{"id":"F2020L01237","name":"Advance to the Finance Minister Determination (No. 3 of 2020-2021)","slug":"advance-to-the-finance-minister-determination-no-3-of-2020-2021","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":130473,"registerId":"commonwealth-F2020L01237-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"Advance to the Finance Minister Determin","sectionType":"section","heading":"Advance to the Finance Minister Determination (No. 3 of 2020‑2021)","content":"###### Advance to the Finance Minister Determination (No. 3 of 2020‑2021)\n\nI, Mathias Hubert Paul Cormann, Minister for Finance, being satisfied of the matters set out in subsection 10(1) of Supply Act (No. 1) 2020‑2021 (the Act), make the following determination under subsection 10(2) of the Act:\n\nThat the Act have effect as if Schedule 1 of the Act were amended so that the items described in Column 1 of the Table, for the Entity listed in Column 2 of the Table, were increased by the amounts listed in Column 3 of the Table.\n\nTable\n\n|      | Column 1                     | Column 2             | Column 3     |\n| ---- | ---------------------------- | -------------------- | ------------ |\n| Item | Appropriation Item           | Entity               | Amount       |\n| 1    | Administered item, Outcome 5 | Department of Health | $808,754,000 |\n\nDated: 28 September 2020\n\nMATHIAS HUBERT PAUL CORMANN\n\nMinister for Finance","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"Column 3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Column 3","content":"###### Column 3","sortOrder":1}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This determination performs exactly the function intended by the Supply Act framework — providing urgent supplementary appropriations. The scope remains tightly constrained to the specific administrative mechanism of advancing funds to a single entity for a specific purpose."},"complexity_factors":["Very short document (under 300 words)","Only 1 defined term referenced (the Act)","Single operational mechanism (table-based amendment)","No nested conditions or exceptions","Straightforward administrative instrument with clear purpose","Minimal cross-referencing (only refers to parent Act sections 10(1) and 10(2))"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this is:**\nThis is a formal decision (called a \"determination\") made by the Finance Minister, Mathias Cormann, in September 2020. It authorises extra government spending that wasn't originally budgeted for.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Adds $808.75 million** to the Department of Health's budget\n- Specifically, this money goes to \"Administered item, Outcome 5\" — which means it's for programs the Department runs on behalf of the government (administered funding), tied to a particular policy goal (Outcome 5, typically related to health services or COVID-19 response given the timing)\n\n**Why it exists:**\nUnder the **Supply Act (No. 1) 2020-2021**, the Finance Minister has special powers to approve urgent additional spending when Parliament isn't sitting or when unforeseen circumstances arise. This is one of those \"Advances to the Finance Minister\" — essentially a top-up to keep government services running.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- **Directly:** The Department of Health, which gets more money to spend\n- **Indirectly:** Australians receiving health services funded through this program (likely COVID-19 related given the date and amount)\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis shows how the government can move large sums of money quickly without waiting for full parliamentary approval. The $808 million is significant — it represents emergency fiscal flexibility built into Australia's budget system."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"Yes. The determination changes the scope of the original Supply Act (No. 1) 2020–2021 insofar as it makes the Act have effect as if Schedule 1 were amended to increase the administered appropriation item under Outcome 5 for the Department of Health by $808,754,000. The instrument does not alter other items in Schedule 1 or specify program-level reallocation; it solely increases the named appropriation line."},"complexity_factors":["Single-line change to an appropriation schedule (one appropriation item increased by a fixed amount).","Technical reliance on a satisfaction gateway (subsection 10(1)) and exercise of ministerial power under subsection 10(2).","Lack of program-level detail or conditionality in the instrument increases ambiguity about downstream effects despite procedural simplicity.","Administrative implementation required (updating appropriation records and budget accounts) but no new regulatory framework or compliance regime.","Legal effect framed as an \"as if\" amendment to Schedule 1 rather than a direct statutory amendment, which is a technical drafting device."],"plain_english_summary":"What this instrument does\n\n- The Finance Minister, Mathias Cormann, used powers in the Supply Act (No. 1) 2020–2021 to treat that Act as if Schedule 1 had been amended so that one appropriation line for the Department of Health is larger by $808,754,000. The instrument is dated 28 September 2020 and records the Minister’s satisfaction of the matters in subsection 10(1) of the Act and the making of a determination under subsection 10(2).\n\nWho it affects and who pays\n\n- The named recipient on the face of the instrument is the Department of Health: an administered appropriation item under Outcome 5 is increased by $808,754,000 (Column 3). That increase is recorded against the Commonwealth’s appropriation schedules; the fiscal cost is borne by the Commonwealth budget (i.e. taxpayers overall). The immediate administrative beneficiary is the Department of Health’s specified appropriation item; the ultimate economic beneficiaries depend on how the Department spends the funds (the instrument itself does not specify program-level recipients).\n\nHow it works mechanically\n\n- Legal authority: the Minister acts under subsection 10(2) of the Supply Act (No. 1) 2020–2021 after being satisfied of matters in subsection 10(1). Mechanically the determination makes the Act \"have effect as if Schedule 1 were amended\" to show the increased appropriation line for the Department of Health. No further detail on the intended programs, timing, or conditions attached to the transfer appears in the instrument.\n\nOfficial basis and analytical testing of effects\n\n- Official claim: the Minister states he is satisfied of the statutory prerequisites in subsection 10(1) and therefore makes the subsection 10(2) determination to increase the listed appropriation item.\n\n- Costs and opportunity costs: allocating $808,754,000 to the Department of Health reduces the pool of Commonwealth funds available for alternative uses. The instrument does not identify offsetting savings or additional revenue, so the opportunity cost is an unallocated change in overall budgetary priorities unless tracked elsewhere in public accounts.\n\n- Incentives and concentrated vs diffuse effects: the change concentrates an additional $808.754 million on one administered appropriation item (Department of Health, Outcome 5). The instrument does not say which external parties will receive payments; therefore concentrated benefits are visible only to the extent that funds are routed through that Outcome. Costs are borne across taxpayers generally via the Commonwealth budget.\n\n- Bureaucratic discretion and implementation: the determination reflects a ministerial discretion point created by subsection 10(2) (triggered by satisfaction of subsection 10(1)). Implementation is an administrative record-level change to the Act (treated \"as if\" Schedule 1 were amended). The instrument itself imposes minimal new compliance burden on regulated parties; internal accounting and appropriation records must be updated to reflect the larger amount.\n\n- Effects on private enterprise and markets: the instrument does not specify how the additional appropriation will be spent, so direct effects on competition, prices, productivity, ownership, contract freedom, or the ability of independent businesses to operate cannot be determined from this text alone. If the Department uses the funds to purchase goods or services, that public demand could affect private suppliers in relevant markets, but the instrument contains no program-level detail to assess those effects.\n\n- Implementation risk and transparency: the determination is terse. It changes the appropriation figure but contains no explanatory detail about intended use, timing, or conditionalities. That limits the ability of external stakeholders to assess the economic impact from this instrument alone.\n\nKey documentary facts (text citations)\n\n- Authority relied on: subsection 10(1) and subsection 10(2) of the Supply Act (No. 1) 2020–2021 (as cited in the instrument).\n- Amendment effect: Schedule 1 is to be treated \"as if\" amended to increase the item identified in Column 1 (Administered item, Outcome 5) for the Entity in Column 2 (Department of Health) by the Column 3 amount ($808,754,000).\n- Date and decision-maker: 28 September 2020; Minister for Finance, Mathias Hubert Paul Cormann.\n\nBottom line\n\n- The instrument is a technical ministerial determination that increases a single appropriation line for the Department of Health by $808,754,000 under the legal mechanism in the Supply Act. It records the executive decision and its legal basis but does not provide program-level detail that would allow assessment of downstream economic or market effects from this instrument alone."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/advance-to-the-finance-minister-determination-no-3-of-2020-2021","history":"/api/acts/advance-to-the-finance-minister-determination-no-3-of-2020-2021/history","analysis":"/api/acts/advance-to-the-finance-minister-determination-no-3-of-2020-2021/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/advance-to-the-finance-minister-determination-no-3-of-2020-2021/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/advance-to-the-finance-minister-determination-no-3-of-2020-2021/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/advance-to-the-finance-minister-determination-no-3-of-2020-2021/documents"}}