What it does
The Financial Accountability Act 2009 is the principal legislation governing financial management, accountability, and reporting for the Queensland public sector. It replaces the Financial Administration and Audit Act 1977 (s91) and establishes a comprehensive framework for the consolidated fund, appropriations, ministerial responsibilities, departmental and statutory body financial governance, investment, and borrowing. The Act declares that all public moneys and public property are the property of the State (s3). It requires the Premier to prepare and table a statement of the government’s broad community objectives from time to time (s10) and the Treasurer to prepare and table a charter of fiscal responsibility detailing fiscal objectives and principles (s11). The Act creates the consolidated fund as the central repository for all public moneys (s16-s17) and mandates ledger accounts including the Treasurer’s consolidated fund operating account and investment account (s17(1)). It governs appropriations through annual appropriation Acts - both ordinary annual appropriation Acts for departments and parliamentary annual appropriation Acts for the Legislative Assembly and parliamentary service (s6, s27). The Act provides mechanisms for supply before enactment of appropriation Acts (s31-s32), variation of departmental headings (s33), unforeseen expenditure authorised by the Governor in Council (s35), and the lapsing of unspent appropriations after a further two weeks following the financial year (s29(3)). It imposes extensive reporting obligations: quarterly consolidated fund statements by the Treasurer (s22), a consolidated fund financial report for the fourth quarter (s23), consolidated whole-of-government financial statements certified by the Treasurer, under-Treasurer and the most senior officer of the responsible department (s25), and annual financial statements and annual reports by accountable officers and statutory bodies (s62-s63). The Act also establishes the corporation sole of The Treasurer of Queensland (s53) to hold property and enter into transactions, and permits the Treasurer to invest public moneys in specified securities and arrangements (s50) and to borrow for the State (s55). Departments are subject to strict controls: they may invest or lend only under a Treasurer’s approval or an express power under another Act (s87), may enter into derivative transactions only to hedge risk and with Treasurer’s approval (s85), and may form or participate in a company only with a business case and Treasurer’s approval (s88). A significant modernising addition in 2021 (Part 5A) requires that information that was previously required to be published in print must now be published online, subject to limited exemptions for regional newspapers, public health and safety purposes, and certain court or tribunal matters (s88F-s88K). The Act empowers the Treasurer to make financial and performance management standards as subordinate legislation (s57) and to grant exemptions from compliance with those standards (s59). It also imposes personal liability on officers and employees for losses or deficiencies in public moneys or property, recoverable as a debt due to the State (s73-s74). The Act binds all departments, statutory bodies as defined (s9), accountable officers (s65-s67), and Ministers, and it excludes local governments, certain professional oversight bodies, and universities from the definition of statutory body for the purposes of Part 5A (s88E). The Act creates offences for giving false or misleading documents or information to the Treasurer (s46-s47) with a maximum penalty of 50 penalty units, and enables regulations to create offences punishable by up to 5 penalty units (s90). During election periods, treasury employees are prohibited from giving oral or written comments or cost estimates on policy proposals of political parties or candidates, except to other treasury employees or as authorised under another Act (s89).