{"id":"C2004A00745","name":"Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Act 2000","slug":"indigenous-education-targeted-assistance-act-2000","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"147 of 2000","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":6092,"registerId":"commonwealth-C2004A00745-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-03-30","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"Part 1","sectionType":"part","heading":"Preliminary","content":"## Part 1—Preliminary","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Short title","content":"#### 1 Short title\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Act 2000.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement","content":"#### 2 Commencement\n\n  This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Overview of the Act","content":"#### 3 Overview of the Act\n\n  Making of agreements\n  (1) This Act allows the Minister to make an agreement with an education provider or other person or body authorising the making of payments.\n  Agreements with education providers\n  (2) For an agreement with an education provider, the payments may be for recurrent expenditure of the provider in those years, for ABSTUDY approved courses run by the provider in those years or for particular projects.\n  Agreements with other persons or bodies\n  (3) For an agreement with another person or body, the payments may be for particular projects.\n  Payments must be for advancing the objects of this Act\n  (4) The payments under an agreement must be for advancing the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (5) The amount of the payments must be specified in the agreement or worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Recovery of payments\n  (6) If there is a breach of a condition in an agreement, the Minister may require an amount to be repaid to the Commonwealth. If the amount is not repaid, other payments under the agreement may be reduced or the Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Definitions","content":"#### 4 Definitions\n\n  In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:\n\n> ABSTUDY approved course means a course that:\n\n    (a) is provided through a mixture of distance education and either or both of the following:\n    (i) residential education;\n    (ii) face‑to‑face education; and\n    (b) is provided at a higher education provider or a vocational education and training institution; and\n    (c) is approved as a mixed mode away‑from‑base course under the ABSTUDY Scheme.\n\n> ABSTUDY payment means a payment of the kind mentioned in paragraph 10(1)(b) that is made under an agreement made under section 10.\n\n> advancing the objects of this Act includes, but is not limited to, the following:\n\n    (a) publicising this Act, its objects and how it achieves those objects;\n    (b) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of this Act in advancing its objects;\n    (c) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of an agreement made under this Act in advancing the objects of this Act.\n\n> education provider means:\n\n    (a) a State or Territory; or\n    (b) a university or other institution providing post‑secondary education; or\n    (c) a person or body conducting, or associated with, an educational system or educational institution; or\n    (d) a person qualified to carry out research, or give advice, about education.\n\n> Finance Minister means the Minister administering the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\n> funding year means the 2001 calendar year or a later calendar year.\n\n> higher education provider has the same meaning as in section 16‑1 of the Higher Education Support Act 2003.\n\n> Indigenous person means:\n\n    (a) a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia; or\n    (b) a descendant of the Indigenous inhabitants of the Torres Strait Islands.\n\n> non‑ABSTUDY payment means a payment (other than an ABSTUDY payment) that is made under an agreement made under this Act.\n\n> other party, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the party, or each party, making the agreement with the Commonwealth.\n\n> Note: If there is only one such party, references in this Act to each other party, or to one of the other parties, are taken to be references to that party.\n\n> performance indicators, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance indicators specified in the agreement.\n\n> performance targets, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance targets specified in the agreement.\n\n> Territory means the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory.\n\n> vocational education and training institution means an institution in a State or Territory that:\n\n    (a) is a registered training organisation (within the meaning of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011); and\n    (b) provides VET courses (within the meaning of that Act); and\n    (c) is not conducted for profit.","sortOrder":4},{"sectionNumber":"Part 2","sectionType":"part","heading":"Objects of the Act","content":"## Part 2—Objects of the Act","sortOrder":5},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Object of Act—equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people","content":"#### 5 Object of Act—equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to achieve equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) arrangements for the adequate preparation of Indigenous children for primary and later schooling through preschool education; and\n    (b) arrangements enabling Indigenous children to attain, through compulsory primary and secondary education, commensurate skills and standards of skills as those attained by other Australian children; and\n    (c) arrangements enabling Indigenous secondary students to attain the same rate of successful completion of Year 12, or its equivalents, as that attained by other Australian secondary students; and\n    (d) arrangements enabling Indigenous students participating in post‑secondary education to attain the same graduation rates as those attained by other students so participating; and\n    (e) developing programs to support the maintenance and continued use of the languages of Indigenous people; and\n    (f) the provision of community education services to enable Indigenous people to manage the development of their communities; and\n    (g) arrangements enabling Indigenous students to attain better literacy and numeracy skills, and to attain better attendance outcomes, through access to priority Commonwealth education initiatives and strategic projects; and\n    (h) arrangements for education that will enable Indigenous adults with limited or no educational experience to attain proficiency in numeracy, the English language and life skills; and\n    (i) education enabling Indigenous students to appreciate the history, culture and identity of Indigenous people; and\n    (j) education enabling all Australian students to understand and appreciate the traditional and contemporary culture of Indigenous people.","sortOrder":6},{"sectionNumber":"6","sectionType":"section","heading":"Object of Act—equal access to education by Indigenous people","content":"#### 6 Object of Act—equal access to education by Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure that Indigenous people enjoy equality with other Australians in their access to education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) that Indigenous children who are below primary school age enjoy equality with other Australian children of that age in their access to preschool education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children have local access to compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that Indigenous people have equitable access to other secondary and post‑secondary education.","sortOrder":7},{"sectionNumber":"7","sectionType":"section","heading":"Object of Act—equity of participation by Indigenous people in education","content":"#### 7 Object of Act—equity of participation by Indigenous people in education\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure equity of participation by Indigenous people in education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) the participation of Indigenous children in preschool education for a period similar to that during which other Australian children participate in that education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children participate in compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that the rate of participation of Indigenous people in other secondary and post‑secondary education is equivalent to that of other Australians.","sortOrder":8},{"sectionNumber":"8","sectionType":"section","heading":"Object of Act—increasing involvement of Indigenous people in educational decisions","content":"#### 8 Object of Act—increasing involvement of Indigenous people in educational decisions\n\n  It is an object of this Act to increase the involvement of Indigenous people in the making of decisions concerning education by:\n    (a) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous parents and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of preschool, primary and secondary education for Indigenous children; and\n    (b) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous students and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of post‑school education to Indigenous people; and\n    (c) an increase in the number of Indigenous people who are employed or otherwise involved in education:\n    (i) as administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers; and\n    (ii) as special teachers of the culture, history, contemporary society and languages of Indigenous people;\n    or otherwise; and\n    (d) the provision of education and training to develop the skills of Indigenous people that are relevant to their participation in the making of decisions concerning education; and\n    (e) the development of arrangements to secure independent advice from communities of Indigenous people concerning educational decisions to be taken at local, regional, State and Territory, and national levels.","sortOrder":9},{"sectionNumber":"9","sectionType":"section","heading":"Object of Act—to develop culturally appropriate education services for Indigenous people","content":"#### 9 Object of Act—to develop culturally appropriate education services for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to encourage the development of education services that are culturally appropriate for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) the development of curricula that are suited to:\n    (i) the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (ii) the training of professional educators (including administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers) who are involved in the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (b) the development of teaching methods and techniques that are suited to the learning styles of Indigenous students; and\n    (c) the promotion of research to devise innovative methods to deliver education services to Indigenous students; and\n    (d) the promotion of research to devise methods to eliminate barriers to educational attainment encountered by Indigenous students; and\n    (e) the conduct of pilot studies to test the effectiveness of the methods referred to in paragraphs (c) and (d).","sortOrder":10},{"sectionNumber":"Part 3","sectionType":"part","heading":"Agreements","content":"An Act to provide targeted financial assistance to advance the education of Indigenous persons, and for related purposes\n\n## Part 1—Preliminary\n\n#### 1 Short title\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Act 2000.\n\n#### 2 Commencement\n\n  This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.\n\n#### 3 Overview of the Act\n\n  Making of agreements\n  (1) This Act allows the Minister to make an agreement with an education provider or other person or body authorising the making of payments.\n  Agreements with education providers\n  (2) For an agreement with an education provider, the payments may be for recurrent expenditure of the provider in those years, for ABSTUDY approved courses run by the provider in those years or for particular projects.\n  Agreements with other persons or bodies\n  (3) For an agreement with another person or body, the payments may be for particular projects.\n  Payments must be for advancing the objects of this Act\n  (4) The payments under an agreement must be for advancing the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (5) The amount of the payments must be specified in the agreement or worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Recovery of payments\n  (6) If there is a breach of a condition in an agreement, the Minister may require an amount to be repaid to the Commonwealth. If the amount is not repaid, other payments under the agreement may be reduced or the Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt.\n\n#### 4 Definitions\n\n  In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:\n\n> ABSTUDY approved course means a course that:\n\n    (a) is provided through a mixture of distance education and either or both of the following:\n    (i) residential education;\n    (ii) face‑to‑face education; and\n    (b) is provided at a higher education provider or a vocational education and training institution; and\n    (c) is approved as a mixed mode away‑from‑base course under the ABSTUDY Scheme.\n\n> ABSTUDY payment means a payment of the kind mentioned in paragraph 10(1)(b) that is made under an agreement made under section 10.\n\n> advancing the objects of this Act includes, but is not limited to, the following:\n\n    (a) publicising this Act, its objects and how it achieves those objects;\n    (b) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of this Act in advancing its objects;\n    (c) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of an agreement made under this Act in advancing the objects of this Act.\n\n> education provider means:\n\n    (a) a State or Territory; or\n    (b) a university or other institution providing post‑secondary education; or\n    (c) a person or body conducting, or associated with, an educational system or educational institution; or\n    (d) a person qualified to carry out research, or give advice, about education.\n\n> Finance Minister means the Minister administering the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\n> funding year means the 2001 calendar year or a later calendar year.\n\n> higher education provider has the same meaning as in section 16‑1 of the Higher Education Support Act 2003.\n\n> Indigenous person means:\n\n    (a) a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia; or\n    (b) a descendant of the Indigenous inhabitants of the Torres Strait Islands.\n\n> non‑ABSTUDY payment means a payment (other than an ABSTUDY payment) that is made under an agreement made under this Act.\n\n> other party, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the party, or each party, making the agreement with the Commonwealth.\n\n> Note: If there is only one such party, references in this Act to each other party, or to one of the other parties, are taken to be references to that party.\n\n> performance indicators, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance indicators specified in the agreement.\n\n> performance targets, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance targets specified in the agreement.\n\n> Territory means the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory.\n\n> vocational education and training institution means an institution in a State or Territory that:\n\n    (a) is a registered training organisation (within the meaning of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011); and\n    (b) provides VET courses (within the meaning of that Act); and\n    (c) is not conducted for profit.\n\n## Part 2—Objects of the Act\n\n#### 5 Object of Act—equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to achieve equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) arrangements for the adequate preparation of Indigenous children for primary and later schooling through preschool education; and\n    (b) arrangements enabling Indigenous children to attain, through compulsory primary and secondary education, commensurate skills and standards of skills as those attained by other Australian children; and\n    (c) arrangements enabling Indigenous secondary students to attain the same rate of successful completion of Year 12, or its equivalents, as that attained by other Australian secondary students; and\n    (d) arrangements enabling Indigenous students participating in post‑secondary education to attain the same graduation rates as those attained by other students so participating; and\n    (e) developing programs to support the maintenance and continued use of the languages of Indigenous people; and\n    (f) the provision of community education services to enable Indigenous people to manage the development of their communities; and\n    (g) arrangements enabling Indigenous students to attain better literacy and numeracy skills, and to attain better attendance outcomes, through access to priority Commonwealth education initiatives and strategic projects; and\n    (h) arrangements for education that will enable Indigenous adults with limited or no educational experience to attain proficiency in numeracy, the English language and life skills; and\n    (i) education enabling Indigenous students to appreciate the history, culture and identity of Indigenous people; and\n    (j) education enabling all Australian students to understand and appreciate the traditional and contemporary culture of Indigenous people.\n\n#### 6 Object of Act—equal access to education by Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure that Indigenous people enjoy equality with other Australians in their access to education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) that Indigenous children who are below primary school age enjoy equality with other Australian children of that age in their access to preschool education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children have local access to compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that Indigenous people have equitable access to other secondary and post‑secondary education.\n\n#### 7 Object of Act—equity of participation by Indigenous people in education\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure equity of participation by Indigenous people in education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) the participation of Indigenous children in preschool education for a period similar to that during which other Australian children participate in that education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children participate in compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that the rate of participation of Indigenous people in other secondary and post‑secondary education is equivalent to that of other Australians.\n\n#### 8 Object of Act—increasing involvement of Indigenous people in educational decisions\n\n  It is an object of this Act to increase the involvement of Indigenous people in the making of decisions concerning education by:\n    (a) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous parents and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of preschool, primary and secondary education for Indigenous children; and\n    (b) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous students and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of post‑school education to Indigenous people; and\n    (c) an increase in the number of Indigenous people who are employed or otherwise involved in education:\n    (i) as administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers; and\n    (ii) as special teachers of the culture, history, contemporary society and languages of Indigenous people;\n    or otherwise; and\n    (d) the provision of education and training to develop the skills of Indigenous people that are relevant to their participation in the making of decisions concerning education; and\n    (e) the development of arrangements to secure independent advice from communities of Indigenous people concerning educational decisions to be taken at local, regional, State and Territory, and national levels.\n\n#### 9 Object of Act—to develop culturally appropriate education services for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to encourage the development of education services that are culturally appropriate for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) the development of curricula that are suited to:\n    (i) the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (ii) the training of professional educators (including administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers) who are involved in the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (b) the development of teaching methods and techniques that are suited to the learning styles of Indigenous students; and\n    (c) the promotion of research to devise innovative methods to deliver education services to Indigenous students; and\n    (d) the promotion of research to devise methods to eliminate barriers to educational attainment encountered by Indigenous students; and\n    (e) the conduct of pilot studies to test the effectiveness of the methods referred to in paragraphs (c) and (d).\n\n## Part 3—Agreements\n\n### Division 1—Making agreements\n\n#### 10 Agreements with education providers\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with an education provider that does one or more of the following:\n    (a) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for its recurrent expenditure in one or more specified funding years that is for the purpose of advancing the objects of this Act;\n    (b) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for one or more specified ABSTUDY approved courses that are run by the provider in one or more specified funding years;\n    (c) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider, or to another person or body, for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of payments for recurrent expenditure\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for recurrent expenditure for each funding year covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for ABSTUDY approved courses\n  (3) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each ABSTUDY approved course covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for particular projects\n  (4) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Notice in Gazette\n  (5) The Minister must, by notice in the Gazette, publish details of any agreement made under this section.\n\n#### 11 Agreements with any persons or bodies\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with a person or body (including an education provider) authorising the making of one or more payments to the person or body for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n\n### Division 2—Accountability for section 10 agreements\n\n#### Subdivision A—Commitments and general conditions\n\n#### 11A Agreements are subject to commitments\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following commitments by each other party:\n    (a) a commitment to advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) a commitment to achieve the performance targets.\n  (2) The agreement may also specify other commitments.\n\n#### 11B Agreements are subject to conditions\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following conditions:\n    (a) a condition that payments received under the agreement by each other party be spent by the party for the purposes specified in the agreement;\n    (b) the conditions mentioned in Subdivisions B and C;\n    (c) a condition that reports covered by paragraph (b) must be given to the Secretary of the Department at the times, and in the manner, required by the agreement;\n    (d) a condition that each other party give to the Minister any reports:\n    (i) of a kind or kinds required by the Minister; and\n    (ii) at the times, and in the manner, required by the Minister.\n  (2) The Minister must not make the agreement unless the agreement specifies that the payments under the agreement are made on the conditions described in subsection (1).\n  (3) The agreement may also specify other conditions, and that the payments under the agreement are made on those conditions.\n\n#### Subdivision B—Specific conditions about financial accountability\n\n#### 11C Certifying agreement payments duly spent or committed\n\n  There must be a condition that, for each funding year covered by the agreement, each other party give the Secretary of the Department a certificate:\n    (a) made by a person authorised to do so by the agreement; and\n    (b) specifying whether the payments to the party for the funding year have been spent (or committed to be spent) in that year for the purposes specified in the agreement.\n\n#### Subdivision C—Specific conditions about educational accountability\n\n#### 11E Reporting on performance\n\n  (1) There must be a condition that each other party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on performance against the performance indicators and performance targets.\n  (2) This condition may include a requirement to report on performance against the performance indicators in a way that gives data for different geographical regions. This subsection does not limit subsection (1).\n\n#### 11F Minister may intervene if under‑performance\n\n  (1) If the Minister thinks one of the other parties is not achieving the performance targets, the Minister may direct the party to take the action specified in the direction.\n  (2) There must be a condition that the party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on the action taken in response to such a direction.\n\n#### 11G Participation in evaluation and data validation exercises\n\n  There must be a condition that each other party does each of the following:\n    (a) participate in evaluating how effectively projects, and initiatives, covered by the agreement advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) participate in data validation exercises;\n  in the manner, and by the times, specified in the agreement.\n\n### Division 3—Contravening conditions\n\n#### 12 Recovery of payments\n\n  Notice requiring repayment of amount\n  (1) If:\n    (a) a payment is made to an education provider (the recipient), or to another person or body (also the recipient), under an agreement made under this Act; and\n    (b) the agreement sets out one or more conditions on which the payment is made; and\n    (c) one or more of those conditions is breached;\n  the Minister may, by notice sent to the recipient, require the recipient to repay to the Commonwealth the amount (the recoverable amount) stated in the notice.\n  Limit on amount stated in the notice\n  (2) The recoverable amount cannot be more than the payment made to the recipient.\n  Reduction in other payments\n  (3) The Minister may, by determination in writing, reduce any other payment or payments authorised to be made under the agreement by an amount or amounts not more than the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount.\n  Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt\n  (4) The Commonwealth may recover, as a debt in a court of competent jurisdiction:\n    (a) the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount;\n  less:\n    (b) the total of any reductions to a payment or payments under subsection (3).\n\n## Part 4—Appropriations\n\n#### 13 Appropriations for ABSTUDY payments\n\n  ABSTUDY payments are to be made out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, which is appropriated accordingly.\n\n> Note: The appropriation for non‑ABSTUDY payments is included in annual Appropriation Acts.\n\n## Part 5—Other matters\n\n#### 17 Delegation\n\n  The Minister may, by writing, delegate any of the Minister’s powers under this Act to:\n    (a) the Secretary of the Department; or\n    (b) an APS employee in the Department.\n\n#### 18 Regulations\n\n  The Governor‑General may make regulations prescribing matters:\n    (a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or\n    (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.","sortOrder":11},{"sectionNumber":"Division 1","sectionType":"division","heading":"Making agreements","content":"An Act to provide targeted financial assistance to advance the education of Indigenous persons, and for related purposes\n\n## Part 1—Preliminary\n\n#### 1 Short title\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Act 2000.\n\n#### 2 Commencement\n\n  This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.\n\n#### 3 Overview of the Act\n\n  Making of agreements\n  (1) This Act allows the Minister to make an agreement with an education provider or other person or body authorising the making of payments.\n  Agreements with education providers\n  (2) For an agreement with an education provider, the payments may be for recurrent expenditure of the provider in those years, for ABSTUDY approved courses run by the provider in those years or for particular projects.\n  Agreements with other persons or bodies\n  (3) For an agreement with another person or body, the payments may be for particular projects.\n  Payments must be for advancing the objects of this Act\n  (4) The payments under an agreement must be for advancing the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (5) The amount of the payments must be specified in the agreement or worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Recovery of payments\n  (6) If there is a breach of a condition in an agreement, the Minister may require an amount to be repaid to the Commonwealth. If the amount is not repaid, other payments under the agreement may be reduced or the Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt.\n\n#### 4 Definitions\n\n  In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:\n\n> ABSTUDY approved course means a course that:\n\n    (a) is provided through a mixture of distance education and either or both of the following:\n    (i) residential education;\n    (ii) face‑to‑face education; and\n    (b) is provided at a higher education provider or a vocational education and training institution; and\n    (c) is approved as a mixed mode away‑from‑base course under the ABSTUDY Scheme.\n\n> ABSTUDY payment means a payment of the kind mentioned in paragraph 10(1)(b) that is made under an agreement made under section 10.\n\n> advancing the objects of this Act includes, but is not limited to, the following:\n\n    (a) publicising this Act, its objects and how it achieves those objects;\n    (b) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of this Act in advancing its objects;\n    (c) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of an agreement made under this Act in advancing the objects of this Act.\n\n> education provider means:\n\n    (a) a State or Territory; or\n    (b) a university or other institution providing post‑secondary education; or\n    (c) a person or body conducting, or associated with, an educational system or educational institution; or\n    (d) a person qualified to carry out research, or give advice, about education.\n\n> Finance Minister means the Minister administering the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\n> funding year means the 2001 calendar year or a later calendar year.\n\n> higher education provider has the same meaning as in section 16‑1 of the Higher Education Support Act 2003.\n\n> Indigenous person means:\n\n    (a) a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia; or\n    (b) a descendant of the Indigenous inhabitants of the Torres Strait Islands.\n\n> non‑ABSTUDY payment means a payment (other than an ABSTUDY payment) that is made under an agreement made under this Act.\n\n> other party, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the party, or each party, making the agreement with the Commonwealth.\n\n> Note: If there is only one such party, references in this Act to each other party, or to one of the other parties, are taken to be references to that party.\n\n> performance indicators, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance indicators specified in the agreement.\n\n> performance targets, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance targets specified in the agreement.\n\n> Territory means the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory.\n\n> vocational education and training institution means an institution in a State or Territory that:\n\n    (a) is a registered training organisation (within the meaning of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011); and\n    (b) provides VET courses (within the meaning of that Act); and\n    (c) is not conducted for profit.\n\n## Part 2—Objects of the Act\n\n#### 5 Object of Act—equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to achieve equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) arrangements for the adequate preparation of Indigenous children for primary and later schooling through preschool education; and\n    (b) arrangements enabling Indigenous children to attain, through compulsory primary and secondary education, commensurate skills and standards of skills as those attained by other Australian children; and\n    (c) arrangements enabling Indigenous secondary students to attain the same rate of successful completion of Year 12, or its equivalents, as that attained by other Australian secondary students; and\n    (d) arrangements enabling Indigenous students participating in post‑secondary education to attain the same graduation rates as those attained by other students so participating; and\n    (e) developing programs to support the maintenance and continued use of the languages of Indigenous people; and\n    (f) the provision of community education services to enable Indigenous people to manage the development of their communities; and\n    (g) arrangements enabling Indigenous students to attain better literacy and numeracy skills, and to attain better attendance outcomes, through access to priority Commonwealth education initiatives and strategic projects; and\n    (h) arrangements for education that will enable Indigenous adults with limited or no educational experience to attain proficiency in numeracy, the English language and life skills; and\n    (i) education enabling Indigenous students to appreciate the history, culture and identity of Indigenous people; and\n    (j) education enabling all Australian students to understand and appreciate the traditional and contemporary culture of Indigenous people.\n\n#### 6 Object of Act—equal access to education by Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure that Indigenous people enjoy equality with other Australians in their access to education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) that Indigenous children who are below primary school age enjoy equality with other Australian children of that age in their access to preschool education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children have local access to compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that Indigenous people have equitable access to other secondary and post‑secondary education.\n\n#### 7 Object of Act—equity of participation by Indigenous people in education\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure equity of participation by Indigenous people in education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) the participation of Indigenous children in preschool education for a period similar to that during which other Australian children participate in that education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children participate in compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that the rate of participation of Indigenous people in other secondary and post‑secondary education is equivalent to that of other Australians.\n\n#### 8 Object of Act—increasing involvement of Indigenous people in educational decisions\n\n  It is an object of this Act to increase the involvement of Indigenous people in the making of decisions concerning education by:\n    (a) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous parents and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of preschool, primary and secondary education for Indigenous children; and\n    (b) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous students and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of post‑school education to Indigenous people; and\n    (c) an increase in the number of Indigenous people who are employed or otherwise involved in education:\n    (i) as administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers; and\n    (ii) as special teachers of the culture, history, contemporary society and languages of Indigenous people;\n    or otherwise; and\n    (d) the provision of education and training to develop the skills of Indigenous people that are relevant to their participation in the making of decisions concerning education; and\n    (e) the development of arrangements to secure independent advice from communities of Indigenous people concerning educational decisions to be taken at local, regional, State and Territory, and national levels.\n\n#### 9 Object of Act—to develop culturally appropriate education services for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to encourage the development of education services that are culturally appropriate for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) the development of curricula that are suited to:\n    (i) the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (ii) the training of professional educators (including administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers) who are involved in the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (b) the development of teaching methods and techniques that are suited to the learning styles of Indigenous students; and\n    (c) the promotion of research to devise innovative methods to deliver education services to Indigenous students; and\n    (d) the promotion of research to devise methods to eliminate barriers to educational attainment encountered by Indigenous students; and\n    (e) the conduct of pilot studies to test the effectiveness of the methods referred to in paragraphs (c) and (d).\n\n## Part 3—Agreements\n\n### Division 1—Making agreements\n\n#### 10 Agreements with education providers\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with an education provider that does one or more of the following:\n    (a) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for its recurrent expenditure in one or more specified funding years that is for the purpose of advancing the objects of this Act;\n    (b) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for one or more specified ABSTUDY approved courses that are run by the provider in one or more specified funding years;\n    (c) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider, or to another person or body, for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of payments for recurrent expenditure\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for recurrent expenditure for each funding year covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for ABSTUDY approved courses\n  (3) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each ABSTUDY approved course covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for particular projects\n  (4) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Notice in Gazette\n  (5) The Minister must, by notice in the Gazette, publish details of any agreement made under this section.\n\n#### 11 Agreements with any persons or bodies\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with a person or body (including an education provider) authorising the making of one or more payments to the person or body for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n\n### Division 2—Accountability for section 10 agreements\n\n#### Subdivision A—Commitments and general conditions\n\n#### 11A Agreements are subject to commitments\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following commitments by each other party:\n    (a) a commitment to advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) a commitment to achieve the performance targets.\n  (2) The agreement may also specify other commitments.\n\n#### 11B Agreements are subject to conditions\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following conditions:\n    (a) a condition that payments received under the agreement by each other party be spent by the party for the purposes specified in the agreement;\n    (b) the conditions mentioned in Subdivisions B and C;\n    (c) a condition that reports covered by paragraph (b) must be given to the Secretary of the Department at the times, and in the manner, required by the agreement;\n    (d) a condition that each other party give to the Minister any reports:\n    (i) of a kind or kinds required by the Minister; and\n    (ii) at the times, and in the manner, required by the Minister.\n  (2) The Minister must not make the agreement unless the agreement specifies that the payments under the agreement are made on the conditions described in subsection (1).\n  (3) The agreement may also specify other conditions, and that the payments under the agreement are made on those conditions.\n\n#### Subdivision B—Specific conditions about financial accountability\n\n#### 11C Certifying agreement payments duly spent or committed\n\n  There must be a condition that, for each funding year covered by the agreement, each other party give the Secretary of the Department a certificate:\n    (a) made by a person authorised to do so by the agreement; and\n    (b) specifying whether the payments to the party for the funding year have been spent (or committed to be spent) in that year for the purposes specified in the agreement.\n\n#### Subdivision C—Specific conditions about educational accountability\n\n#### 11E Reporting on performance\n\n  (1) There must be a condition that each other party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on performance against the performance indicators and performance targets.\n  (2) This condition may include a requirement to report on performance against the performance indicators in a way that gives data for different geographical regions. This subsection does not limit subsection (1).\n\n#### 11F Minister may intervene if under‑performance\n\n  (1) If the Minister thinks one of the other parties is not achieving the performance targets, the Minister may direct the party to take the action specified in the direction.\n  (2) There must be a condition that the party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on the action taken in response to such a direction.\n\n#### 11G Participation in evaluation and data validation exercises\n\n  There must be a condition that each other party does each of the following:\n    (a) participate in evaluating how effectively projects, and initiatives, covered by the agreement advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) participate in data validation exercises;\n  in the manner, and by the times, specified in the agreement.\n\n### Division 3—Contravening conditions\n\n#### 12 Recovery of payments\n\n  Notice requiring repayment of amount\n  (1) If:\n    (a) a payment is made to an education provider (the recipient), or to another person or body (also the recipient), under an agreement made under this Act; and\n    (b) the agreement sets out one or more conditions on which the payment is made; and\n    (c) one or more of those conditions is breached;\n  the Minister may, by notice sent to the recipient, require the recipient to repay to the Commonwealth the amount (the recoverable amount) stated in the notice.\n  Limit on amount stated in the notice\n  (2) The recoverable amount cannot be more than the payment made to the recipient.\n  Reduction in other payments\n  (3) The Minister may, by determination in writing, reduce any other payment or payments authorised to be made under the agreement by an amount or amounts not more than the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount.\n  Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt\n  (4) The Commonwealth may recover, as a debt in a court of competent jurisdiction:\n    (a) the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount;\n  less:\n    (b) the total of any reductions to a payment or payments under subsection (3).\n\n## Part 4—Appropriations\n\n#### 13 Appropriations for ABSTUDY payments\n\n  ABSTUDY payments are to be made out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, which is appropriated accordingly.\n\n> Note: The appropriation for non‑ABSTUDY payments is included in annual Appropriation Acts.\n\n## Part 5—Other matters\n\n#### 17 Delegation\n\n  The Minister may, by writing, delegate any of the Minister’s powers under this Act to:\n    (a) the Secretary of the Department; or\n    (b) an APS employee in the Department.\n\n#### 18 Regulations\n\n  The Governor‑General may make regulations prescribing matters:\n    (a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or\n    (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.","sortOrder":12},{"sectionNumber":"10","sectionType":"section","heading":"Agreements with education providers","content":"#### 10 Agreements with education providers\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with an education provider that does one or more of the following:\n    (a) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for its recurrent expenditure in one or more specified funding years that is for the purpose of advancing the objects of this Act;\n    (b) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for one or more specified ABSTUDY approved courses that are run by the provider in one or more specified funding years;\n    (c) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider, or to another person or body, for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of payments for recurrent expenditure\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for recurrent expenditure for each funding year covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for ABSTUDY approved courses\n  (3) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each ABSTUDY approved course covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for particular projects\n  (4) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Notice in Gazette\n  (5) The Minister must, by notice in the Gazette, publish details of any agreement made under this section.","sortOrder":13},{"sectionNumber":"11","sectionType":"section","heading":"Agreements with any persons or bodies","content":"#### 11 Agreements with any persons or bodies\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with a person or body (including an education provider) authorising the making of one or more payments to the person or body for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.","sortOrder":14},{"sectionNumber":"Division 2","sectionType":"division","heading":"Accountability for section 10 agreements","content":"An Act to provide targeted financial assistance to advance the education of Indigenous persons, and for related purposes\n\n## Part 1—Preliminary\n\n#### 1 Short title\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Act 2000.\n\n#### 2 Commencement\n\n  This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.\n\n#### 3 Overview of the Act\n\n  Making of agreements\n  (1) This Act allows the Minister to make an agreement with an education provider or other person or body authorising the making of payments.\n  Agreements with education providers\n  (2) For an agreement with an education provider, the payments may be for recurrent expenditure of the provider in those years, for ABSTUDY approved courses run by the provider in those years or for particular projects.\n  Agreements with other persons or bodies\n  (3) For an agreement with another person or body, the payments may be for particular projects.\n  Payments must be for advancing the objects of this Act\n  (4) The payments under an agreement must be for advancing the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (5) The amount of the payments must be specified in the agreement or worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Recovery of payments\n  (6) If there is a breach of a condition in an agreement, the Minister may require an amount to be repaid to the Commonwealth. If the amount is not repaid, other payments under the agreement may be reduced or the Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt.\n\n#### 4 Definitions\n\n  In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:\n\n> ABSTUDY approved course means a course that:\n\n    (a) is provided through a mixture of distance education and either or both of the following:\n    (i) residential education;\n    (ii) face‑to‑face education; and\n    (b) is provided at a higher education provider or a vocational education and training institution; and\n    (c) is approved as a mixed mode away‑from‑base course under the ABSTUDY Scheme.\n\n> ABSTUDY payment means a payment of the kind mentioned in paragraph 10(1)(b) that is made under an agreement made under section 10.\n\n> advancing the objects of this Act includes, but is not limited to, the following:\n\n    (a) publicising this Act, its objects and how it achieves those objects;\n    (b) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of this Act in advancing its objects;\n    (c) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of an agreement made under this Act in advancing the objects of this Act.\n\n> education provider means:\n\n    (a) a State or Territory; or\n    (b) a university or other institution providing post‑secondary education; or\n    (c) a person or body conducting, or associated with, an educational system or educational institution; or\n    (d) a person qualified to carry out research, or give advice, about education.\n\n> Finance Minister means the Minister administering the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\n> funding year means the 2001 calendar year or a later calendar year.\n\n> higher education provider has the same meaning as in section 16‑1 of the Higher Education Support Act 2003.\n\n> Indigenous person means:\n\n    (a) a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia; or\n    (b) a descendant of the Indigenous inhabitants of the Torres Strait Islands.\n\n> non‑ABSTUDY payment means a payment (other than an ABSTUDY payment) that is made under an agreement made under this Act.\n\n> other party, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the party, or each party, making the agreement with the Commonwealth.\n\n> Note: If there is only one such party, references in this Act to each other party, or to one of the other parties, are taken to be references to that party.\n\n> performance indicators, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance indicators specified in the agreement.\n\n> performance targets, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance targets specified in the agreement.\n\n> Territory means the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory.\n\n> vocational education and training institution means an institution in a State or Territory that:\n\n    (a) is a registered training organisation (within the meaning of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011); and\n    (b) provides VET courses (within the meaning of that Act); and\n    (c) is not conducted for profit.\n\n## Part 2—Objects of the Act\n\n#### 5 Object of Act—equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to achieve equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) arrangements for the adequate preparation of Indigenous children for primary and later schooling through preschool education; and\n    (b) arrangements enabling Indigenous children to attain, through compulsory primary and secondary education, commensurate skills and standards of skills as those attained by other Australian children; and\n    (c) arrangements enabling Indigenous secondary students to attain the same rate of successful completion of Year 12, or its equivalents, as that attained by other Australian secondary students; and\n    (d) arrangements enabling Indigenous students participating in post‑secondary education to attain the same graduation rates as those attained by other students so participating; and\n    (e) developing programs to support the maintenance and continued use of the languages of Indigenous people; and\n    (f) the provision of community education services to enable Indigenous people to manage the development of their communities; and\n    (g) arrangements enabling Indigenous students to attain better literacy and numeracy skills, and to attain better attendance outcomes, through access to priority Commonwealth education initiatives and strategic projects; and\n    (h) arrangements for education that will enable Indigenous adults with limited or no educational experience to attain proficiency in numeracy, the English language and life skills; and\n    (i) education enabling Indigenous students to appreciate the history, culture and identity of Indigenous people; and\n    (j) education enabling all Australian students to understand and appreciate the traditional and contemporary culture of Indigenous people.\n\n#### 6 Object of Act—equal access to education by Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure that Indigenous people enjoy equality with other Australians in their access to education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) that Indigenous children who are below primary school age enjoy equality with other Australian children of that age in their access to preschool education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children have local access to compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that Indigenous people have equitable access to other secondary and post‑secondary education.\n\n#### 7 Object of Act—equity of participation by Indigenous people in education\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure equity of participation by Indigenous people in education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) the participation of Indigenous children in preschool education for a period similar to that during which other Australian children participate in that education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children participate in compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that the rate of participation of Indigenous people in other secondary and post‑secondary education is equivalent to that of other Australians.\n\n#### 8 Object of Act—increasing involvement of Indigenous people in educational decisions\n\n  It is an object of this Act to increase the involvement of Indigenous people in the making of decisions concerning education by:\n    (a) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous parents and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of preschool, primary and secondary education for Indigenous children; and\n    (b) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous students and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of post‑school education to Indigenous people; and\n    (c) an increase in the number of Indigenous people who are employed or otherwise involved in education:\n    (i) as administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers; and\n    (ii) as special teachers of the culture, history, contemporary society and languages of Indigenous people;\n    or otherwise; and\n    (d) the provision of education and training to develop the skills of Indigenous people that are relevant to their participation in the making of decisions concerning education; and\n    (e) the development of arrangements to secure independent advice from communities of Indigenous people concerning educational decisions to be taken at local, regional, State and Territory, and national levels.\n\n#### 9 Object of Act—to develop culturally appropriate education services for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to encourage the development of education services that are culturally appropriate for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) the development of curricula that are suited to:\n    (i) the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (ii) the training of professional educators (including administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers) who are involved in the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (b) the development of teaching methods and techniques that are suited to the learning styles of Indigenous students; and\n    (c) the promotion of research to devise innovative methods to deliver education services to Indigenous students; and\n    (d) the promotion of research to devise methods to eliminate barriers to educational attainment encountered by Indigenous students; and\n    (e) the conduct of pilot studies to test the effectiveness of the methods referred to in paragraphs (c) and (d).\n\n## Part 3—Agreements\n\n### Division 1—Making agreements\n\n#### 10 Agreements with education providers\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with an education provider that does one or more of the following:\n    (a) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for its recurrent expenditure in one or more specified funding years that is for the purpose of advancing the objects of this Act;\n    (b) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for one or more specified ABSTUDY approved courses that are run by the provider in one or more specified funding years;\n    (c) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider, or to another person or body, for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of payments for recurrent expenditure\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for recurrent expenditure for each funding year covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for ABSTUDY approved courses\n  (3) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each ABSTUDY approved course covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for particular projects\n  (4) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Notice in Gazette\n  (5) The Minister must, by notice in the Gazette, publish details of any agreement made under this section.\n\n#### 11 Agreements with any persons or bodies\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with a person or body (including an education provider) authorising the making of one or more payments to the person or body for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n\n### Division 2—Accountability for section 10 agreements\n\n#### Subdivision A—Commitments and general conditions\n\n#### 11A Agreements are subject to commitments\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following commitments by each other party:\n    (a) a commitment to advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) a commitment to achieve the performance targets.\n  (2) The agreement may also specify other commitments.\n\n#### 11B Agreements are subject to conditions\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following conditions:\n    (a) a condition that payments received under the agreement by each other party be spent by the party for the purposes specified in the agreement;\n    (b) the conditions mentioned in Subdivisions B and C;\n    (c) a condition that reports covered by paragraph (b) must be given to the Secretary of the Department at the times, and in the manner, required by the agreement;\n    (d) a condition that each other party give to the Minister any reports:\n    (i) of a kind or kinds required by the Minister; and\n    (ii) at the times, and in the manner, required by the Minister.\n  (2) The Minister must not make the agreement unless the agreement specifies that the payments under the agreement are made on the conditions described in subsection (1).\n  (3) The agreement may also specify other conditions, and that the payments under the agreement are made on those conditions.\n\n#### Subdivision B—Specific conditions about financial accountability\n\n#### 11C Certifying agreement payments duly spent or committed\n\n  There must be a condition that, for each funding year covered by the agreement, each other party give the Secretary of the Department a certificate:\n    (a) made by a person authorised to do so by the agreement; and\n    (b) specifying whether the payments to the party for the funding year have been spent (or committed to be spent) in that year for the purposes specified in the agreement.\n\n#### Subdivision C—Specific conditions about educational accountability\n\n#### 11E Reporting on performance\n\n  (1) There must be a condition that each other party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on performance against the performance indicators and performance targets.\n  (2) This condition may include a requirement to report on performance against the performance indicators in a way that gives data for different geographical regions. This subsection does not limit subsection (1).\n\n#### 11F Minister may intervene if under‑performance\n\n  (1) If the Minister thinks one of the other parties is not achieving the performance targets, the Minister may direct the party to take the action specified in the direction.\n  (2) There must be a condition that the party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on the action taken in response to such a direction.\n\n#### 11G Participation in evaluation and data validation exercises\n\n  There must be a condition that each other party does each of the following:\n    (a) participate in evaluating how effectively projects, and initiatives, covered by the agreement advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) participate in data validation exercises;\n  in the manner, and by the times, specified in the agreement.\n\n### Division 3—Contravening conditions\n\n#### 12 Recovery of payments\n\n  Notice requiring repayment of amount\n  (1) If:\n    (a) a payment is made to an education provider (the recipient), or to another person or body (also the recipient), under an agreement made under this Act; and\n    (b) the agreement sets out one or more conditions on which the payment is made; and\n    (c) one or more of those conditions is breached;\n  the Minister may, by notice sent to the recipient, require the recipient to repay to the Commonwealth the amount (the recoverable amount) stated in the notice.\n  Limit on amount stated in the notice\n  (2) The recoverable amount cannot be more than the payment made to the recipient.\n  Reduction in other payments\n  (3) The Minister may, by determination in writing, reduce any other payment or payments authorised to be made under the agreement by an amount or amounts not more than the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount.\n  Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt\n  (4) The Commonwealth may recover, as a debt in a court of competent jurisdiction:\n    (a) the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount;\n  less:\n    (b) the total of any reductions to a payment or payments under subsection (3).\n\n## Part 4—Appropriations\n\n#### 13 Appropriations for ABSTUDY payments\n\n  ABSTUDY payments are to be made out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, which is appropriated accordingly.\n\n> Note: The appropriation for non‑ABSTUDY payments is included in annual Appropriation Acts.\n\n## Part 5—Other matters\n\n#### 17 Delegation\n\n  The Minister may, by writing, delegate any of the Minister’s powers under this Act to:\n    (a) the Secretary of the Department; or\n    (b) an APS employee in the Department.\n\n#### 18 Regulations\n\n  The Governor‑General may make regulations prescribing matters:\n    (a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or\n    (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.","sortOrder":15},{"sectionNumber":"Subdivision A","sectionType":"subdivision","heading":"Commitments and general conditions","content":"An Act to provide targeted financial assistance to advance the education of Indigenous persons, and for related purposes\n\n## Part 1—Preliminary\n\n#### 1 Short title\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Act 2000.\n\n#### 2 Commencement\n\n  This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.\n\n#### 3 Overview of the Act\n\n  Making of agreements\n  (1) This Act allows the Minister to make an agreement with an education provider or other person or body authorising the making of payments.\n  Agreements with education providers\n  (2) For an agreement with an education provider, the payments may be for recurrent expenditure of the provider in those years, for ABSTUDY approved courses run by the provider in those years or for particular projects.\n  Agreements with other persons or bodies\n  (3) For an agreement with another person or body, the payments may be for particular projects.\n  Payments must be for advancing the objects of this Act\n  (4) The payments under an agreement must be for advancing the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (5) The amount of the payments must be specified in the agreement or worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Recovery of payments\n  (6) If there is a breach of a condition in an agreement, the Minister may require an amount to be repaid to the Commonwealth. If the amount is not repaid, other payments under the agreement may be reduced or the Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt.\n\n#### 4 Definitions\n\n  In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:\n\n> ABSTUDY approved course means a course that:\n\n    (a) is provided through a mixture of distance education and either or both of the following:\n    (i) residential education;\n    (ii) face‑to‑face education; and\n    (b) is provided at a higher education provider or a vocational education and training institution; and\n    (c) is approved as a mixed mode away‑from‑base course under the ABSTUDY Scheme.\n\n> ABSTUDY payment means a payment of the kind mentioned in paragraph 10(1)(b) that is made under an agreement made under section 10.\n\n> advancing the objects of this Act includes, but is not limited to, the following:\n\n    (a) publicising this Act, its objects and how it achieves those objects;\n    (b) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of this Act in advancing its objects;\n    (c) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of an agreement made under this Act in advancing the objects of this Act.\n\n> education provider means:\n\n    (a) a State or Territory; or\n    (b) a university or other institution providing post‑secondary education; or\n    (c) a person or body conducting, or associated with, an educational system or educational institution; or\n    (d) a person qualified to carry out research, or give advice, about education.\n\n> Finance Minister means the Minister administering the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\n> funding year means the 2001 calendar year or a later calendar year.\n\n> higher education provider has the same meaning as in section 16‑1 of the Higher Education Support Act 2003.\n\n> Indigenous person means:\n\n    (a) a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia; or\n    (b) a descendant of the Indigenous inhabitants of the Torres Strait Islands.\n\n> non‑ABSTUDY payment means a payment (other than an ABSTUDY payment) that is made under an agreement made under this Act.\n\n> other party, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the party, or each party, making the agreement with the Commonwealth.\n\n> Note: If there is only one such party, references in this Act to each other party, or to one of the other parties, are taken to be references to that party.\n\n> performance indicators, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance indicators specified in the agreement.\n\n> performance targets, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance targets specified in the agreement.\n\n> Territory means the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory.\n\n> vocational education and training institution means an institution in a State or Territory that:\n\n    (a) is a registered training organisation (within the meaning of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011); and\n    (b) provides VET courses (within the meaning of that Act); and\n    (c) is not conducted for profit.\n\n## Part 2—Objects of the Act\n\n#### 5 Object of Act—equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to achieve equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) arrangements for the adequate preparation of Indigenous children for primary and later schooling through preschool education; and\n    (b) arrangements enabling Indigenous children to attain, through compulsory primary and secondary education, commensurate skills and standards of skills as those attained by other Australian children; and\n    (c) arrangements enabling Indigenous secondary students to attain the same rate of successful completion of Year 12, or its equivalents, as that attained by other Australian secondary students; and\n    (d) arrangements enabling Indigenous students participating in post‑secondary education to attain the same graduation rates as those attained by other students so participating; and\n    (e) developing programs to support the maintenance and continued use of the languages of Indigenous people; and\n    (f) the provision of community education services to enable Indigenous people to manage the development of their communities; and\n    (g) arrangements enabling Indigenous students to attain better literacy and numeracy skills, and to attain better attendance outcomes, through access to priority Commonwealth education initiatives and strategic projects; and\n    (h) arrangements for education that will enable Indigenous adults with limited or no educational experience to attain proficiency in numeracy, the English language and life skills; and\n    (i) education enabling Indigenous students to appreciate the history, culture and identity of Indigenous people; and\n    (j) education enabling all Australian students to understand and appreciate the traditional and contemporary culture of Indigenous people.\n\n#### 6 Object of Act—equal access to education by Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure that Indigenous people enjoy equality with other Australians in their access to education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) that Indigenous children who are below primary school age enjoy equality with other Australian children of that age in their access to preschool education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children have local access to compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that Indigenous people have equitable access to other secondary and post‑secondary education.\n\n#### 7 Object of Act—equity of participation by Indigenous people in education\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure equity of participation by Indigenous people in education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) the participation of Indigenous children in preschool education for a period similar to that during which other Australian children participate in that education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children participate in compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that the rate of participation of Indigenous people in other secondary and post‑secondary education is equivalent to that of other Australians.\n\n#### 8 Object of Act—increasing involvement of Indigenous people in educational decisions\n\n  It is an object of this Act to increase the involvement of Indigenous people in the making of decisions concerning education by:\n    (a) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous parents and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of preschool, primary and secondary education for Indigenous children; and\n    (b) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous students and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of post‑school education to Indigenous people; and\n    (c) an increase in the number of Indigenous people who are employed or otherwise involved in education:\n    (i) as administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers; and\n    (ii) as special teachers of the culture, history, contemporary society and languages of Indigenous people;\n    or otherwise; and\n    (d) the provision of education and training to develop the skills of Indigenous people that are relevant to their participation in the making of decisions concerning education; and\n    (e) the development of arrangements to secure independent advice from communities of Indigenous people concerning educational decisions to be taken at local, regional, State and Territory, and national levels.\n\n#### 9 Object of Act—to develop culturally appropriate education services for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to encourage the development of education services that are culturally appropriate for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) the development of curricula that are suited to:\n    (i) the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (ii) the training of professional educators (including administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers) who are involved in the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (b) the development of teaching methods and techniques that are suited to the learning styles of Indigenous students; and\n    (c) the promotion of research to devise innovative methods to deliver education services to Indigenous students; and\n    (d) the promotion of research to devise methods to eliminate barriers to educational attainment encountered by Indigenous students; and\n    (e) the conduct of pilot studies to test the effectiveness of the methods referred to in paragraphs (c) and (d).\n\n## Part 3—Agreements\n\n### Division 1—Making agreements\n\n#### 10 Agreements with education providers\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with an education provider that does one or more of the following:\n    (a) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for its recurrent expenditure in one or more specified funding years that is for the purpose of advancing the objects of this Act;\n    (b) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for one or more specified ABSTUDY approved courses that are run by the provider in one or more specified funding years;\n    (c) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider, or to another person or body, for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of payments for recurrent expenditure\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for recurrent expenditure for each funding year covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for ABSTUDY approved courses\n  (3) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each ABSTUDY approved course covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for particular projects\n  (4) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Notice in Gazette\n  (5) The Minister must, by notice in the Gazette, publish details of any agreement made under this section.\n\n#### 11 Agreements with any persons or bodies\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with a person or body (including an education provider) authorising the making of one or more payments to the person or body for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n\n### Division 2—Accountability for section 10 agreements\n\n#### Subdivision A—Commitments and general conditions\n\n#### 11A Agreements are subject to commitments\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following commitments by each other party:\n    (a) a commitment to advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) a commitment to achieve the performance targets.\n  (2) The agreement may also specify other commitments.\n\n#### 11B Agreements are subject to conditions\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following conditions:\n    (a) a condition that payments received under the agreement by each other party be spent by the party for the purposes specified in the agreement;\n    (b) the conditions mentioned in Subdivisions B and C;\n    (c) a condition that reports covered by paragraph (b) must be given to the Secretary of the Department at the times, and in the manner, required by the agreement;\n    (d) a condition that each other party give to the Minister any reports:\n    (i) of a kind or kinds required by the Minister; and\n    (ii) at the times, and in the manner, required by the Minister.\n  (2) The Minister must not make the agreement unless the agreement specifies that the payments under the agreement are made on the conditions described in subsection (1).\n  (3) The agreement may also specify other conditions, and that the payments under the agreement are made on those conditions.\n\n#### Subdivision B—Specific conditions about financial accountability\n\n#### 11C Certifying agreement payments duly spent or committed\n\n  There must be a condition that, for each funding year covered by the agreement, each other party give the Secretary of the Department a certificate:\n    (a) made by a person authorised to do so by the agreement; and\n    (b) specifying whether the payments to the party for the funding year have been spent (or committed to be spent) in that year for the purposes specified in the agreement.\n\n#### Subdivision C—Specific conditions about educational accountability\n\n#### 11E Reporting on performance\n\n  (1) There must be a condition that each other party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on performance against the performance indicators and performance targets.\n  (2) This condition may include a requirement to report on performance against the performance indicators in a way that gives data for different geographical regions. This subsection does not limit subsection (1).\n\n#### 11F Minister may intervene if under‑performance\n\n  (1) If the Minister thinks one of the other parties is not achieving the performance targets, the Minister may direct the party to take the action specified in the direction.\n  (2) There must be a condition that the party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on the action taken in response to such a direction.\n\n#### 11G Participation in evaluation and data validation exercises\n\n  There must be a condition that each other party does each of the following:\n    (a) participate in evaluating how effectively projects, and initiatives, covered by the agreement advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) participate in data validation exercises;\n  in the manner, and by the times, specified in the agreement.\n\n### Division 3—Contravening conditions\n\n#### 12 Recovery of payments\n\n  Notice requiring repayment of amount\n  (1) If:\n    (a) a payment is made to an education provider (the recipient), or to another person or body (also the recipient), under an agreement made under this Act; and\n    (b) the agreement sets out one or more conditions on which the payment is made; and\n    (c) one or more of those conditions is breached;\n  the Minister may, by notice sent to the recipient, require the recipient to repay to the Commonwealth the amount (the recoverable amount) stated in the notice.\n  Limit on amount stated in the notice\n  (2) The recoverable amount cannot be more than the payment made to the recipient.\n  Reduction in other payments\n  (3) The Minister may, by determination in writing, reduce any other payment or payments authorised to be made under the agreement by an amount or amounts not more than the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount.\n  Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt\n  (4) The Commonwealth may recover, as a debt in a court of competent jurisdiction:\n    (a) the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount;\n  less:\n    (b) the total of any reductions to a payment or payments under subsection (3).\n\n## Part 4—Appropriations\n\n#### 13 Appropriations for ABSTUDY payments\n\n  ABSTUDY payments are to be made out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, which is appropriated accordingly.\n\n> Note: The appropriation for non‑ABSTUDY payments is included in annual Appropriation Acts.\n\n## Part 5—Other matters\n\n#### 17 Delegation\n\n  The Minister may, by writing, delegate any of the Minister’s powers under this Act to:\n    (a) the Secretary of the Department; or\n    (b) an APS employee in the Department.\n\n#### 18 Regulations\n\n  The Governor‑General may make regulations prescribing matters:\n    (a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or\n    (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.","sortOrder":16},{"sectionNumber":"11A","sectionType":"section","heading":"Agreements are subject to commitments","content":"#### 11A Agreements are subject to commitments\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following commitments by each other party:\n    (a) a commitment to advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) a commitment to achieve the performance targets.\n  (2) The agreement may also specify other commitments.","sortOrder":17},{"sectionNumber":"11B","sectionType":"section","heading":"Agreements are subject to conditions","content":"#### 11B Agreements are subject to conditions\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following conditions:\n    (a) a condition that payments received under the agreement by each other party be spent by the party for the purposes specified in the agreement;\n    (b) the conditions mentioned in Subdivisions B and C;\n    (c) a condition that reports covered by paragraph (b) must be given to the Secretary of the Department at the times, and in the manner, required by the agreement;\n    (d) a condition that each other party give to the Minister any reports:\n    (i) of a kind or kinds required by the Minister; and\n    (ii) at the times, and in the manner, required by the Minister.\n  (2) The Minister must not make the agreement unless the agreement specifies that the payments under the agreement are made on the conditions described in subsection (1).\n  (3) The agreement may also specify other conditions, and that the payments under the agreement are made on those conditions.","sortOrder":18},{"sectionNumber":"Subdivision B","sectionType":"subdivision","heading":"Specific conditions about financial accountability","content":"An Act to provide targeted financial assistance to advance the education of Indigenous persons, and for related purposes\n\n## Part 1—Preliminary\n\n#### 1 Short title\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Act 2000.\n\n#### 2 Commencement\n\n  This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.\n\n#### 3 Overview of the Act\n\n  Making of agreements\n  (1) This Act allows the Minister to make an agreement with an education provider or other person or body authorising the making of payments.\n  Agreements with education providers\n  (2) For an agreement with an education provider, the payments may be for recurrent expenditure of the provider in those years, for ABSTUDY approved courses run by the provider in those years or for particular projects.\n  Agreements with other persons or bodies\n  (3) For an agreement with another person or body, the payments may be for particular projects.\n  Payments must be for advancing the objects of this Act\n  (4) The payments under an agreement must be for advancing the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (5) The amount of the payments must be specified in the agreement or worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Recovery of payments\n  (6) If there is a breach of a condition in an agreement, the Minister may require an amount to be repaid to the Commonwealth. If the amount is not repaid, other payments under the agreement may be reduced or the Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt.\n\n#### 4 Definitions\n\n  In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:\n\n> ABSTUDY approved course means a course that:\n\n    (a) is provided through a mixture of distance education and either or both of the following:\n    (i) residential education;\n    (ii) face‑to‑face education; and\n    (b) is provided at a higher education provider or a vocational education and training institution; and\n    (c) is approved as a mixed mode away‑from‑base course under the ABSTUDY Scheme.\n\n> ABSTUDY payment means a payment of the kind mentioned in paragraph 10(1)(b) that is made under an agreement made under section 10.\n\n> advancing the objects of this Act includes, but is not limited to, the following:\n\n    (a) publicising this Act, its objects and how it achieves those objects;\n    (b) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of this Act in advancing its objects;\n    (c) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of an agreement made under this Act in advancing the objects of this Act.\n\n> education provider means:\n\n    (a) a State or Territory; or\n    (b) a university or other institution providing post‑secondary education; or\n    (c) a person or body conducting, or associated with, an educational system or educational institution; or\n    (d) a person qualified to carry out research, or give advice, about education.\n\n> Finance Minister means the Minister administering the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\n> funding year means the 2001 calendar year or a later calendar year.\n\n> higher education provider has the same meaning as in section 16‑1 of the Higher Education Support Act 2003.\n\n> Indigenous person means:\n\n    (a) a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia; or\n    (b) a descendant of the Indigenous inhabitants of the Torres Strait Islands.\n\n> non‑ABSTUDY payment means a payment (other than an ABSTUDY payment) that is made under an agreement made under this Act.\n\n> other party, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the party, or each party, making the agreement with the Commonwealth.\n\n> Note: If there is only one such party, references in this Act to each other party, or to one of the other parties, are taken to be references to that party.\n\n> performance indicators, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance indicators specified in the agreement.\n\n> performance targets, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance targets specified in the agreement.\n\n> Territory means the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory.\n\n> vocational education and training institution means an institution in a State or Territory that:\n\n    (a) is a registered training organisation (within the meaning of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011); and\n    (b) provides VET courses (within the meaning of that Act); and\n    (c) is not conducted for profit.\n\n## Part 2—Objects of the Act\n\n#### 5 Object of Act—equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to achieve equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) arrangements for the adequate preparation of Indigenous children for primary and later schooling through preschool education; and\n    (b) arrangements enabling Indigenous children to attain, through compulsory primary and secondary education, commensurate skills and standards of skills as those attained by other Australian children; and\n    (c) arrangements enabling Indigenous secondary students to attain the same rate of successful completion of Year 12, or its equivalents, as that attained by other Australian secondary students; and\n    (d) arrangements enabling Indigenous students participating in post‑secondary education to attain the same graduation rates as those attained by other students so participating; and\n    (e) developing programs to support the maintenance and continued use of the languages of Indigenous people; and\n    (f) the provision of community education services to enable Indigenous people to manage the development of their communities; and\n    (g) arrangements enabling Indigenous students to attain better literacy and numeracy skills, and to attain better attendance outcomes, through access to priority Commonwealth education initiatives and strategic projects; and\n    (h) arrangements for education that will enable Indigenous adults with limited or no educational experience to attain proficiency in numeracy, the English language and life skills; and\n    (i) education enabling Indigenous students to appreciate the history, culture and identity of Indigenous people; and\n    (j) education enabling all Australian students to understand and appreciate the traditional and contemporary culture of Indigenous people.\n\n#### 6 Object of Act—equal access to education by Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure that Indigenous people enjoy equality with other Australians in their access to education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) that Indigenous children who are below primary school age enjoy equality with other Australian children of that age in their access to preschool education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children have local access to compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that Indigenous people have equitable access to other secondary and post‑secondary education.\n\n#### 7 Object of Act—equity of participation by Indigenous people in education\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure equity of participation by Indigenous people in education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) the participation of Indigenous children in preschool education for a period similar to that during which other Australian children participate in that education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children participate in compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that the rate of participation of Indigenous people in other secondary and post‑secondary education is equivalent to that of other Australians.\n\n#### 8 Object of Act—increasing involvement of Indigenous people in educational decisions\n\n  It is an object of this Act to increase the involvement of Indigenous people in the making of decisions concerning education by:\n    (a) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous parents and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of preschool, primary and secondary education for Indigenous children; and\n    (b) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous students and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of post‑school education to Indigenous people; and\n    (c) an increase in the number of Indigenous people who are employed or otherwise involved in education:\n    (i) as administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers; and\n    (ii) as special teachers of the culture, history, contemporary society and languages of Indigenous people;\n    or otherwise; and\n    (d) the provision of education and training to develop the skills of Indigenous people that are relevant to their participation in the making of decisions concerning education; and\n    (e) the development of arrangements to secure independent advice from communities of Indigenous people concerning educational decisions to be taken at local, regional, State and Territory, and national levels.\n\n#### 9 Object of Act—to develop culturally appropriate education services for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to encourage the development of education services that are culturally appropriate for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) the development of curricula that are suited to:\n    (i) the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (ii) the training of professional educators (including administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers) who are involved in the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (b) the development of teaching methods and techniques that are suited to the learning styles of Indigenous students; and\n    (c) the promotion of research to devise innovative methods to deliver education services to Indigenous students; and\n    (d) the promotion of research to devise methods to eliminate barriers to educational attainment encountered by Indigenous students; and\n    (e) the conduct of pilot studies to test the effectiveness of the methods referred to in paragraphs (c) and (d).\n\n## Part 3—Agreements\n\n### Division 1—Making agreements\n\n#### 10 Agreements with education providers\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with an education provider that does one or more of the following:\n    (a) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for its recurrent expenditure in one or more specified funding years that is for the purpose of advancing the objects of this Act;\n    (b) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for one or more specified ABSTUDY approved courses that are run by the provider in one or more specified funding years;\n    (c) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider, or to another person or body, for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of payments for recurrent expenditure\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for recurrent expenditure for each funding year covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for ABSTUDY approved courses\n  (3) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each ABSTUDY approved course covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for particular projects\n  (4) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Notice in Gazette\n  (5) The Minister must, by notice in the Gazette, publish details of any agreement made under this section.\n\n#### 11 Agreements with any persons or bodies\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with a person or body (including an education provider) authorising the making of one or more payments to the person or body for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n\n### Division 2—Accountability for section 10 agreements\n\n#### Subdivision A—Commitments and general conditions\n\n#### 11A Agreements are subject to commitments\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following commitments by each other party:\n    (a) a commitment to advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) a commitment to achieve the performance targets.\n  (2) The agreement may also specify other commitments.\n\n#### 11B Agreements are subject to conditions\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following conditions:\n    (a) a condition that payments received under the agreement by each other party be spent by the party for the purposes specified in the agreement;\n    (b) the conditions mentioned in Subdivisions B and C;\n    (c) a condition that reports covered by paragraph (b) must be given to the Secretary of the Department at the times, and in the manner, required by the agreement;\n    (d) a condition that each other party give to the Minister any reports:\n    (i) of a kind or kinds required by the Minister; and\n    (ii) at the times, and in the manner, required by the Minister.\n  (2) The Minister must not make the agreement unless the agreement specifies that the payments under the agreement are made on the conditions described in subsection (1).\n  (3) The agreement may also specify other conditions, and that the payments under the agreement are made on those conditions.\n\n#### Subdivision B—Specific conditions about financial accountability\n\n#### 11C Certifying agreement payments duly spent or committed\n\n  There must be a condition that, for each funding year covered by the agreement, each other party give the Secretary of the Department a certificate:\n    (a) made by a person authorised to do so by the agreement; and\n    (b) specifying whether the payments to the party for the funding year have been spent (or committed to be spent) in that year for the purposes specified in the agreement.\n\n#### Subdivision C—Specific conditions about educational accountability\n\n#### 11E Reporting on performance\n\n  (1) There must be a condition that each other party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on performance against the performance indicators and performance targets.\n  (2) This condition may include a requirement to report on performance against the performance indicators in a way that gives data for different geographical regions. This subsection does not limit subsection (1).\n\n#### 11F Minister may intervene if under‑performance\n\n  (1) If the Minister thinks one of the other parties is not achieving the performance targets, the Minister may direct the party to take the action specified in the direction.\n  (2) There must be a condition that the party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on the action taken in response to such a direction.\n\n#### 11G Participation in evaluation and data validation exercises\n\n  There must be a condition that each other party does each of the following:\n    (a) participate in evaluating how effectively projects, and initiatives, covered by the agreement advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) participate in data validation exercises;\n  in the manner, and by the times, specified in the agreement.\n\n### Division 3—Contravening conditions\n\n#### 12 Recovery of payments\n\n  Notice requiring repayment of amount\n  (1) If:\n    (a) a payment is made to an education provider (the recipient), or to another person or body (also the recipient), under an agreement made under this Act; and\n    (b) the agreement sets out one or more conditions on which the payment is made; and\n    (c) one or more of those conditions is breached;\n  the Minister may, by notice sent to the recipient, require the recipient to repay to the Commonwealth the amount (the recoverable amount) stated in the notice.\n  Limit on amount stated in the notice\n  (2) The recoverable amount cannot be more than the payment made to the recipient.\n  Reduction in other payments\n  (3) The Minister may, by determination in writing, reduce any other payment or payments authorised to be made under the agreement by an amount or amounts not more than the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount.\n  Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt\n  (4) The Commonwealth may recover, as a debt in a court of competent jurisdiction:\n    (a) the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount;\n  less:\n    (b) the total of any reductions to a payment or payments under subsection (3).\n\n## Part 4—Appropriations\n\n#### 13 Appropriations for ABSTUDY payments\n\n  ABSTUDY payments are to be made out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, which is appropriated accordingly.\n\n> Note: The appropriation for non‑ABSTUDY payments is included in annual Appropriation Acts.\n\n## Part 5—Other matters\n\n#### 17 Delegation\n\n  The Minister may, by writing, delegate any of the Minister’s powers under this Act to:\n    (a) the Secretary of the Department; or\n    (b) an APS employee in the Department.\n\n#### 18 Regulations\n\n  The Governor‑General may make regulations prescribing matters:\n    (a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or\n    (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.","sortOrder":19},{"sectionNumber":"11C","sectionType":"section","heading":"Certifying agreement payments duly spent or committed","content":"#### 11C Certifying agreement payments duly spent or committed\n\n  There must be a condition that, for each funding year covered by the agreement, each other party give the Secretary of the Department a certificate:\n    (a) made by a person authorised to do so by the agreement; and\n    (b) specifying whether the payments to the party for the funding year have been spent (or committed to be spent) in that year for the purposes specified in the agreement.","sortOrder":20},{"sectionNumber":"Subdivision C","sectionType":"subdivision","heading":"Specific conditions about educational accountability","content":"An Act to provide targeted financial assistance to advance the education of Indigenous persons, and for related purposes\n\n## Part 1—Preliminary\n\n#### 1 Short title\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Act 2000.\n\n#### 2 Commencement\n\n  This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.\n\n#### 3 Overview of the Act\n\n  Making of agreements\n  (1) This Act allows the Minister to make an agreement with an education provider or other person or body authorising the making of payments.\n  Agreements with education providers\n  (2) For an agreement with an education provider, the payments may be for recurrent expenditure of the provider in those years, for ABSTUDY approved courses run by the provider in those years or for particular projects.\n  Agreements with other persons or bodies\n  (3) For an agreement with another person or body, the payments may be for particular projects.\n  Payments must be for advancing the objects of this Act\n  (4) The payments under an agreement must be for advancing the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (5) The amount of the payments must be specified in the agreement or worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Recovery of payments\n  (6) If there is a breach of a condition in an agreement, the Minister may require an amount to be repaid to the Commonwealth. If the amount is not repaid, other payments under the agreement may be reduced or the Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt.\n\n#### 4 Definitions\n\n  In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:\n\n> ABSTUDY approved course means a course that:\n\n    (a) is provided through a mixture of distance education and either or both of the following:\n    (i) residential education;\n    (ii) face‑to‑face education; and\n    (b) is provided at a higher education provider or a vocational education and training institution; and\n    (c) is approved as a mixed mode away‑from‑base course under the ABSTUDY Scheme.\n\n> ABSTUDY payment means a payment of the kind mentioned in paragraph 10(1)(b) that is made under an agreement made under section 10.\n\n> advancing the objects of this Act includes, but is not limited to, the following:\n\n    (a) publicising this Act, its objects and how it achieves those objects;\n    (b) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of this Act in advancing its objects;\n    (c) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of an agreement made under this Act in advancing the objects of this Act.\n\n> education provider means:\n\n    (a) a State or Territory; or\n    (b) a university or other institution providing post‑secondary education; or\n    (c) a person or body conducting, or associated with, an educational system or educational institution; or\n    (d) a person qualified to carry out research, or give advice, about education.\n\n> Finance Minister means the Minister administering the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\n> funding year means the 2001 calendar year or a later calendar year.\n\n> higher education provider has the same meaning as in section 16‑1 of the Higher Education Support Act 2003.\n\n> Indigenous person means:\n\n    (a) a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia; or\n    (b) a descendant of the Indigenous inhabitants of the Torres Strait Islands.\n\n> non‑ABSTUDY payment means a payment (other than an ABSTUDY payment) that is made under an agreement made under this Act.\n\n> other party, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the party, or each party, making the agreement with the Commonwealth.\n\n> Note: If there is only one such party, references in this Act to each other party, or to one of the other parties, are taken to be references to that party.\n\n> performance indicators, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance indicators specified in the agreement.\n\n> performance targets, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance targets specified in the agreement.\n\n> Territory means the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory.\n\n> vocational education and training institution means an institution in a State or Territory that:\n\n    (a) is a registered training organisation (within the meaning of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011); and\n    (b) provides VET courses (within the meaning of that Act); and\n    (c) is not conducted for profit.\n\n## Part 2—Objects of the Act\n\n#### 5 Object of Act—equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to achieve equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) arrangements for the adequate preparation of Indigenous children for primary and later schooling through preschool education; and\n    (b) arrangements enabling Indigenous children to attain, through compulsory primary and secondary education, commensurate skills and standards of skills as those attained by other Australian children; and\n    (c) arrangements enabling Indigenous secondary students to attain the same rate of successful completion of Year 12, or its equivalents, as that attained by other Australian secondary students; and\n    (d) arrangements enabling Indigenous students participating in post‑secondary education to attain the same graduation rates as those attained by other students so participating; and\n    (e) developing programs to support the maintenance and continued use of the languages of Indigenous people; and\n    (f) the provision of community education services to enable Indigenous people to manage the development of their communities; and\n    (g) arrangements enabling Indigenous students to attain better literacy and numeracy skills, and to attain better attendance outcomes, through access to priority Commonwealth education initiatives and strategic projects; and\n    (h) arrangements for education that will enable Indigenous adults with limited or no educational experience to attain proficiency in numeracy, the English language and life skills; and\n    (i) education enabling Indigenous students to appreciate the history, culture and identity of Indigenous people; and\n    (j) education enabling all Australian students to understand and appreciate the traditional and contemporary culture of Indigenous people.\n\n#### 6 Object of Act—equal access to education by Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure that Indigenous people enjoy equality with other Australians in their access to education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) that Indigenous children who are below primary school age enjoy equality with other Australian children of that age in their access to preschool education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children have local access to compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that Indigenous people have equitable access to other secondary and post‑secondary education.\n\n#### 7 Object of Act—equity of participation by Indigenous people in education\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure equity of participation by Indigenous people in education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) the participation of Indigenous children in preschool education for a period similar to that during which other Australian children participate in that education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children participate in compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that the rate of participation of Indigenous people in other secondary and post‑secondary education is equivalent to that of other Australians.\n\n#### 8 Object of Act—increasing involvement of Indigenous people in educational decisions\n\n  It is an object of this Act to increase the involvement of Indigenous people in the making of decisions concerning education by:\n    (a) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous parents and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of preschool, primary and secondary education for Indigenous children; and\n    (b) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous students and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of post‑school education to Indigenous people; and\n    (c) an increase in the number of Indigenous people who are employed or otherwise involved in education:\n    (i) as administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers; and\n    (ii) as special teachers of the culture, history, contemporary society and languages of Indigenous people;\n    or otherwise; and\n    (d) the provision of education and training to develop the skills of Indigenous people that are relevant to their participation in the making of decisions concerning education; and\n    (e) the development of arrangements to secure independent advice from communities of Indigenous people concerning educational decisions to be taken at local, regional, State and Territory, and national levels.\n\n#### 9 Object of Act—to develop culturally appropriate education services for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to encourage the development of education services that are culturally appropriate for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) the development of curricula that are suited to:\n    (i) the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (ii) the training of professional educators (including administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers) who are involved in the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (b) the development of teaching methods and techniques that are suited to the learning styles of Indigenous students; and\n    (c) the promotion of research to devise innovative methods to deliver education services to Indigenous students; and\n    (d) the promotion of research to devise methods to eliminate barriers to educational attainment encountered by Indigenous students; and\n    (e) the conduct of pilot studies to test the effectiveness of the methods referred to in paragraphs (c) and (d).\n\n## Part 3—Agreements\n\n### Division 1—Making agreements\n\n#### 10 Agreements with education providers\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with an education provider that does one or more of the following:\n    (a) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for its recurrent expenditure in one or more specified funding years that is for the purpose of advancing the objects of this Act;\n    (b) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for one or more specified ABSTUDY approved courses that are run by the provider in one or more specified funding years;\n    (c) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider, or to another person or body, for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of payments for recurrent expenditure\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for recurrent expenditure for each funding year covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for ABSTUDY approved courses\n  (3) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each ABSTUDY approved course covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for particular projects\n  (4) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Notice in Gazette\n  (5) The Minister must, by notice in the Gazette, publish details of any agreement made under this section.\n\n#### 11 Agreements with any persons or bodies\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with a person or body (including an education provider) authorising the making of one or more payments to the person or body for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n\n### Division 2—Accountability for section 10 agreements\n\n#### Subdivision A—Commitments and general conditions\n\n#### 11A Agreements are subject to commitments\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following commitments by each other party:\n    (a) a commitment to advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) a commitment to achieve the performance targets.\n  (2) The agreement may also specify other commitments.\n\n#### 11B Agreements are subject to conditions\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following conditions:\n    (a) a condition that payments received under the agreement by each other party be spent by the party for the purposes specified in the agreement;\n    (b) the conditions mentioned in Subdivisions B and C;\n    (c) a condition that reports covered by paragraph (b) must be given to the Secretary of the Department at the times, and in the manner, required by the agreement;\n    (d) a condition that each other party give to the Minister any reports:\n    (i) of a kind or kinds required by the Minister; and\n    (ii) at the times, and in the manner, required by the Minister.\n  (2) The Minister must not make the agreement unless the agreement specifies that the payments under the agreement are made on the conditions described in subsection (1).\n  (3) The agreement may also specify other conditions, and that the payments under the agreement are made on those conditions.\n\n#### Subdivision B—Specific conditions about financial accountability\n\n#### 11C Certifying agreement payments duly spent or committed\n\n  There must be a condition that, for each funding year covered by the agreement, each other party give the Secretary of the Department a certificate:\n    (a) made by a person authorised to do so by the agreement; and\n    (b) specifying whether the payments to the party for the funding year have been spent (or committed to be spent) in that year for the purposes specified in the agreement.\n\n#### Subdivision C—Specific conditions about educational accountability\n\n#### 11E Reporting on performance\n\n  (1) There must be a condition that each other party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on performance against the performance indicators and performance targets.\n  (2) This condition may include a requirement to report on performance against the performance indicators in a way that gives data for different geographical regions. This subsection does not limit subsection (1).\n\n#### 11F Minister may intervene if under‑performance\n\n  (1) If the Minister thinks one of the other parties is not achieving the performance targets, the Minister may direct the party to take the action specified in the direction.\n  (2) There must be a condition that the party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on the action taken in response to such a direction.\n\n#### 11G Participation in evaluation and data validation exercises\n\n  There must be a condition that each other party does each of the following:\n    (a) participate in evaluating how effectively projects, and initiatives, covered by the agreement advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) participate in data validation exercises;\n  in the manner, and by the times, specified in the agreement.\n\n### Division 3—Contravening conditions\n\n#### 12 Recovery of payments\n\n  Notice requiring repayment of amount\n  (1) If:\n    (a) a payment is made to an education provider (the recipient), or to another person or body (also the recipient), under an agreement made under this Act; and\n    (b) the agreement sets out one or more conditions on which the payment is made; and\n    (c) one or more of those conditions is breached;\n  the Minister may, by notice sent to the recipient, require the recipient to repay to the Commonwealth the amount (the recoverable amount) stated in the notice.\n  Limit on amount stated in the notice\n  (2) The recoverable amount cannot be more than the payment made to the recipient.\n  Reduction in other payments\n  (3) The Minister may, by determination in writing, reduce any other payment or payments authorised to be made under the agreement by an amount or amounts not more than the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount.\n  Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt\n  (4) The Commonwealth may recover, as a debt in a court of competent jurisdiction:\n    (a) the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount;\n  less:\n    (b) the total of any reductions to a payment or payments under subsection (3).\n\n## Part 4—Appropriations\n\n#### 13 Appropriations for ABSTUDY payments\n\n  ABSTUDY payments are to be made out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, which is appropriated accordingly.\n\n> Note: The appropriation for non‑ABSTUDY payments is included in annual Appropriation Acts.\n\n## Part 5—Other matters\n\n#### 17 Delegation\n\n  The Minister may, by writing, delegate any of the Minister’s powers under this Act to:\n    (a) the Secretary of the Department; or\n    (b) an APS employee in the Department.\n\n#### 18 Regulations\n\n  The Governor‑General may make regulations prescribing matters:\n    (a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or\n    (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.","sortOrder":21},{"sectionNumber":"11E","sectionType":"section","heading":"Reporting on performance","content":"#### 11E Reporting on performance\n\n  (1) There must be a condition that each other party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on performance against the performance indicators and performance targets.\n  (2) This condition may include a requirement to report on performance against the performance indicators in a way that gives data for different geographical regions. This subsection does not limit subsection (1).","sortOrder":22},{"sectionNumber":"11F","sectionType":"section","heading":"Minister may intervene if under‑performance","content":"#### 11F Minister may intervene if under‑performance\n\n  (1) If the Minister thinks one of the other parties is not achieving the performance targets, the Minister may direct the party to take the action specified in the direction.\n  (2) There must be a condition that the party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on the action taken in response to such a direction.","sortOrder":23},{"sectionNumber":"11G","sectionType":"section","heading":"Participation in evaluation and data validation exercises","content":"#### 11G Participation in evaluation and data validation exercises\n\n  There must be a condition that each other party does each of the following:\n    (a) participate in evaluating how effectively projects, and initiatives, covered by the agreement advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) participate in data validation exercises;\n  in the manner, and by the times, specified in the agreement.","sortOrder":24},{"sectionNumber":"Division 3","sectionType":"division","heading":"Contravening conditions","content":"An Act to provide targeted financial assistance to advance the education of Indigenous persons, and for related purposes\n\n## Part 1—Preliminary\n\n#### 1 Short title\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Act 2000.\n\n#### 2 Commencement\n\n  This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.\n\n#### 3 Overview of the Act\n\n  Making of agreements\n  (1) This Act allows the Minister to make an agreement with an education provider or other person or body authorising the making of payments.\n  Agreements with education providers\n  (2) For an agreement with an education provider, the payments may be for recurrent expenditure of the provider in those years, for ABSTUDY approved courses run by the provider in those years or for particular projects.\n  Agreements with other persons or bodies\n  (3) For an agreement with another person or body, the payments may be for particular projects.\n  Payments must be for advancing the objects of this Act\n  (4) The payments under an agreement must be for advancing the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (5) The amount of the payments must be specified in the agreement or worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Recovery of payments\n  (6) If there is a breach of a condition in an agreement, the Minister may require an amount to be repaid to the Commonwealth. If the amount is not repaid, other payments under the agreement may be reduced or the Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt.\n\n#### 4 Definitions\n\n  In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:\n\n> ABSTUDY approved course means a course that:\n\n    (a) is provided through a mixture of distance education and either or both of the following:\n    (i) residential education;\n    (ii) face‑to‑face education; and\n    (b) is provided at a higher education provider or a vocational education and training institution; and\n    (c) is approved as a mixed mode away‑from‑base course under the ABSTUDY Scheme.\n\n> ABSTUDY payment means a payment of the kind mentioned in paragraph 10(1)(b) that is made under an agreement made under section 10.\n\n> advancing the objects of this Act includes, but is not limited to, the following:\n\n    (a) publicising this Act, its objects and how it achieves those objects;\n    (b) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of this Act in advancing its objects;\n    (c) monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of an agreement made under this Act in advancing the objects of this Act.\n\n> education provider means:\n\n    (a) a State or Territory; or\n    (b) a university or other institution providing post‑secondary education; or\n    (c) a person or body conducting, or associated with, an educational system or educational institution; or\n    (d) a person qualified to carry out research, or give advice, about education.\n\n> Finance Minister means the Minister administering the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.\n\n> funding year means the 2001 calendar year or a later calendar year.\n\n> higher education provider has the same meaning as in section 16‑1 of the Higher Education Support Act 2003.\n\n> Indigenous person means:\n\n    (a) a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia; or\n    (b) a descendant of the Indigenous inhabitants of the Torres Strait Islands.\n\n> non‑ABSTUDY payment means a payment (other than an ABSTUDY payment) that is made under an agreement made under this Act.\n\n> other party, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the party, or each party, making the agreement with the Commonwealth.\n\n> Note: If there is only one such party, references in this Act to each other party, or to one of the other parties, are taken to be references to that party.\n\n> performance indicators, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance indicators specified in the agreement.\n\n> performance targets, in relation to an agreement made under section 10, means the performance targets specified in the agreement.\n\n> Territory means the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory.\n\n> vocational education and training institution means an institution in a State or Territory that:\n\n    (a) is a registered training organisation (within the meaning of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011); and\n    (b) provides VET courses (within the meaning of that Act); and\n    (c) is not conducted for profit.\n\n## Part 2—Objects of the Act\n\n#### 5 Object of Act—equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to achieve equitable and appropriate educational outcomes for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) arrangements for the adequate preparation of Indigenous children for primary and later schooling through preschool education; and\n    (b) arrangements enabling Indigenous children to attain, through compulsory primary and secondary education, commensurate skills and standards of skills as those attained by other Australian children; and\n    (c) arrangements enabling Indigenous secondary students to attain the same rate of successful completion of Year 12, or its equivalents, as that attained by other Australian secondary students; and\n    (d) arrangements enabling Indigenous students participating in post‑secondary education to attain the same graduation rates as those attained by other students so participating; and\n    (e) developing programs to support the maintenance and continued use of the languages of Indigenous people; and\n    (f) the provision of community education services to enable Indigenous people to manage the development of their communities; and\n    (g) arrangements enabling Indigenous students to attain better literacy and numeracy skills, and to attain better attendance outcomes, through access to priority Commonwealth education initiatives and strategic projects; and\n    (h) arrangements for education that will enable Indigenous adults with limited or no educational experience to attain proficiency in numeracy, the English language and life skills; and\n    (i) education enabling Indigenous students to appreciate the history, culture and identity of Indigenous people; and\n    (j) education enabling all Australian students to understand and appreciate the traditional and contemporary culture of Indigenous people.\n\n#### 6 Object of Act—equal access to education by Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure that Indigenous people enjoy equality with other Australians in their access to education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) that Indigenous children who are below primary school age enjoy equality with other Australian children of that age in their access to preschool education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children have local access to compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that Indigenous people have equitable access to other secondary and post‑secondary education.\n\n#### 7 Object of Act—equity of participation by Indigenous people in education\n\n  It is an object of this Act to ensure equity of participation by Indigenous people in education and, in particular, to ensure:\n    (a) the participation of Indigenous children in preschool education for a period similar to that during which other Australian children participate in that education; and\n    (b) that all Indigenous children participate in compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and\n    (c) that the rate of participation of Indigenous people in other secondary and post‑secondary education is equivalent to that of other Australians.\n\n#### 8 Object of Act—increasing involvement of Indigenous people in educational decisions\n\n  It is an object of this Act to increase the involvement of Indigenous people in the making of decisions concerning education by:\n    (a) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous parents and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of preschool, primary and secondary education for Indigenous children; and\n    (b) the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous students and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of post‑school education to Indigenous people; and\n    (c) an increase in the number of Indigenous people who are employed or otherwise involved in education:\n    (i) as administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers; and\n    (ii) as special teachers of the culture, history, contemporary society and languages of Indigenous people;\n    or otherwise; and\n    (d) the provision of education and training to develop the skills of Indigenous people that are relevant to their participation in the making of decisions concerning education; and\n    (e) the development of arrangements to secure independent advice from communities of Indigenous people concerning educational decisions to be taken at local, regional, State and Territory, and national levels.\n\n#### 9 Object of Act—to develop culturally appropriate education services for Indigenous people\n\n  It is an object of this Act to encourage the development of education services that are culturally appropriate for Indigenous people by:\n    (a) the development of curricula that are suited to:\n    (i) the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (ii) the training of professional educators (including administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers) who are involved in the education of Indigenous students; and\n    (b) the development of teaching methods and techniques that are suited to the learning styles of Indigenous students; and\n    (c) the promotion of research to devise innovative methods to deliver education services to Indigenous students; and\n    (d) the promotion of research to devise methods to eliminate barriers to educational attainment encountered by Indigenous students; and\n    (e) the conduct of pilot studies to test the effectiveness of the methods referred to in paragraphs (c) and (d).\n\n## Part 3—Agreements\n\n### Division 1—Making agreements\n\n#### 10 Agreements with education providers\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with an education provider that does one or more of the following:\n    (a) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for its recurrent expenditure in one or more specified funding years that is for the purpose of advancing the objects of this Act;\n    (b) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for one or more specified ABSTUDY approved courses that are run by the provider in one or more specified funding years;\n    (c) authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider, or to another person or body, for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of payments for recurrent expenditure\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for recurrent expenditure for each funding year covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for ABSTUDY approved courses\n  (3) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each ABSTUDY approved course covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Amount of payments for particular projects\n  (4) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n  Notice in Gazette\n  (5) The Minister must, by notice in the Gazette, publish details of any agreement made under this section.\n\n#### 11 Agreements with any persons or bodies\n\n  (1) The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with a person or body (including an education provider) authorising the making of one or more payments to the person or body for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.\n  Amount of the payments\n  (2) The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:\n    (a) specified in the agreement; or\n    (b) worked out in accordance with the agreement.\n\n### Division 2—Accountability for section 10 agreements\n\n#### Subdivision A—Commitments and general conditions\n\n#### 11A Agreements are subject to commitments\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following commitments by each other party:\n    (a) a commitment to advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) a commitment to achieve the performance targets.\n  (2) The agreement may also specify other commitments.\n\n#### 11B Agreements are subject to conditions\n\n  (1) The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following conditions:\n    (a) a condition that payments received under the agreement by each other party be spent by the party for the purposes specified in the agreement;\n    (b) the conditions mentioned in Subdivisions B and C;\n    (c) a condition that reports covered by paragraph (b) must be given to the Secretary of the Department at the times, and in the manner, required by the agreement;\n    (d) a condition that each other party give to the Minister any reports:\n    (i) of a kind or kinds required by the Minister; and\n    (ii) at the times, and in the manner, required by the Minister.\n  (2) The Minister must not make the agreement unless the agreement specifies that the payments under the agreement are made on the conditions described in subsection (1).\n  (3) The agreement may also specify other conditions, and that the payments under the agreement are made on those conditions.\n\n#### Subdivision B—Specific conditions about financial accountability\n\n#### 11C Certifying agreement payments duly spent or committed\n\n  There must be a condition that, for each funding year covered by the agreement, each other party give the Secretary of the Department a certificate:\n    (a) made by a person authorised to do so by the agreement; and\n    (b) specifying whether the payments to the party for the funding year have been spent (or committed to be spent) in that year for the purposes specified in the agreement.\n\n#### Subdivision C—Specific conditions about educational accountability\n\n#### 11E Reporting on performance\n\n  (1) There must be a condition that each other party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on performance against the performance indicators and performance targets.\n  (2) This condition may include a requirement to report on performance against the performance indicators in a way that gives data for different geographical regions. This subsection does not limit subsection (1).\n\n#### 11F Minister may intervene if under‑performance\n\n  (1) If the Minister thinks one of the other parties is not achieving the performance targets, the Minister may direct the party to take the action specified in the direction.\n  (2) There must be a condition that the party complies with the requirements specified in the agreement about reporting on the action taken in response to such a direction.\n\n#### 11G Participation in evaluation and data validation exercises\n\n  There must be a condition that each other party does each of the following:\n    (a) participate in evaluating how effectively projects, and initiatives, covered by the agreement advance the objects of this Act;\n    (b) participate in data validation exercises;\n  in the manner, and by the times, specified in the agreement.\n\n### Division 3—Contravening conditions\n\n#### 12 Recovery of payments\n\n  Notice requiring repayment of amount\n  (1) If:\n    (a) a payment is made to an education provider (the recipient), or to another person or body (also the recipient), under an agreement made under this Act; and\n    (b) the agreement sets out one or more conditions on which the payment is made; and\n    (c) one or more of those conditions is breached;\n  the Minister may, by notice sent to the recipient, require the recipient to repay to the Commonwealth the amount (the recoverable amount) stated in the notice.\n  Limit on amount stated in the notice\n  (2) The recoverable amount cannot be more than the payment made to the recipient.\n  Reduction in other payments\n  (3) The Minister may, by determination in writing, reduce any other payment or payments authorised to be made under the agreement by an amount or amounts not more than the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount.\n  Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt\n  (4) The Commonwealth may recover, as a debt in a court of competent jurisdiction:\n    (a) the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount;\n  less:\n    (b) the total of any reductions to a payment or payments under subsection (3).\n\n## Part 4—Appropriations\n\n#### 13 Appropriations for ABSTUDY payments\n\n  ABSTUDY payments are to be made out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, which is appropriated accordingly.\n\n> Note: The appropriation for non‑ABSTUDY payments is included in annual Appropriation Acts.\n\n## Part 5—Other matters\n\n#### 17 Delegation\n\n  The Minister may, by writing, delegate any of the Minister’s powers under this Act to:\n    (a) the Secretary of the Department; or\n    (b) an APS employee in the Department.\n\n#### 18 Regulations\n\n  The Governor‑General may make regulations prescribing matters:\n    (a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or\n    (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.","sortOrder":25},{"sectionNumber":"12","sectionType":"section","heading":"Recovery of payments","content":"#### 12 Recovery of payments\n\n  Notice requiring repayment of amount\n  (1) If:\n    (a) a payment is made to an education provider (the recipient), or to another person or body (also the recipient), under an agreement made under this Act; and\n    (b) the agreement sets out one or more conditions on which the payment is made; and\n    (c) one or more of those conditions is breached;\n  the Minister may, by notice sent to the recipient, require the recipient to repay to the Commonwealth the amount (the recoverable amount) stated in the notice.\n  Limit on amount stated in the notice\n  (2) The recoverable amount cannot be more than the payment made to the recipient.\n  Reduction in other payments\n  (3) The Minister may, by determination in writing, reduce any other payment or payments authorised to be made under the agreement by an amount or amounts not more than the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount.\n  Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt\n  (4) The Commonwealth may recover, as a debt in a court of competent jurisdiction:\n    (a) the outstanding balance (if any) of the recoverable amount;\n  less:\n    (b) the total of any reductions to a payment or payments under subsection (3).","sortOrder":26},{"sectionNumber":"Part 4","sectionType":"part","heading":"Appropriations","content":"## Part 4—Appropriations","sortOrder":27},{"sectionNumber":"13","sectionType":"section","heading":"Appropriations for ABSTUDY payments","content":"#### 13 Appropriations for ABSTUDY payments\n\n  ABSTUDY payments are to be made out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, which is appropriated accordingly.\n\n> Note: The appropriation for non‑ABSTUDY payments is included in annual Appropriation Acts.","sortOrder":28},{"sectionNumber":"Part 5","sectionType":"part","heading":"Other matters","content":"## Part 5—Other matters","sortOrder":29},{"sectionNumber":"17","sectionType":"section","heading":"Delegation","content":"#### 17 Delegation\n\n  The Minister may, by writing, delegate any of the Minister’s powers under this Act to:\n    (a) the Secretary of the Department; or\n    (b) an APS employee in the Department.","sortOrder":30},{"sectionNumber":"18","sectionType":"section","heading":"Regulations","content":"#### 18 Regulations\n\n  The Governor‑General may make regulations prescribing matters:\n    (a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or\n    (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.","sortOrder":31}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"_metrics":{"provider":"moonshot","completionTokens":1986},"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation maintains its original 2000 purpose of providing targeted financial assistance to advance Indigenous education. While definitions have been updated to reference modern legislation (e.g., the 2013 Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act), the core scope remains consistent with the original intent focused on funding agreements, ABSTUDY support, and educational equity objectives."},"complexity_factors":["14 defined terms in the interpretation section (section 4), including complex nested definitions for 'ABSTUDY approved course' and 'vocational education and training institution'","Multi-layered structure with 5 Parts, 3 Divisions, and 3 Subdivisions creating multiple levels of conditional obligations","Cross-references to 3 external Commonwealth Acts (Higher Education Support Act 2003, National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011, Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013)","Recovery provisions in section 12 with cascading conditional logic (breach → notice → reduction → debt recovery) and mathematical calculations for recoverable amounts","26 enumerated sub-paragraphs across 5 object sections (sections 5-9) creating multiple statutory purposes that must be advanced simultaneously"],"plain_english_summary":"This Act creates a framework for the Commonwealth Government to fund education specifically for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.\n\n**What it does**\nThe Act authorises the Minister to make funding agreements with schools, universities, TAFEs, States, Territories, and other organisations. These agreements allow the Commonwealth to pay for:\n- **Recurrent expenditure** — ongoing running costs of education providers\n- **ABSTUDY approved courses** — specific mixed-mode (distance + face-to-face) courses for Indigenous students\n- **Special projects** — targeted initiatives to advance Indigenous education\n\n**Who it affects**\n- **Indigenous students** — from preschool through to university and vocational training\n- **Education providers** — including universities, TAFEs, schools, and registered training organisations that receive funding\n- **The Minister** — who has powers to enter agreements, enforce conditions, and recover funds if rules are broken\n\n**Key safeguards**\nThe Act includes strict accountability measures. Funding recipients must:\n- Commit to achieving specific **performance targets** and **performance indicators**\n- Certify that money was spent properly each year\n- Participate in evaluations and data validation\n- Accept that the Minister can intervene if performance targets are not met\n\nIf conditions are breached, the Minister can demand repayment, reduce future payments, or sue to recover the money as a debt.\n\n**Why it matters**\nThe Act sets five main goals (called \"objects\"):\n1. Achieving equitable educational outcomes (ensuring Indigenous students reach the same standards as other Australian students)\n2. Ensuring equal access to preschool, primary, secondary and post-secondary education\n3. Ensuring Indigenous people participate in education at the same rates as other Australians\n4. Increasing Indigenous involvement in educational decision-making\n5. Developing culturally appropriate education services that respect Indigenous history, culture and languages\n\n**Funding source**\nABSTUDY payments come directly from the Consolidated Revenue Fund (permanent appropriation), while other payments require annual approval through Appropriation Acts."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act’s scope matches its stated purpose: authorising targeted Commonwealth payments to advance Indigenous education and setting accountability, reporting and repayment rules. The text does not add functions beyond providing and conditioning payments, monitoring performance and enabling recovery (Parts 2–5)."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple payment types (recurrent expenditure, ABSTUDY courses, projects) and methods for setting amounts (specified or worked out under agreement) (s 10)","Detailed accountability regime: commitments, conditions, certification of spending, performance reporting and regional data requirements (ss 11A, 11B, 11C, 11E)","Ministerial powers to direct parties on under‑performance and to reduce or recover payments, including recovery as a debt (ss 11F, 12)","Obligations to participate in evaluation and data‑validation exercises, creating ongoing administrative/compliance burden (s 11G)","Different appropriation routes for ABSTUDY and non‑ABSTUDY payments (s 13 and note), affecting funding certainty and budget process","Delegation power to Secretary or APS employee and regulation‑making power, increasing administrative discretion (ss 17, 18)","Cross‑references to other Commonwealth legislation and defined terms (Higher Education Support Act 2003; National VET Regulator Act 2011; PGPA Act), which require coordination across regimes"],"plain_english_summary":"This Act lets the Minister make agreements authorising payments to education providers or other bodies to fund recurrent costs, ABSTUDY courses or targeted projects that advance the Act’s objects (ss 3, 10). Recipients must certify spending, report against performance indicators and targets, take directed corrective actions and participate in evaluations; the Minister can reduce future payments or recover amounts as a debt if conditions are breached (ss 11C, 11E–11G, 12)."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[{"type":"circular_definition","section":"s4 – definition of 'advancing the objects of this Act'","severity":"medium","reasoning":"The definition bootstraps itself: the Act's objects are about Indigenous education, but 'advancing' those objects is defined to include publicising and evaluating the Act itself. This means Commonwealth money could lawfully be paid to an education provider under s10(1)(a) or s11 to run a publicity campaign about the Act, with no requirement that the campaign actually benefits any Indigenous student. The definition swallows itself.","confidence":0.82,"description":"The definition of 'advancing the objects of this Act' includes 'publicising this Act, its objects and how it achieves those objects' and 'monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of this Act in advancing its objects'. This means that payments authorised under the Act can be used purely to promote the Act itself or to evaluate whether the Act works — activities that are entirely self-referential and bear no direct relationship to improving Indigenous education outcomes."},{"type":"circular_definition","section":"s4 – definition of 'performance indicators' and 'performance targets'; s11A(1)(b)","severity":"medium","reasoning":"The statute creates a mandatory commitment mechanism (s11A) anchored entirely on self-defined terms. A party could commit to a performance target of 'zero improvement' or 'maintenance of current outcomes' and be fully compliant. The circular definitions make the accountability framework hollow.","confidence":0.78,"description":"Both 'performance indicators' and 'performance targets' are defined purely circularly as whatever is 'specified in the agreement'. Section 11A(1)(b) then requires the Minister to not make an agreement unless the agreement specifies a commitment to achieve the performance targets — but those targets are whatever the parties choose to put in the agreement, including potentially trivial or vacuous targets. There is no floor or external reference point."},{"type":"other","section":"s4 – definition of 'education provider', paragraph (d)","severity":"medium","reasoning":"Sections 10(1)(a) and (b) allow payments for 'recurrent expenditure' and for 'ABSTUDY approved courses run by the provider'. An individual research consultant cannot 'run' ABSTUDY approved courses, yet they qualify as an education provider able to receive those payments under s10. This creates a category mismatch where at least some payment types under s10 are structurally inapplicable to some parties qualifying as 'education providers'.","confidence":0.72,"description":"'Education provider' includes 'a person qualified to carry out research, or give advice, about education.' This is an extraordinarily broad category. A single individual consultant who gives education advice qualifies as an 'education provider' for the purposes of the Act, meaning the Minister can enter a s10 agreement — with all its recurrent-expenditure and ABSTUDY-course payment mechanisms — with what is effectively a sole trader advisor."},{"type":"other","section":"s11B(1)(b) cross-referencing Subdivisions B and C; s11B(1)(c)","severity":"low","reasoning":"Section 11C requires a certificate, not a 'report'. Section 11B(1)(c) then refers to 'reports covered by paragraph (b)' — but paragraph (b) imports the certificate condition from s11C. Using 'reports' to describe what s11C calls a 'certificate' creates interpretive ambiguity about whether the two instruments are interchangeable, potentially allowing a party to argue that a report satisfies the certificate requirement or vice versa.","confidence":0.65,"description":"Section 11B(1)(b) requires the agreement to contain 'the conditions mentioned in Subdivisions B and C', and s11B(1)(c) then adds a separate condition that 'reports covered by paragraph (b) must be given to the Secretary'. However, paragraph (b) refers to conditions in Subdivisions B and C, not to reports per se. Subdivision B (s11C) concerns financial certificates, not reports. The cross-reference is confused: it treats the conditions in Subdivision B as if they were reporting conditions, conflating certificates (s11C) with reports."},{"type":"self_contradicting","section":"s5(e) and s5(h)","severity":"low","reasoning":"While not a strict legal contradiction, the Act requires agreements to advance all objects simultaneously (s3(4), s10(1)(a)). In communities where instructional time is finite, expenditure advancing s5(e) (Indigenous language maintenance) may reduce capacity to advance s5(h) (English proficiency), leaving parties in an impossible compliance bind when drafting performance targets.","confidence":0.6,"description":"Section 5(e) sets an object of 'developing programs to support the maintenance and continued use of the languages of Indigenous people', while s5(h) sets an object of enabling Indigenous adults 'to attain proficiency in numeracy, the English language and life skills'. These objects pull in potentially opposite directions: prioritising Indigenous languages may compete with resources and time for English proficiency, and vice versa. No priority or reconciliation mechanism is provided."},{"type":"other","section":"s11 – Agreements with any persons or bodies; Division 2 accountability provisions","severity":"high","reasoning":"An education provider that enters a project agreement under s11 instead of s10 faces no mandatory performance targets, no financial certification, no reporting on performance indicators, and no ministerial intervention power. Since s11(1) explicitly includes education providers, the same provider doing the same project can be subject to full accountability (s10 path) or zero statutory accountability (s11 path), at the Minister's election. This creates a structurally arbitrary accountability gap.","confidence":0.88,"description":"Division 2 (ss11A–11G) imposes detailed accountability obligations including mandatory commitments, financial certificates, performance reporting, and ministerial intervention powers — but these provisions apply only to agreements made under section 10. Agreements made under section 11 with 'any persons or bodies' (which can include education providers) attract none of these accountability requirements, even though the payments may be for identical projects."},{"type":"self_contradicting","section":"s12(3) and s12(4) – Recovery of payments","severity":"medium","reasoning":"The formula in s12(4) — outstanding balance less total reductions under s12(3) — is intended to prevent double recovery. However, 'outstanding balance' is not separately defined, and s12(4) does not freeze the calculation at a single point in time. If reductions under s12(3) are made by written determination at a different time from the debt recovery proceedings, there is interpretive uncertainty about which reductions count and when, potentially enabling the Commonwealth to recover more than the original payment made.","confidence":0.55,"description":"Section 12(3) permits the Minister to reduce future payments by up to the 'outstanding balance' of the recoverable amount. Section 12(4) then allows the Commonwealth to recover as a debt the outstanding balance less any reductions under s12(3). The interaction creates a potential double-recovery scenario: the Minister could reduce future payments under s12(3) and simultaneously (or subsequently) also pursue the full pre-reduction outstanding balance as a debt under s12(4) before the payment reduction is applied, particularly where the timing of the reduction determination and the debt recovery action overlap."}],"contradictions":[{"severity":"medium","section_a":"s3(3) – Overview: agreements with other persons or bodies limited to 'particular projects'","section_b":"s11(1) – Agreements with any persons or bodies","confidence":0.75,"description":"Section 3(3) states that for an agreement with 'another person or body' (i.e., a non-education-provider), payments may only be for 'particular projects'. Section 11(1) however applies to 'a person or body (including an education provider)', meaning it captures education providers too. But s10 already governs education providers with broader payment categories (recurrent expenditure, ABSTUDY courses, projects). The overlap between s10 and s11 for education providers is not addressed, and the overview's implied exclusivity ('another person or body' suggests non-education-providers only in s3(3)) contradicts s11's express inclusion of education providers."},{"severity":"low","section_a":"s5(b) – object of 'commensurate skills' through compulsory education","section_b":"s5(c) – object of 'same rate of successful completion of Year 12'","confidence":0.65,"description":"Section 5(b) uses the word 'commensurate' (meaning proportionate or equivalent in measure) while s5(c) requires the 'same rate' of Year 12 completion. 'Commensurate' implies a relative standard that may fall short of identical outcomes, while 'same rate' implies exact parity. The Act thus sets inconsistent benchmarks for the same educational continuum (primary/secondary vs Year 12 completion), with no explanation of why different standards apply at different stages."},{"severity":"low","section_a":"s6(b) – object: 'all Indigenous children have local access to compulsory primary and secondary schooling'","section_b":"s7(b) – object: 'all Indigenous children participate in compulsory primary and secondary schooling'","confidence":0.58,"description":"Section 6 targets equality of access while s7 targets equity of participation. Section 6(b) requires 'local access' for all Indigenous children; s7(b) requires actual participation by all Indigenous children. These are distinct and potentially conflicting obligations: ensuring local access does not guarantee participation, but the Act treats them as parallel co-equal objects with no hierarchy. Funding agreements must advance all objects (s3(4)), yet the two objects may require entirely different and resource-competing interventions."},{"severity":"high","section_a":"s10(5) – Minister must publish details of s10 agreements in the Gazette","section_b":"s11 – No equivalent publication requirement for s11 agreements","confidence":0.9,"description":"Section 10(5) imposes a mandatory Gazette publication requirement for all agreements made under s10. Section 11 contains no equivalent requirement. Since s11 agreements can involve identical subject matter (projects), identical parties (education providers are expressly included), and potentially equivalent or larger sums of money, the absence of a transparency obligation for s11 agreements directly contradicts the transparency policy embedded in s10(5), without any stated rationale for the differential treatment."},{"severity":"medium","section_a":"s11A(1)(b) – mandatory commitment to 'achieve the performance targets'","section_b":"s11F(1) – Minister may intervene only if the Minister 'thinks' a party is not achieving performance targets","confidence":0.8,"description":"Section 11A(1)(b) imposes an absolute commitment: the other party must commit to achieve the performance targets. Section 11F(1) allows ministerial intervention only when the Minister subjectively 'thinks' the party is not achieving targets. The mandatory commitment in s11A is objectively framed, but the enforcement trigger in s11F is purely subjective (the Minister's opinion). This means a party could objectively fail to meet performance targets with no legal consequence unless the Minister forms and acts on a subjective opinion — effectively making the mandatory commitment in s11A unenforceable as a matter of law without ministerial volition."}]},"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"},"summary":{"complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act remains consistent with its original stated purpose: providing targeted Commonwealth funding to improve Indigenous educational outcomes across all levels of education. The definitions and objects sections are broad but coherent with that purpose. No significant scope creep is evident — the accountability and recovery provisions are standard mechanisms for a grants-based funding scheme rather than expansions beyond the core intent."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple layers of agreement types (s.10 for education providers vs s.11 for any body), each with different rules and accountability obligations","Nested accountability structure with Divisions and Subdivisions (A, B, C) governing commitments, financial conditions, and educational performance conditions separately","Cross-references to multiple other Commonwealth Acts (Higher Education Support Act 2003, National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011, Public Governance Performance and Accountability Act 2013, ABSTUDY Scheme)","Two separate funding streams with different appropriation mechanisms: ABSTUDY payments from the Consolidated Revenue Fund vs non-ABSTUDY payments through annual Appropriation Acts","Broad and somewhat open-ended definitions (e.g. 'education provider' captures States, universities, researchers, and associated bodies) creating interpretive uncertainty about who qualifies","Five overlapping but distinct objects (ss.5-9) that must all be considered when assessing whether a payment 'advances the objects of this Act'","Ministerial discretion is very wide — amounts, conditions, and intervention triggers are largely left to agreement content rather than prescribed in the Act itself"],"plain_english_summary":"The Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Act 2000 lets the Commonwealth fund schools, universities, TAFEs, states/territories and community bodies to improve educational outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from preschool to adult learning. It prioritises closing gaps in attainment and participation, boosting Indigenous decision‑making and culturally appropriate teaching. Funding comes with reporting, audits and repayment penalties for misuse, and agreements must be publicly gazetted."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/indigenous-education-targeted-assistance-act-2000","history":"/api/acts/indigenous-education-targeted-assistance-act-2000/history","analysis":"/api/acts/indigenous-education-targeted-assistance-act-2000/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/indigenous-education-targeted-assistance-act-2000/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/indigenous-education-targeted-assistance-act-2000/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/indigenous-education-targeted-assistance-act-2000/documents"}}