{"id":"tas:act-1952-046","name":"Commonwealth Powers (Air Transport) Act 1952","slug":"commonwealth-powers-air-transport-act-1952","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"tas","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"46 of 1952","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":110515,"registerId":"tas-act-1952-046-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Short title and commencement","content":"### 1 Short title and commencement\n\n> > (1)  This Act may be cited as the [Commonwealth Powers (Air Transport) Act 1952](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/act-1952-046) .\n> \n> > (2)  This Act shall commence on a date to be fixed by proclamation.","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Reference of matter to the Parliament of the Commonwealth","content":"### 2 Reference of matter to the Parliament of the Commonwealth\n\n> The matter of air transport is referred to the Parliament of the Commonwealth for a period commencing on the date on which this Act commences and ending on the date fixed, pursuant to [section 3](#GS3@EN) , as the date on which this Act shall cease to be in force, but no longer.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Operation of Act","content":"### 3 Operation of Act\n\n> The Governor may at any time, by proclamation, fix a date on which this Act shall cease to be in force, and this Act shall cease to be in force accordingly on the date so fixed.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Construction of Act","content":"### 4 Construction of Act\n\n> This Act shall be read and construed –\n> \n> > > (a) as intended to refer to the Parliament of the Commonwealth the matter of air transport for a period terminable as provided by this Act to the intent that if it is beyond the legislative power of the State to make the reference of that matter so terminable that matter shall be deemed to be not referred to the Parliament of the Commonwealth; and\n> > \n> > > (b) so that after this Act, by virtue of a proclamation under [section 3](#GS3@EN) , ceases to be in force, no law made by the Parliament of the Commonwealth with respect to the matter of air transport shall continue to have any force or effect by virtue of this Act or the reference made by this Act.","sortOrder":3}],"analysis":{"summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based on the available text, the Act appears to remain consistent with its original intent — a straightforward referral of Tasmanian legislative power over air transport to the Commonwealth. No scope changes are evident, and the legislation has been in force substantially unchanged since 1952."},"complexity_factors":["Requires understanding of Australia's federal constitutional structure and the concept of referral of powers under section 51(xxxvii) of the Constitution","Short and narrow in scope — the Act itself has limited substantive content, but its legal effect depends on understanding the broader constitutional framework","The practical consequences flow from Commonwealth legislation enacted pursuant to the referral, not from this Act itself, which can make the full picture harder to trace","Limited text provided makes it difficult to assess any conditions or limitations placed on the referral"],"plain_english_summary":"This Tasmanian Act refers the State’s power over air transport to the Commonwealth, so airlines, aviation businesses, passengers and air‑traffic rules in Tasmania fall under federal law rather than state law. It enabled a single national regulatory framework for aviation, making safety, services and interstate air regulation uniform instead of fragmented across states."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act itself sets a limited, time-bound referral of the matter of air transport to the Commonwealth (s2), provides for termination by proclamation (s3), and disapplies continuation of Commonwealth laws after cessation (s4(b)). Nothing in the text shows an expansion or contraction of that core scope beyond the referral and its termination."},"complexity_factors":["Temporal, terminable referral mechanism that creates a time-limited transfer of legislative power (s2)","Executive discretion to end the referral at any time by proclamation (s3), concentrating termination power in the Governor","Direct legal consequence on the continued force of Commonwealth laws when the referral ends (s4(b))","Condition that a reference intended to be terminable must be within State power to refer; otherwise it is treated as not referred (s4(a))","Brevity of the statute masks constitutional interaction between State and Commonwealth legislative competence (s2, s4)"],"plain_english_summary":"This Act refers the \"matter of air transport\" to the Parliament of the Commonwealth from its commencement until a date the Governor fixes by proclamation. The Governor may end the referral at any time by proclamation. When the Act ceases, any Commonwealth laws made under this reference cease to have force by virtue of the reference. In short: it temporarily transfers legislative authority over air transport to the Commonwealth and vests decisive termination power in the Governor."},"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"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act remains tightly focused on its original purpose: referring air transport powers to the Commonwealth on a temporary, terminable basis. The scope has not expanded beyond this single, specific referral mechanism."},"complexity_factors":["Extremely short: only 4 operative sections","No defined terms section","Minimal cross-referencing (only internal references to sections 2 and 3)","Simple conditional logic: single trigger (proclamation under s 3) with clear effect","Straightforward purpose: single-shot referral with termination mechanism","No exceptions or nested conditions"],"plain_english_summary":"This is a **referring act** — a law passed by an Australian State (likely South Australia based on the 'Governor' reference and the Act's history) that hands over ('refers') power over **air transport** to the Australian federal Parliament.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Gives the Commonwealth control:** Before this Act, air transport was mainly a State responsibility. This Act says 'we, the State, give the federal government permission to make laws about air transport for a limited time.'\n- **It's temporary:** The State can pull the plug at any time. The Governor (State Governor) can issue a proclamation (official announcement) to end this arrangement, and once that happens, any federal air transport laws made under this referral lose their force.\n- **Has a safety clause:** If a court decides the State isn't actually allowed to make this kind of temporary referral, then the whole referral is void — the matter is 'deemed not referred.'\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- **The Commonwealth Parliament** — gains temporary constitutional power to legislate on air transport\n- **State governments** — retain the ability to reclaim this power\n- **Airlines and passengers** — indirectly, by enabling uniform national air transport laws\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis was part of a broader 1950s scheme where States voluntarily referred powers to the Commonwealth to enable national regulation of air transport. It reflects Australia's **cooperative federalism** — where States and the federal government work together, rather than fighting over who has what power. The temporary nature was important constitutionally: the States wanted to keep some control rather than permanently giving away their powers."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/commonwealth-powers-air-transport-act-1952","history":"/api/acts/commonwealth-powers-air-transport-act-1952/history","analysis":"/api/acts/commonwealth-powers-air-transport-act-1952/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/commonwealth-powers-air-transport-act-1952/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/commonwealth-powers-air-transport-act-1952/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/commonwealth-powers-air-transport-act-1952/documents"}}