoria v Commonwealth'',. ("the Second Uniform Tax case") is a High Court of Australia case that affirmed the Commonwealth government's ability to impose a scheme of uniform income tax, adding to Australia's vertical fiscal imbalance in the spending requirements and taxing abilities of the various levels of government. Overview The Uniform Tax system was implemented in 1942 and relied upon 4 pieces of legislation, all held to be constitutionally valid in the First Uniform Tax case.. Some of the laws were justified under the defence power, but the scheme was not dismantled after the end of wartime conflict. It was held that the ''Income Tax Act 1942'', could not be challenged because it was within the Commonwealth's taxation power. The ''Income Tax (Wartime Arrangements) Act 1942'', was not an issue because it had already been repealed. In the first Uniform Tax case the High Court decided that the Commonwealth Parliament had the power to tax incomes. The Commonwealth had ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Commonwealth Grants Commission
The Commonwealth Grants Commission is an Australian independent statutory body that advises the Australian Government on financial assistance to the states and territories of Australia under section 96 of the Australian Constitution. The Commission was established in July 1933 by the Lyons Government during the Great Depression to provide impartial advice on the distribution of federal government grants to the states. The Commission operates under the ''Commonwealth Grants Commission Act 1973'', and is responsible for measuring the relative fiscal capacity of each state and territory. The Commission recommends how the revenues raised from the goods and services tax (GST) should be distributed to each state and territory to achieve horizontal fiscal equalisation (HFE), a central feature of the Australian federation. References to Commission The Commission responds to a reference from the Australian Treasurer, which are generally requests for calculating appropriate ratios of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
