The proposed 2013 Australian constitutional referendum was an Australian referendum that was planned, and then abandoned, in 2013.

History

The referendum was proposed to change section 96 of the

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 constitutio ...

to allow the Commonwealth of Australia to directly fund local councils.Local govt referendum planned
Business Spectator, 24 June 2013 Similar referendums failed to pass in

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

and

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

. The proposed constitutional alteration was passed by both Houses of Parliament as the ''Constitution Alteration (Local Government) 2013''.''Constitution Alteration (Local Government) 2013'', Explanatory Memorandum
/ref> The "yes" campaign was supported by both the Labor government and the opposition leader Tony Abbott. The federal government allocated $10 million to the "yes" campaign, but just $500,000 to the "no" campaign. The difference in funding led seven senators from the Coalition to vote against the referendum bill in the

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, although it passed by 46 votes to eight. Section 128 of the Constitution requires a proposed constitutional amendment be submitted to the electors in a referendum no less than two months but no later than six months after passage. The referendum was originally planned to be held on the same day as the 2013 federal election, originally set for 14 September 2013. However, on 4 August, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd changed the general election date to 7 September,Prime Minister Kevin Rudd calls September 7 federal election

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, 4-Aug-2013 and Local Government Minister Catherine King announced that the referendum would be held on a later date. The Australian Labor Party was defeated at the 7 September 2013 federal election, and in October 2013 the Abbott Coalition government announced it would not proceed with the referendum.Abbott Government kills off local government referendum
news.com.au, October 31, 2013

References

2013 Local Government Referendum - FAQs
Gilbert + Tobin Centre of Public Law,

University of NSW The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public university, public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight (Australian universities), ...

{{Australian elections 2013 referendums 2013 in Australia

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Cancelled referendums Constitutional referendums Proposals in Australia