{"id":"F2018L01262","name":"Federal Financial Relations (National Partnership Payments) Determination No. 136 (July 2018)","slug":"federal-financial-relations-national-partnership-payments-determination-no-136-july-2018","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":97941,"registerId":"commonwealth-F2018L01262-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-02","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"Federal Financial Relations (National Pa","sectionType":"part","heading":"Federal Financial Relations (National Partnership Payments) Determination No. 136 (July 2018)","content":"# Federal Financial Relations (National Partnership Payments) Determination No. 136 (July 2018)","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"Name of determination","sectionType":"division","heading":"Name of determination","content":"### Name of determination\n\n This determination is the Federal Financial Relations (National Partnership Payments) Determination No. 136 (July 2018).","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"Commencement","sectionType":"division","heading":"Commencement","content":"### Commencement\n\n 2. This determination commences on the day on which it is made.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"Determination","sectionType":"division","heading":"Determination","content":"### Determination\n\n 3. The amounts specified in the following table are to be paid to the States specified in that table for the purpose of making a grant of financial assistance to:\n (a) support the delivery by the States of specified outputs or projects specified in Schedule 1;\n (b) facilitate the reforms by the States specified in Schedule 1; or\n (c) reward the States for the nationally significant reforms specified in \n Schedule 1.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"Table 1: National Partnership Payments f","sectionType":"division","heading":"Table 1: National Partnership Payments for payment on 9 July 2018","content":"### Table 1: National Partnership Payments for payment on 9 July 2018\n\n```html\n

State

Amount of National Partnership Payments

New South Wales

$39,024,500.00

Victoria

$36,379,000.00

Queensland

$29,762,333.33

Western Australia

$24,217,217.33

South Australia

$9,939,500.00

Tasmania

$4,678,333.33

Australian Capital Territory

$2,939,500.00

Northern Territory

$101,953,063.55

Total

$248,893,447.54

\n```\n\nSchedule 1 to this determination provides further information on these payments.","sortOrder":4},{"sectionNumber":"SChedule 1","sectionType":"part","heading":null,"content":"# SChedule 1\n\n## Amounts of National Partnership Payments for payment on 9 July 2018 ($)\n\n| | | NSW | VIC | QLD | WA | SA | TAS | ACT | NT | Total |\n| -------------------------------------------------------- | --- | ------------- | ------------- | ------------- | ------------- | ------------ | ------------ | ------------ | -------------- | -------------- |\n| Education | | | | | | | | | | |\n| NT remote Aboriginal investment - children and schooling | x | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 34,764,646.88 | 34,764,646.88 |\n| Total Education National Partnership payments | | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 34,764,646.88 | 34,764,646.88 |\n| | | | | | | | | | | |\n| Community Services | | | | | | | | | | |\n| NT Remote Aboriginal Investment - Community Safety | x | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 63,007,000.00 | 63,007,000.00 |\n| Specialist disability services | x | - | 6,383,500.00 | 3,780,833.33 | 2,271,833.33 | - | 1,022,833.33 | - | 524,416.67 | 13,983,416.66 |\n| Transition to NDIS in WA | x | - | - | - | 6,735,884.00 | - | - | - | - | 6,735,884.00 |\n| Total Community Services National Partnership payments | | - | 6,383,500.00 | 3,780,833.33 | 9,007,717.33 | - | 1,022,833.33 | - | 63,531,416.67 | 83,726,300.66 |\n| | | | | | | | | | | |\n| Other | | | | | | | | | | |\n| Legal Assistance Services | x | 39,024,500.00 | 29,995,500.00 | 25,981,500.00 | 15,209,500.00 | 9,939,500.00 | 3,655,500.00 | 2,939,500.00 | 3,657,000.00 | 130,402,500.00 |\n| Total Other National Partnership payments | | 39,024,500.00 | 29,995,500.00 | 25,981,500.00 | 15,209,500.00 | 9,939,500.00 | 3,655,500.00 | 2,939,500.00 | 3,657,000.00 | 130,402,500.00 |\n| | | | | | | | | | | |\n| | | | | | | | | | | |\n| Total National Partnership Payments | | 39,024,500.00 | 36,379,000.00 | 29,762,333.33 | 24,217,217.33 | 9,939,500.00 | 4,678,333.33 | 2,939,500.00 | 101,953,063.55 | 248,893,447.54 |","sortOrder":5},{"sectionNumber":"Amounts of National Partnership Payments","sectionType":"part","heading":"Amounts of National Partnership Payments for payment on 9 July 2018 ($)","content":"## Amounts of National Partnership Payments for payment on 9 July 2018 ($)\n\n| | | NSW | VIC | QLD | WA | SA | TAS | ACT | NT | Total |\n| -------------------------------------------------------- | --- | ------------- | ------------- | ------------- | ------------- | ------------ | ------------ | ------------ | -------------- | -------------- |\n| Education | | | | | | | | | | |\n| NT remote Aboriginal investment - children and schooling | x | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 34,764,646.88 | 34,764,646.88 |\n| Total Education National Partnership payments | | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 34,764,646.88 | 34,764,646.88 |\n| | | | | | | | | | | |\n| Community Services | | | | | | | | | | |\n| NT Remote Aboriginal Investment - Community Safety | x | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 63,007,000.00 | 63,007,000.00 |\n| Specialist disability services | x | - | 6,383,500.00 | 3,780,833.33 | 2,271,833.33 | - | 1,022,833.33 | - | 524,416.67 | 13,983,416.66 |\n| Transition to NDIS in WA | x | - | - | - | 6,735,884.00 | - | - | - | - | 6,735,884.00 |\n| Total Community Services National Partnership payments | | - | 6,383,500.00 | 3,780,833.33 | 9,007,717.33 | - | 1,022,833.33 | - | 63,531,416.67 | 83,726,300.66 |\n| | | | | | | | | | | |\n| Other | | | | | | | | | | |\n| Legal Assistance Services | x | 39,024,500.00 | 29,995,500.00 | 25,981,500.00 | 15,209,500.00 | 9,939,500.00 | 3,655,500.00 | 2,939,500.00 | 3,657,000.00 | 130,402,500.00 |\n| Total Other National Partnership payments | | 39,024,500.00 | 29,995,500.00 | 25,981,500.00 | 15,209,500.00 | 9,939,500.00 | 3,655,500.00 | 2,939,500.00 | 3,657,000.00 | 130,402,500.00 |\n| | | | | | | | | | | |\n| | | | | | | | | | | |\n| Total National Partnership Payments | | 39,024,500.00 | 36,379,000.00 | 29,762,333.33 | 24,217,217.33 | 9,939,500.00 | 4,678,333.33 | 2,939,500.00 | 101,953,063.55 | 248,893,447.54 |","sortOrder":6}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This determination performs exactly the function intended: authorising specific National Partnership Payments to states. It has not expanded beyond its original purpose of making financial assistance grants for specified outputs, projects, and reforms."},"complexity_factors":["Very short instrument (3 operative clauses plus schedule)","No defined terms section","No cross-references to other legislation beyond generic reference to 'Schedule 1'","Simple tabular data presentation with straightforward arithmetic","No conditional logic, exceptions, or nested provisions","Purpose clauses use standard template language ('support', 'facilitate', 'reward')","Duplicate schedule table appears twice in the source text (formatting error, not legal complexity)"],"plain_english_summary":"This Commonwealth funding determination authorises nearly $249 million in federal National Partnership Payments to states and territories, with the Northern Territory receiving the largest share.\n\nFunds support Aboriginal education in the NT, community services (community safety, specialist disability services, WA’s transition to the NDIS), and legal assistance nationwide—keeping key social services running and targeting remote and Indigenous communities."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This Determination is a routine payment instrument that allocates specified National Partnership funds to States and Territories for named purposes. It does not expand the legislative scope beyond the established purpose of National Partnership payments (making grants to States for specified projects, outputs or reforms). Any change in scope would arise from the content of the underlying National Partnership agreements or separate legislation, not from this payment scheduling Determination itself."},"complexity_factors":["Short instrument: 3 substantive clauses (name, commencement, determination) plus Table 1 and Schedule 1","Single payment date and fixed dollar amounts (Table 1) reduces conditional complexity","Schedule 1 breaks amounts down by program and jurisdiction (multiple line items: Education, Community Services, Other), increasing bookkeeping complexity but not legal conditionality","No nested exceptions or complex cross‑referencing inside the Determination itself","No detailed compliance, reporting or milestone provisions included in this Determination — complexity shifts to associated National Partnership Agreements","Some fractional dollar amounts and allocations across many jurisdictions (some arithmetic/detail work for accountants/administrators)"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this instrument does (mechanically)\n\n- This Determination authorises the Australian Government to pay a set of one‑off National Partnership payments to each State and Territory on 9 July 2018. (See clause 3; Table 1; Schedule 1.)\n- It specifies who gets how much: a money table lists the dollar amount for each State/Territory and a total of $248,893,447.54. (See Table 1.)\n- Schedule 1 breaks the total down by program area (Education, Community Services, Other) and by State/Territory, showing which projects or outputs the money is intended to support (for example, legal assistance services, Northern Territory remote Aboriginal investments, specialist disability services). \n- The Determination commences on the day it is made. (See clause 2.)\n\nWho is affected\n\n- The Commonwealth (as payer) — its budget releases the specified amounts.\n- States and Territories (as recipients) — they receive the grant money and are expected to use it for the purposes listed in Schedule 1. (See clause 3 and Schedule 1.)\n- Final service recipients and providers (for example, legal assistance organisations, disability service providers, and programs in the NT) — they are the practical beneficiaries of the funded activities to the extent States pass the money on or use it to deliver services.\n\nWhy it matters\n\n- It moves nearly $249 million from the Commonwealth to the States/Territories for specified programs and reforms on a specified date. That affects state cashflows, the delivery and continuity of funded services, and the budgets of organisations that rely on these payments.\n\nStated purpose and how it operates in practice\n\n- The Determination itself states the payments are to: support States delivering specified outputs or projects, facilitate State reforms, or reward States for nationally significant reforms. (Clause 3.) These are purpose‑statements in the instrument; the detailed legal conditions that bind use, reporting and performance are usually set out in the corresponding National Partnership agreements and program schedules, not in this short Determination.\n\nTrade‑offs, costs and incentives (practical effects)\n\n- Who pays: the Commonwealth budget funds the payments (the instrument releases appropriation authority for these amounts). (Table 1.)\n- Who benefits: benefits are concentrated — large amounts flow to specific programs and to the Northern Territory in particular (NT totals are large because of several NT‑specific investments shown in Schedule 1). Legal Assistance Services across jurisdictions also receive a substantial, concentrated share. (Schedule 1.)\n- Opportunity cost: money allocated here is not available for other Commonwealth spending priorities. That is an implicit trade‑off in budgeting.\n- Behavioural effects on States: receiving tied payments creates an incentive for States to deliver the outputs or reforms described in Schedule 1; those incentives depend on any payment conditions set out in the underlying National Partnership agreements (not fully reproduced in this Determination). The Determination itself is a payment instruction rather than a full compliance framework. (Clause 3; Schedule 1.)\n- Effects on service markets: by funding particular services (eg, legal assistance, disability services), the Determination sustains demand for those service providers and reduces immediate financial risk for organisations that rely on public grants. It does not itself create regulatory changes to market entry or procurement rules — those would be handled by the State or in separate Commonwealth agreements.\n\nImplementation risks and administrative burdens\n\n- Implementation and monitoring burdens mostly fall to States (to administer and report on the programs) and to the Commonwealth agencies that oversee the National Partnership. The Determination lists amounts and purposes but does not set out detailed monitoring, reporting or penalty mechanisms in the text provided here — those are normally set out in the associated National Partnership Agreement (NPA) or program guidelines. Where NPAs contain complex performance milestones, compliance and reporting can create measurable administrative costs for States and service providers. (See clause 3 and Schedule 1 for program list; consult the NPA for conditions.)\n\nBureaucratic discretion and rules\n\n- This instrument is primarily an allocation of funds; it does not itself create broad discretionary powers beyond directing the payments. Any substantive discretion about whether funds are paid against milestones or how they are measured will be in the associated agreements and in agency practice.\n\nConcentrated benefits and visibility\n\n- The benefits are concentrated in a few program lines: the Northern Territory remote Aboriginal investment items and Legal Assistance Services together account for the majority of the total listed in Schedule 1. That concentration makes the distribution politically and administratively visible.\n\nWhat this Determination does not do (based on the text provided)\n\n- It does not set out detailed legal obligations, performance milestones, reporting requirements, or sanctions for misuse of funds — those are usually set out in the underlying National Partnership agreements or program documentation. The Determination is a payment instrument that specifies amounts, recipients (States/Territories) and high‑level purposes. (Clause 3; Schedule 1.)\n\nKey references in the instrument\n\n- Commencement: clause 2. \n- Purpose and authorization of payments: clause 3. \n- Amounts and distribution: Table 1 and Schedule 1 (payment date 9 July 2018; total $248,893,447.54)."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/federal-financial-relations-national-partnership-payments-determination-no-136-july-2018","history":"/api/acts/federal-financial-relations-national-partnership-payments-determination-no-136-july-2018/history","analysis":"/api/acts/federal-financial-relations-national-partnership-payments-determination-no-136-july-2018/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/federal-financial-relations-national-partnership-payments-determination-no-136-july-2018/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/federal-financial-relations-national-partnership-payments-determination-no-136-july-2018/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/federal-financial-relations-national-partnership-payments-determination-no-136-july-2018/documents"}}