{"id":"state-assets-privatisation-restrictions-act-2024","name":"State Assets (Privatisation Restrictions) Act 2024","slug":"state-assets-privatisation-restrictions-act-2024","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"sa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":110240,"registerId":"sa-state-assets-privatisation-restrictions-act-2024-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"State Assets (Privatisation Restrictions) Act 2024","content":"South Australia\nState Assets (Privatisation Restrictions) Act 2024\nAn Act to prohibit the privatisation of certain state‑owned assets without the approval of Parliament, and for other purposes.\n\nContents\n1\tShort title\n2\tInterpretation\n3\tPrivatisation of state‑owned assets\n4\tRegulations\nLegislative history\n\nThe Parliament of South Australia enacts as follows:\n1—Short title\nThis Act may be cited as the State Assets (Privatisation Restrictions) Act 2024.\n2—Interpretation\nIn this Act—\nprivatisation, in relation to a state‑owned asset, means—\n\t(a)\tthe sale or other disposal of the asset; or\n\t(b)\tthe grant of a lease in the asset;\nrelated body corporate has the same meaning as in the Corporations Act 2001 of the Commonwealth;\nrelevant parliamentary committee means the Economic and Finance Committee established under the Parliamentary Committees Act 1991;\nstate‑owned asset means the following, and includes a related body corporate of the following:\n\t(a)\tHomeStart Finance (being the statutory corporation of that name established under the Urban Renewal Act 1995 by the Housing and Urban Development (Administrative Arrangements) (HomeStart Finance) Regulations 1995);\n\t(b)\tthe Lifetime Support Authority of South Australia established by the Motor Vehicle Accidents (Lifetime Support Scheme) Act 2013;\n\t(c)\tthe Motor Accident Commission continued in existence by the Motor Accident Commission Act 1992;\n\t(d)\tthe Return to Work Corporation of South Australia continued in existence by the Return to Work Corporation of South Australia Act 1994;\n\t(e)\tSA Pathology;\n\t(f)\tthe South Australian Forestry Corporation established by the South Australian Forestry Corporation Act 2000;\n\t(g)\tthe South Australian Government Financing Authority established by the Government Financing Authority Act 1982;\n\t(h)\tthe South Australian Water Corporation established by the South Australian Water Corporation Act 1994;\n\t(i)\tthe Superannuation Funds Management Corporation of South Australia continued in existence by the Superannuation Funds Management Corporation of South Australia Act 1995;\n\t(j)\tan asset prescribed by the regulations.\n3—Privatisation of state‑owned assets\n\t(1)\tThe Crown must not privatise, or cause the privatisation of, a state‑owned asset unless—\n\t(a)\tthe relevant parliamentary committee reviews the proposed sale, disposal or lease of the asset (the proposed transaction); and\n\t(b)\ta report of the review that complies with this section is tabled in each House of Parliament; and\n\t(c)\tthe proposed transaction is then approved by resolution of each House of Parliament.\n\t(2)\tThe report of the review must contain—\n\t(a)\ta full description of the terms of the proposed transaction; and\n\t(b)\tthe relevant parliamentary committee’s recommendation on whether the proposed transaction should proceed; and\n\t(c)\tthe reasons for the recommendation.\n\t(3)\tA transaction that contravenes subsection (1) is void and of no effect.\n\t(4)\tNothing in this section prevents a sale, disposal or lease—\n\t(a)\tin the ordinary course of the business or operations of a state‑owned asset; or\n\t(b)\tthat results in the state‑owned asset remaining in public ownership or control.\n\t(5)\tThis section prevails over any inconsistent provision of any other Act or law.\n4—Regulations\nThe Governor may make such regulations as are contemplated by, or as are necessary or expedient for the purposes of, this Act.\nLegislative history\nNotes\n\t•\tFor further information relating to the Act and subordinate legislation made under the Act see the Index of South Australian Statutes or www.legislation.sa.gov.au.\nPrincipal Act\nYear\nNo\nTitle\nAssent\nCommencement\n2024\n5\nState Assets (Privatisation Restrictions) Act 2024 \n29.2.2024\n29.2.2024\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The Act narrows who can finalise privatisations for listed assets by requiring a parliamentary committee review, a tabled report and approval by resolution of each House, voiding any transaction that bypasses that process; it also permits addition of assets by regulation and expressly prevails over inconsistent laws (ss 2–4)."},"complexity_factors":["Short, focused statutory prohibition with a three‑step procedural gate (committee review, report tabled, bicameral resolution) (s 3(1))","Concrete list of named state‑owned assets plus power to add assets by regulation (s 2, definition of state‑owned asset; s 4)","Void‑ab initio consequence for non‑compliant transactions (s 3(3)) increases legal risk for executives and counterparties","Override clause making the section prevail over inconsistent laws raises constitutional and statutory interaction questions (s 3(5))","Exceptions for ordinary‑course dealings and transactions that keep public ownership create interpretive scope (s 3(4))","Reference to external definition (related body corporate by Corporations Act) imports complexity from Commonwealth law (s 2)"],"plain_english_summary":"The Act stops the Crown from selling, disposing of or leasing certain named state‑owned assets unless a parliamentary committee reviews the proposal, a report is tabled in each House and both Houses pass a resolution approving it. It applies to specific agencies and their related bodies, lets the Governor add assets by regulation, voids non‑compliant transactions, and preserves ordinary‑course dealings and transfers that keep assets publicly owned."},"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"},"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"No scope assessment is possible. The submitted content is a 'Page Not Found' error from the SA legislation website, not the text of any Act. There is no original legislative intent that can be compared against enacted provisions."},"complexity_factors":["No legislative content was provided — the document is a website error page, not legislation","No provisions, definitions, schedules, or operative clauses exist to analyse","Complexity cannot meaningfully be assessed without actual legislative text"],"plain_english_summary":"The linked page is a \"Page Not Found\" from the South Australian legislation site, so no text of a \"State Assets (Privatisation Restrictions) Act 2024\" is available to summarise. The title may refer to a bill, proposed law, or simply a broken link; check legislation.sa.gov.au directly or contact OPCWeb@sa.gov.au to locate the correct document."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: establishing parliamentary oversight for privatisation of specific state-owned assets. The scope has not expanded beyond the prohibition-and-approval mechanism described in the long title."},"complexity_factors":["Only 4 operative sections (short title, interpretation, main prohibition, regulations)","Just 3 defined terms in the interpretation section (privatisation, related body corporate, relevant parliamentary committee, state-owned asset)","Simple conditional structure: prohibition + 3-step exception (committee review → report → parliamentary approval)","Two straightforward carve-outs in section 3(4) for ordinary business and public retention","Single supremacy clause in section 3(5) overriding inconsistent laws","No nested definitions, no cross-references to external legislation beyond Corporations Act 2001 for 'related body corporate' and naming statutes for the listed entities","No delegated legislative powers beyond standard regulation-making","Clear voidness provision (section 3(3)) with no conditional triggers"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this law does:**\n\nThis law puts a lock on the sale or long-term lease of major South Australian government-owned businesses and services. Before the government can sell off (\"privatise\") any of the listed assets, it must jump through three specific hoops:\n\n1. **Committee review** — The Economic and Finance Committee (a group of MPs) must examine the proposed sale or lease\n2. **Public report** — That committee must publish a report with its recommendation and reasons, and table it in Parliament\n3. **Parliamentary vote** — Both houses of Parliament must then vote to approve the deal\n\nIf these steps aren't followed, the sale is automatically **void** — meaning it's legally worthless.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\nThe law specifically protects **10 named state assets**, including:\n- **HomeStart Finance** (government home lender)\n- **SA Water** (water utility)\n- **SA Pathology** (medical testing)\n- **ForestrySA** (forestry corporation)\n- **Return to Work SA** (workers compensation)\n- **Motor Accident Commission** (insurance)\n- **Lifetime Support Authority** (care for crash victims)\n- **SA Government Financing Authority** (government banker)\n- **Superannuation Funds Management Corporation** (public servants' super)\n\nThe Governor can also add more assets via regulations.\n\n**Important exceptions:**\n- Normal business operations (like SA Water selling old equipment) aren't blocked\n- Deals that keep the asset in \"public ownership or control\" are allowed\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThis law makes it much harder for future governments to privatise these assets on a whim. It forces transparency (public reports) and democratic accountability (parliamentary votes) before major public assets can be sold off. The law also says it beats any other conflicting law — so ministers can't use other Acts to bypass these rules.\n\n**In short:** South Australia's major public assets now need parliamentary permission before they can be sold."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/state-assets-privatisation-restrictions-act-2024","history":"/api/acts/state-assets-privatisation-restrictions-act-2024/history","analysis":"/api/acts/state-assets-privatisation-restrictions-act-2024/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/state-assets-privatisation-restrictions-act-2024/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/state-assets-privatisation-restrictions-act-2024/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/state-assets-privatisation-restrictions-act-2024/documents"}}