{"id":"C2020A00024","name":"Assistance for Severely Affected Regions (Special Appropriation) (Coronavirus Economic Response Package) Act 2020","slug":"assistance-for-severely-affected-regions-special-appropriation-coronavirus-economic-response-package","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"24 of 2020","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":436319,"registerId":"C2020A00024-fast-fetch-1775953552722","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-12","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Assistance for Severely Affected Regions (Special Appropriation) (Coronavirus Economic Response Package) Act 2020","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\n![Commonwealth Coat of Arms of Australia](image.001.png)\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nAssistance for Severely Affected Regions (Special Appropriation) (Coronavirus Economic Response Package) Act 2020\n\n \n\nNo. 24, 2020\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nAn Act to appropriate money for community, regional and industry support as part of the Coronavirus Economic Response, and for related purposes\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\n1 Short title\n\n2 Commencement\n\n3 Definitions\n\n4 Appropriation\n\n5 Terms and conditions relating to payments\n\n6 Delegation\n\n7 Rules\n\n8 Time limit for payments under this Act\n\n \n\n![Commonwealth Coat of Arms of Australia](image.001.png)\n\n \n\n \n\nAssistance for Severely Affected Regions (Special Appropriation) (Coronavirus Economic Response Package) Act 2020\n\nNo. 24, 2020\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nAn Act to appropriate money for community, regional and industry support as part of the Coronavirus Economic Response, and for related purposes\n\n[Assented to 24 March 2020]\n\nThe Parliament of Australia enacts:\n\n1  Short title\n\n  This Act is the Assistance for Severely Affected Regions (Special Appropriation) (Coronavirus Economic Response Package) Act 2020.\n\n2  Commencement\n\n (1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.\n\n \n\n- Commencement information\n- Column 1 Column 2 Column 3\n- Provisions Commencement Date/Details\n- 1. The whole of this Act The day after this Act receives the Royal Assent. 25 March 2020\n\n\nNote: This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this Act.\n\n (2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this Act.\n\n3  Definitions\n\n  In this Act:\n\naccountable authority has the meaning given by the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\nCommonwealth entity has the meaning given by the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\nconstitutional corporation means a corporation to which paragraph 51(xx) of the Constitution applies.\n\nnon‑corporate Commonwealth entity has the meaning given by the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\nofficial has the meaning given by the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\nrules means the rules made under section 7.\n\n4  Appropriation\n\n (1) The Consolidated Revenue Fund is appropriated to the extent of $1 billion for the purposes of making payments to support communities, regions and industry sectors affected by the economic impacts of the Coronavirus known as COVID‑19.\n\n (2) Without limiting subsection (1), the purpose in that subsection includes the following:\n\n (a) helping businesses and other organisations identify:\n\n (i) alternative markets, including export markets; and\n\n (ii) alternative suppliers and supply chains;\n\n (b) promoting and supporting Australia’s tourism industry;\n\n (c) designing and delivering support measures for affected communities, regions and industry sectors;\n\n (d) designing and delivering recovery measures for affected communities, regions and industry sectors;\n\n (e) supporting those recovery measures;\n\n (f) reimbursing Commonwealth entities, including the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and the Director of National Parks, for fees and charges that are waived;\n\n (g) making payments to a State or Territory for a purpose set out in another provision of this section.\n\n5  Terms and conditions relating to payments\n\nPayments to States and Territories\n\n (1) If money appropriated by this Act is paid to a State or Territory:\n\n (a) the terms and conditions on which the money is payable must be set out in a written agreement between the Commonwealth and the State or Territory; and\n\n (b) the State or Territory must comply with the terms and conditions.\n\nPayments to constitutional corporations\n\n (2) If money appropriated by this Act is paid to a constitutional corporation:\n\n (a) the terms and conditions on which the money is payable must be set out in a written agreement between the Commonwealth and the corporation; and\n\n (b) the corporation must comply with the terms and conditions.\n\nPayments to other persons\n\n (3) If money appropriated by this Act is paid to a person other than a State, Territory or constitutional corporation:\n\n (a) the terms and conditions on which the money is payable must be set out in a written agreement between the Commonwealth and the person; and\n\n (b) the person must comply with the terms and conditions.\n\nMaking agreements\n\n (4) Agreements for the purposes of this section may be entered into on behalf of the Commonwealth by:\n\n (a) a Minister; or\n\n (b) an accountable authority of a non‑corporate Commonwealth entity.\n\n6  Delegation\n\nDelegation by a Minister\n\n (1) A Minister may, by writing, delegate the Minister’s power to make an agreement for the purposes of section 5 to an official of any non‑corporate Commonwealth entity who:\n\n (a) is an SES employee, or an acting SES employee; or\n\n (b) holds, or is acting in, a position that is equivalent to, or higher than, a position occupied by an SES employee.\n\nNote: The expressions SES employee and acting SES employee are defined in section 2B of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.\n\n (2) In exercising powers under a delegation, the delegate must comply with any directions of the Minister.\n\nDelegation by an accountable authority\n\n (3) An accountable authority of a non‑corporate Commonwealth entity may, by writing, delegate the authority’s power to make an agreement for the purposes of section 5 to an official of any non‑corporate Commonwealth entity who:\n\n (a) is an SES employee, or an acting SES employee; or\n\n (b) holds, or is acting in, a position that is equivalent to, or higher than, a position occupied by an SES employee.\n\n (4) In exercising powers under a delegation, the delegate must comply with any directions of the accountable authority.\n\n7  Rules\n\n (1) The Minister may, by legislative instrument, make rules prescribing matters:\n\n (a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed by the rules; or\n\n (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.\n\n (2) The rules may also do the following:\n\n (a) prescribe circumstances in which the Commonwealth may pay money appropriated by this Act;\n\n (b) set amounts to be appropriated for specified purposes under the appropriation in this Act;\n\n (c) provide for another Minister to administer a specified amount appropriated for a specified purpose under the appropriation in this Act.\n\n (3) However, to avoid doubt, the rules may not do the following:\n\n (a) create an offence or civil penalty;\n\n (b) provide powers of:\n\n (i) arrest or detention; or\n\n (ii) entry, search or seizure;\n\n (c) impose a tax;\n\n (d) directly amend the text of this Act.\n\nLegislative authority for spending\n\n (4) To avoid doubt, subsection (2) does not limit the sources of legislative authority for spending money appropriated by this Act.\n\nNote: The Commonwealth might rely on other provisions as authority for spending money appropriated by this Act, including:\n\n(a) the purposes set out in section 4; or\n\n(b) provisions of the Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Regulations 1997.\n\n8  Time limit for payments under this Act\n\n  The Commonwealth must not pay money under the appropriation in this Act after 30 June 2021.\n\n[Minister’s second reading speech made in—\n\nHouse of Representatives on 23 March 2020\n\nSenate on 23 March 2020]\n\n(40/20)\n\n \n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This enacted version sticks to its original, narrow purpose: a time‑limited $1 billion appropriation for COVID‑19 related community, regional and industry support with spending governed by written agreements. The Act does not broaden its scope beyond that appropriation; operational detail is delegated to rules and agreements but the statutory purpose and financial cap remain unchanged (sections 4, 7 and 8)."},"complexity_factors":["Very short Act (8 sections only)","Single, fixed appropriation figure ($1 billion) set out in section 4","Limited number of defined terms (about 5 key definitions referencing the PGPA Act and the Constitution) in section 3","Mandatory written‑agreement structure for all payments creates simple, uniform procedure (section 5)","Delegation rules restrict delegation to SES‑level or equivalent officials (section 6) — adds one layer of conditionality","Ministerial rule‑making power (section 7) permits substantive detail to be set by legislative instrument, increasing operational complexity off‑statute","Prohibitions on what rules may not do (create offences, impose taxes, grant coercive powers) narrow potential complexity (section 7(3))","Hard time limit on payments (section 8) simplifies fiscal horizon"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this law does (mechanically)\n\n- Appropriates $1 billion from the Consolidated Revenue Fund for COVID‑19 economic support (section 4).\n- Specifies broad categories for that spending: helping businesses find alternative markets and suppliers, supporting tourism, designing and delivering support and recovery measures for affected communities, regions and industries, reimbursing certain Commonwealth agencies for waived fees, and making payments to States/Territories (section 4(2)).\n- Requires any payment under the appropriation to be governed by a written agreement setting terms and conditions (section 5). Separate sub‑rules apply depending on whether the recipient is a State/Territory, a constitutional corporation (a company covered by the Commonwealth's corporations power), or another person (section 5(1)–(3)).\n- Allows Ministers and accountable authorities of non‑corporate Commonwealth entities to enter those agreements (section 5(4)).\n- Permits Ministers and some accountable authorities to delegate the power to execute agreements to senior officials (SES level or equivalent) (section 6).\n- Gives the Minister power to make rules by legislative instrument to prescribe details needed to implement the Act, including who may be paid, amounts allocated to specific purposes, and which Minister administers particular amounts — but the rules cannot create offences, impose taxes, or grant coercive powers like arrest or search (section 7).\n- Imposes a hard cut‑off: no payments under this appropriation may be made after 30 June 2021 (section 8).\n\nWho pays, who decides, and who is affected\n\n- Who pays: the Commonwealth (i.e. public money from the Consolidated Revenue Fund) is the funding source (section 4(1)). The ultimate economic cost is carried by taxpayers generally.\n- Who decides: the Minister (and delegated senior officials), and accountable authorities of relevant Commonwealth entities (sections 5–7). The Minister can also make rules to allocate amounts and specify administering Ministers (section 7(2)(b),(c)).\n- Who is affected: States and Territories, constitutional corporations (companies within the Commonwealth corporations power), other persons or organisations (including community groups and industry bodies), and Commonwealth entities that may be reimbursed for waived fees (section 4(2)(f)). Recipients must accept conditions in written agreements (section 5).\n\nWhy it matters (stated purpose and practical effects)\n\n- The Act provides a discrete, time‑limited pool of funds ($1 billion) to enable the Commonwealth to pay for targeted community, regional and industry supports in response to COVID‑19 impacts (section 4). The Act therefore creates legal authority for spending programs and the contractual framework (written agreements) for delivering those dollars (section 5).\n\nAnalytical note: trade‑offs, incentives, costs and implementation issues\n\n- Concentration of benefits vs diffuse costs: benefits are likely to be concentrated among selected regions, industries or organisations that receive payments; costs are borne by the general revenue pool (section 4). The selection process is controlled by the executive (Minister, delegates) under written agreements and rules (sections 5–7).\n- Discretion and administrative burden: the Act vests significant discretion in Ministers and senior officials to set recipients, allocate amounts and impose terms through agreements and rules (sections 5–7). That discretion speeds deployment but increases the importance of clear, transparent selection criteria to limit perceived favoritism or rent‑seeking.\n- Compliance and contract effects: recipients will face contractual terms and conditions (section 5). Those terms can shape behaviour (for example, requiring use of funds for particular activities), potentially affecting market competition depending on which firms or sectors are supported.\n- Market distortions vs adaptive support: targeted payments (e.g. for tourism, supply‑chain adjustment or export development listed in section 4(2)(a)–(b)) can help firms adjust and preserve jobs, but they can also favour incumbents, alter relative prices, or delay necessary market exit unless conditions limit distortive effects.\n- State‑Commonwealth interface: payments to States/Territories require written agreements (section 5(1)), so the Act creates a contractual, conditional funding channel rather than unconditional fiscal support; that can help align activities but requires intergovernmental negotiation and monitoring.\n- Speed versus oversight risk: delegation to SES‑level officials (section 6) and rule‑making by legislative instrument (section 7) facilitate rapid implementation but shift many details away from primary legislation. Stakeholders should expect administrative rules and agreement templates to define most operational criteria.\n- Time limit and fiscal signalling: the prohibition on payments after 30 June 2021 (section 8) caps the program’s duration and total window for expenditure, limiting long‑term fiscal exposure but risking unspent appropriations if implementation is slow.\n\nKey legal limits and guardrails\n\n- Rules cannot create offences, impose taxes, or confer coercive powers (section 7(3)).\n- The Act expressly allows the executive to rely on other legislative authorities for spending if needed (section 7(4) and accompanying note).\n\nWhat to watch in practice\n\n- The content of the Minister’s rules (legislative instrument) and the standard terms of the written agreements — these will determine eligibility, reporting, clawback rights and other behavioural incentives (section 7 and section 5).\n- Which recipients receive assistance (States, specific industries, or particular corporations) and the selection criteria — these choices determine the distributional and competition effects (section 5).\n- Oversight and transparency arrangements attached to agreements (audit, reporting, disclosure) — important for assessing value for money and limiting capture or distortion.\n\nPrimary sections cited: appropriation authority (section 4), conditions on payments (section 5), delegation (section 6), rule‑making limits and powers (section 7), time limit for spending (section 8)."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly scoped to its original purpose. The long title and section 4 clearly establish this as emergency COVID-19 economic response funding. While section 4(2) lists illustrative purposes (alternative markets, tourism support, recovery measures, fee waivers), these are explicitly 'without limiting' examples that fall within the core purpose of supporting communities, regions and industry sectors affected by COVID-19 economic impacts. The $1 billion cap and 30 June 2021 sunset clause prevent scope creep."},"complexity_factors":["Short statute: only 8 operative sections across approximately 4 pages","Minimal defined terms: 6 definitions, all referencing external legislation (Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013) rather than creating new concepts","Simple appropriation structure: single lump sum ($1 billion) with broad purposive flexibility rather than line-item appropriations","Straightforward conditional logic: payments require written agreements (section 5), with three clean categories (States/Territories, constitutional corporations, other persons)","Limited cross-referencing: only references to external Acts are for defined terms and standard machinery provisions (Acts Interpretation Act 1901)","Sunset clause provides clear temporal boundary (section 8: 30 June 2021 deadline)","Rules-making power (section 7) is standard and includes explicit limitations (cannot create offences, taxes, or amend the Act)"],"plain_english_summary":"This law sets aside **$1 billion** from government funds to help communities, regions and industries hit hard by the economic fallout from COVID-19.\n\n**What it does:**\n- Creates a special pot of money (called an \"appropriation\") that the government can spend on:\n  - Helping businesses find new markets and suppliers\n  - Supporting Australia's tourism industry\n  - Designing recovery programs for affected areas\n  - Waiving fees for national parks and marine parks\n  - Giving money to states and territories to pass on to affected communities\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- **Businesses and organisations** struggling due to the pandemic\n- **State and Territory governments** (who can receive funds to distribute locally)\n- **Tourism operators** and regional communities\n- **National parks and marine park users** (through fee waivers)\n\n**How the money flows:**\n- The Minister can make rules about who gets money and how much\n- Any payments to states, businesses, or individuals must be covered by a written agreement\n- Senior public servants can be delegated power to sign these agreements\n- **Critical deadline:** No payments can be made after 30 June 2021\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis was one of the first legislative responses to the pandemic, designed to get money flowing quickly to struggling regions before the end of the 2020-21 financial year. It gives the government flexibility to respond to emerging needs without having to pass new laws for every payment."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/assistance-for-severely-affected-regions-special-appropriation-coronavirus-economic-response-package","history":"/api/acts/assistance-for-severely-affected-regions-special-appropriation-coronavirus-economic-response-package/history","analysis":"/api/acts/assistance-for-severely-affected-regions-special-appropriation-coronavirus-economic-response-package/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/assistance-for-severely-affected-regions-special-appropriation-coronavirus-economic-response-package/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/assistance-for-severely-affected-regions-special-appropriation-coronavirus-economic-response-package/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/assistance-for-severely-affected-regions-special-appropriation-coronavirus-economic-response-package/documents"}}