{"id":"C2004A01438","name":"Loan Act (No. 2) 1976","slug":"loan-act-no-2-1976","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"7 of 1976","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":6259,"registerId":"commonwealth-C2004A01438-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-03-30","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Loan Act (No. 2) 1976","content":"LOAN ACT (No. 2) 1976\n\nNo. 7 of 1976\n\nAn Act to Authorize the Borrowing of Moneys for the purpose of Supplementing the Consolidated Revenue Fund.\n\nBE IT ENACTED by the Queen, and the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Australia, as follows:—\n\nShort title.\n\n1. This Act may be cited as the Loan Act (No. 2) 1976.\n\nCommencement.\n\n2. This Act shall come into operation on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.\n\nAuthority to borrow.\n\n3. The Treasurer may, from time to time during the financial year ending on 30 June 1976, in accordance with the provisions of the Commonwealth Inscribed Stock Act 1911-1973, or in accordance with the provisions of an Act authorizing the issue of Treasury Bills, borrow moneys that, together with any moneys previously borrowed under this section, do not exceed the amount that, at the time of the borrowing, he considers to be the greatest amount by which the moneys lawfully available, apart from this Act, for expenditure from the Consolidated Revenue Fund in that financial year are likely to be less than the amount of the expenditure made and to be made from that Fund in that financial year.\n\nApplication of moneys borrowed.\n\n4. An amount equal to each amount borrowed under this Act shall be issued out of the Loan Fund and paid to the credit of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.\n\nExpenses of borrowing.\n\n5. The expenses of borrowing under section 3 may be paid out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, which is appropriated accordingly.","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act does exactly what its title and preamble promise — it authorises borrowing to supplement the Consolidated Revenue Fund for a specific financial year. There is no evidence of scope creep or deviation from the original stated purpose. All five provisions work directly toward that single, narrow objective."},"complexity_factors":["Single-purpose, time-expired legislation with no ongoing effect","The borrowing cap is defined by a self-referential formula (the Treasurer's own estimate of the shortfall), which adds a minor layer of interpretive ambiguity","References to two separate legal instruments for borrowing mechanisms (Commonwealth Inscribed Stock Act 1911-1973 and Treasury Bills legislation) require cross-referencing","Involves three distinct government funds (Consolidated Revenue Fund, Loan Fund, and borrowing mechanisms) whose interrelationship requires basic financial literacy to follow"],"plain_english_summary":"This short 1976 Act gave the Treasurer temporary authority to borrow—via government bonds or Treasury bills—before 30 June 1976 to top up the Consolidated Revenue Fund up to the projected shortfall. Borrowings flowed through the Loan Fund into the Revenue Fund to keep government payments running.\n\nIt was a one‑off technical measure to bridge a cash gap in 1975–76, affecting government cash management rather than day‑to‑day life, and has no ongoing legal effect."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: providing short-term borrowing authority for a single financial year. The scope has not expanded beyond the straightforward cash flow supplementation described in the long title."},"complexity_factors":["Only 5 short sections totaling approximately 250 words","No defined terms section — relies on external definitions from the Commonwealth Inscribed Stock Act 1911-1973","Single operational mechanism (borrowing authority) with straightforward flow: borrow → transfer to Consolidated Revenue Fund → spend","Only one cross-reference (to the Commonwealth Inscribed Stock Act)","No nested conditions or exceptions — the borrowing limit is a simple estimate-based formula","Temporal limitation (financial year ending 30 June 1976) creates automatic expiry"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this law does:**\n\nThis is a short, technical law that gives the Treasurer (Australia's finance minister) permission to borrow money to top up the government's main bank account — the **Consolidated Revenue Fund** (the government's everyday operating account).\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\nPrimarily the Australian Government itself. This doesn't directly affect ordinary citizens, businesses, or state governments. It's an internal machinery-of-government law that keeps the budget flowing.\n\n**How it works:**\n\n- The Treasurer can borrow money during the 1975-76 financial year (ending 30 June 1976)\n- The borrowing limit isn't a fixed dollar amount — instead, it's whatever shortfall the Treasurer estimates will occur between what's in the bank and what the government needs to spend\n- The borrowed money gets moved from the **Loan Fund** (a special government account for borrowed money) into the Consolidated Revenue Fund to cover everyday expenses\n- Any costs associated with arranging these loans (bank fees, legal costs, etc.) can be paid directly from the government's operating account\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nGovernments often need to borrow when tax revenue doesn't arrive at the same pace as bills come due. This law provides the legal authority for that borrowing. Without it, the Treasurer couldn't legally raise loans to cover cash flow gaps. It's a routine piece of budget management legislation — one of many similar \"Loan Acts\" passed over the years to manage government cash flow."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act, as drafted, is a one‑off, time‑limited authorisation for the Treasurer to borrow for the 1975–76 financial year and to credit proceeds to the Consolidated Revenue Fund, with borrowing expenses met from that Fund (s3–s5). The text does not indicate any change to the broader scope of existing borrowing or appropriation law beyond this limited authority."},"complexity_factors":["Broad administrative discretion: Treasurer determines the maximum borrowing amount based on his view of shortfall (s3).","Cross-statutory mechanics: borrowing occurs under the Commonwealth Inscribed Stock Act 1911–1973 or an Act authorising Treasury bills, requiring coordination with other statutes (s3).","Time-limited authority: applies only to the financial year ending 30 June 1976 (s3), which narrows but fixes the window for action.","Simple appropriation for expenses: borrowing costs payable from the Consolidated Revenue Fund, which is appropriated accordingly (s5).","Limited detail on repayment or longer-term debt management: Act credits loans to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (s4) but does not set out repayment sources, terms, or limits beyond the year and statutory borrowing frameworks (s3–s4)."],"plain_english_summary":"This Act authorises the Treasurer to borrow, during the financial year ending 30 June 1976, under the Commonwealth Inscribed Stock Act or by issuing Treasury bills, up to the amount he considers necessary to cover any shortfall between available funds and expected expenditure (s3). Amounts borrowed are issued from the Loan Fund to the credit of the Consolidated Revenue Fund (s4), and the Consolidated Revenue Fund meets borrowing expenses (s5)."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/loan-act-no-2-1976","history":"/api/acts/loan-act-no-2-1976/history","analysis":"/api/acts/loan-act-no-2-1976/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/loan-act-no-2-1976/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/loan-act-no-2-1976/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/loan-act-no-2-1976/documents"}}