Housing Assistance Amendment Act 1987

No. 146 of 1987

An Act to amend the Housing Assistance Act 1984

[Assented to 26 December 1987]

BE IT ENACTED by the Queen, and the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Australia, as follows:

Short title etc.

1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Housing Assistance Amendment Act 1987.

(2) The Housing Assistance Act 19841 is in this Act referred to as the Principal Act.

Commencement

2. This Act shall come into operation on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.

Appropriation

3. Section 8 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting after subsection (1) the following subsections:

“(1a) The Consolidated Revenue Fund is appropriated for the purposes of the making of grants for the purposes referred to in section 6 amounting in the aggregate to $700,000,000 during each of the years commencing on 1 July 1988 and 1 July 1989.

“(1b) Subject to section 11, during each of the years commencing on 1 July 1988 and 1 July 1989:

(a) $11,000,000 of the amount appropriated by subsection (1a) is for the purposes of the making of grants for expenditure on local government and community housing; and

(b) $14,000,000 of the amount appropriated by subsection (1a) is for the purposes of the making of grants for expenditure on crisis accommodation.”.

Re-allocation or retention of specific housing grants

4. Section 11 of the Principal Act is amended:

(a) by inserting after subsection (1) the following subsections:

“(1a) Where:

(a) the Minister has, under subsection 6 (1), authorised the making of a grant or grants to a State for the purpose of particular specific housing assistance referred to in paragraph 6 (1) (a); and

(b) the Minister is satisfied, in respect of the grant or any of the grants, that the State has contravened, or has acted in a manner that is inconsistent with, either or both of the following:

(i) a provision of an agreement entered into between the Commonwealth and the State pursuant to this Act, being a provision relating to the grant;

(ii) a guideline made under the agreement and agreed between the Minister and the State Minister, being a guideline relating to the grant;

the Minister:

(c) may revoke the authorisation or any of the authorisations;

(d) may vary the authorisation or any of the authorisations by reducing the amount authorised;

(e) may:

(i) revoke the authorisation or any of the authorisations; and

(ii) declare the amount authorised before the authorisation was revoked to be an amount available for reallocation; or

(f) may:

(i) vary the authorisation or any of the authorisations by reducing the amount authorised; and

(ii) declare the amount by which the amount authorised has been reduced to be an amount available for reallocation.

“(1b) Where the Minister:

(a) revokes or reduces an authorisation in relation to a State; and

(b) declares an amount to be an amount available for reallocation;

the Minister may authorise grants for the purpose referred to in paragraph 6 (1) (a), of such amounts as the Minister determines to be appropriate, to such of the States other than that State as the Minister determines to be appropriate, being grants that do not in the aggregate exceed that amount.”; and

(b) by omitting from subsection (2) “subsection (1)” and substituting “this section”.

NOTE

1. No. 138, 1984.

[Minister’s second reading speech made in—

House of Representatives on 21 October 1987

Senate on 4 November 1987]