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Commonwealth act
This Act has been repealed and is no longer in force. It is retained for historical reference.
What this law does, in plain language
This Act (the National Security Act 1946) gives the Principal Act (the National Security Act 1939–1943) a new, fixed end date. It repeals the previous section 19 of the Principal Act and inserts a new section saying the Principal Act, together with all regulations, orders, rules and by‑laws made under it, will cease to have effect at midnight on 31 December 1946 (see s.2, inserted section 19).
The Act also provides short title and citation details for the Principal Act as amended (s.1).
Who it affects
Anyone subject to the Principal Act or to any regulation, order, rule or by‑law made under the Principal Act — including individuals, businesses and government agencies — will be affected because those instruments automatically stop operating on the specified date (inserted s.19).
The Executive branch (which previously relied on a proclamation mechanism under the Principal Act’s original wording) loses the ability to keep the emergency framework running by proclamation beyond the date now fixed by Parliament (see Preamble and the change effected by s.2).
Why it matters and how it works mechanically
Mechanism: Parliament replaces the Principal Act’s prior continuation mechanism with a statutory cut‑off. The inserted section 19 makes the Principal Act and all subordinate instruments cease at midnight on 31 December 1946. No further proclamation or separate action is required for cessation on that date (s.2, inserted s.19).
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Direct links to the current provisions in National Security Act 1946.
Zoe has indexed the source text for search and analysis. Use the official register for the original document and download formats.
View on official registerSourced from the Federal Register of Legislation (legislation.gov.au), CC BY 4.0.
Official rationale stated in the Preamble: the Commonwealth notes that a formal state of war still existed with certain countries and says it is "desirable that the National Security Act 1939–1943 should be terminated before a state of peace with all of those countries has come into existence." The Act implements that outcome by fixing a termination date (Preamble; s.2).
Costs, incentives, trade‑offs and implementation risks (source‑grounded)
Who pays: regulated persons and entities must continue to comply with the Principal Act and its subordinate instruments until midnight 31 December 1946; enforcement and administrative costs remain with agencies until that date (inserted s.19).
Incentives and decision‑making: by fixing an end date in primary legislation, Parliament removes the earlier flexibility to extend operation by proclamation (Preamble; compare Preamble’s description of the earlier proclamation mechanism to the new inserted s.19). That produces legal certainty about when the wartime framework will expire, but it also prevents the Executive from extending the framework unilaterally beyond the fixed date.
Compliance burden and administrative discretion: the Act causes all regulations and subordinate instruments to cease automatically on the stated date (inserted s.19). The automatic cessation reduces ongoing executive discretion to continue those instruments past the fixed date, and it places on agencies and regulated parties the task of winding up or transitioning activities before that deadline.
Transitional and legal‑gap risk: the inserted provision does not set out transitional arrangements for matters still in progress under existing regulations, orders, rules or by‑laws. That creates a practical risk that outstanding regulatory processes, licences, prosecutions or administrative actions will need separate statutory or administrative treatment before the expiry date to avoid legal or operational gaps (inserted s.19).
Opportunity costs and follow‑on choices: if certain powers remain necessary after the fixed date, Parliament or the Executive must create new legal authority (through fresh legislation or other lawful instruments consistent with the Constitution). The Act therefore shifts the cost of any continued emergency powers from executive proclamation to explicit parliamentary action (Preamble; inserted s.19).
Concentration of benefits and costs: the provisions affect government agencies (which lose the continuing legal basis for emergency measures at the fixed date) and regulated persons (who regain freedom from those measures at the fixed date). The text does not allocate compensatory measures or transitional procedures; any concentrated interests seeking exceptions would need further legislative or administrative steps (inserted s.19).
Key citations from the instrument
Summary sentence