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Commonwealth act
This Act has been repealed and is no longer in force. It is retained for historical reference.
This Act creates a Commonwealth funding scheme for Australian universities for the 1967–1969 triennium, financing running costs, capital works, postgraduate research, student accommodation and medical teaching facilities. Funds flow through States under conditions (including matching contributions and limits on senior academic pay), with penalties for non‑compliance. It enabled the 1960s expansion of campuses, research capacity and modern medical education by underwriting major building and operational investments.
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Direct links to the current provisions in Universities (Financial Assistance) Act 1966.
Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation (legislation.gov.au), CC BY 4.0.
Universities (Financial Assistance)
No. 90 of 1966
An Act to make provision for the grant of Financial Assistance to the States in connexion with Universities.
[Assented to 29 October 1966]
[Date of commencement, 26 November 1966]
BE it enacted by the Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty, the Senate, and the House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Australia, as follows:—
Short title.
Interpretation.
2.—(1.) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears—
“capital expenditure” means—
(a) expenditure on the purchase of land, with or without buildings, the planning, erection or alteration of a building, the development or preparation of land for building or other purposes or the installation of water, electricity and other services, other than expenditure on the alteration of a building at a cost of less than Ten thousand dollars; and
(b) expenditure exceeding Forty thousand dollars for the purchase of, or otherwise in connexion with, a single item of equipment;
“fees” means tuition, examination, matriculation and other fees payable to a University by a student enrolled at, or applying for enrolment at, the University in connexion with his course of study or attendance at the University, and includes fees payable to the University in respect of the conferring of a degree or diploma, but does not include fees the payment of which is voluntary or fees payable to an organization of students;
“hall of residence”, in relation to a University, means a hall, college or other establishment at which any students of the University reside, being an establishment—
(a) administered by the University, or by a body corporate established by the University; and
(b) approved by the Minister, for the purposes of this Act, as a hall of residence;
“residential college”, in relation to a university, means a residential college (not being a hall of residence) affiliated with the University;
“special research purposes”, in relation to a University, means purposes of the University in connexion with post-graduate training in research that are approved by the Commission as special research purposes, being purposes of such a special nature that, in the opinion of the Commission, they justify the provision of financial assistance under this Act additional to that provided in relation to University purposes generally;
“State contributions” means moneys paid by a State to a University for university purposes, other than moneys paid in fulfilment of the conditions upon which a payment is or has been made to the State by the Commonwealth under this Act or any other Act;
“the Commission” means the Australian Universities Commission established by the Australian Universities Commission Act 1959–1965;
“University” means a University referred to in any of the Schedules, and includes any other place of education referred to in the First or Second Schedule;
“university purposes”, in relation to a University, means the general teaching and research purposes of that University in connexion with courses of study at that University, and includes external tuition for courses
of study at that University and planning and other preparatory work in connexion with proposed courses of study;
“year to which this Act applies” means any of the years One thousand nine hundred and sixty-seven, One thousand nine hundred and sixty-eight and One thousand nine hundred and sixty-nine.
(2.) In this Act, a reference to a Schedule shall be read as a reference to a Schedule to this Act.
Grants for recurrent expenditure.
3.—(1.) In relation to each University specified in a Part of the First Schedule there is payable, in respect of the year to which that Part relates, to the State in which the University is situated, for the purpose of financial assistance—
(a) if the sum of the fees received by the University during that year and the State contributions paid in respect of the University during that year (other than fees or State contributions used for capital expenditure or expenditure on special research purposes) is not less than the amount specified in respect of that University in the second column of that Part—the amount specified in respect of that University in the third column of that Part; or
(b) in any other case—so much of the amount specified in respect of that University in the third column of that Part as bears to that amount the same proportion as the sum of those fees and State contributions bears to the amount specified in respect of that University in the second column of that Part.
(2.) Where the Minister is satisfied that a State contribution paid after the expiration of a year to which this Act applies related to university purposes in respect of that year, he may, in his discretion and with the approval of the State, direct that, for the purposes of this section, that contribution shall be treated as having been paid during that year.
(3.) The financial assistance to a State under this section in relation to a University is granted on the conditions that—
(a) the State will, in respect of each payment of that financial assistance and without undue delay, pay to the University an amount equal to that payment; and
(b) the State will ensure that each amount so paid is applied by the University for expenditure on university purposes, not being capital expenditure or expenditure on special research purposes.
Salary rates.
4.—(1.) For the purposes of financial assistance under this Act in respect of a year to which this Act applies—
(a) the approved rate of basic professorial remuneration is Ten thousand four hundred dollars per annum;
(b) the approved rate of remuneration for an associate professor or a reader is Eight thousand six hundred dollars per annum;
(c) the approved maximum rate in a range of remuneration for a senior lecturer is Seven thousand six hundred dollars per annum; and
(d) the approved minimum rate in a range of remuneration for a lecturer is Four thousand eight hundred dollars per annum.
(2.) Where the Minister is satisfied that a University, in a year to which this Act applies, has paid—
(a) basic professorial remuneration at a rate higher than the rate referred to in paragraph (a) of the last preceding sub-section;
(b) remuneration to associate professors or readers at a rate higher than the rate referred to in paragraph (b) of the last preceding sub-section;
(c) remuneration to senior lecturers in accordance with a range of remuneration the maximum rate of which was higher than the rate referred to in paragraph (c) of the last preceding sub-section; or
(d) remuneration to lecturers in accordance with a range of remuneration the minimum rate of which was higher than the rate referred to in paragraph (d) of the last preceding sub-section,
the Minister may determine that the amount payable under the last preceding section in relation to that University in respect of that year shall be limited to such amount as he considers would have been the amount so payable if the approved rates referred to in the last preceding sub-section had been observed, and, in making such a determination, the Minister may have regard to the relationship between rates of remuneration referred to in this section and other rates of remuneration paid by the University.
Grants for expenditure on University building projects, &C.
5.—(1.) Subject to this section, if a State contribution received by a University specified in the first column of the Second Schedule in the period of three years to which this Act applies was made for the purpose of assisting the University to carry out a project of that University specified in respect of that University in the second column of that Schedule, there is payable under this section to the State in which the University is situated, for the purpose of financial assistance, an amount equal to the State contribution.
(2.) The respective total sums payable to a State under the last preceding sub-section in relation to the several projects of a University shall not exceed the amounts respectively specified in the third column of the Second Schedule opposite to the descriptions of those several projects or such other amounts, not exceeding in all the sum of the amounts so specified, as are approved by the Minister.
(3.) Where a project specified in the Second Schedule consists of, or includes, the erection, alteration or extension of a building, that project shall be deemed to include the provision of furnishings and equipment, as approved by the Commission for the purposes of this section, for that building, or for the altered parts or the extensions of that building, as the case may be.
(4.) The financial assistance to a State under this section in relation to a project of a University is granted on the conditions that—
(a) the State will, in respect of each payment of that financial assistance and without undue delay, pay to the University an amount equal to that payment; and
(b) the State will ensure that each amount so paid to the University is applied by the University, without undue delay, towards that project.
(5.) A State contribution in relation to which the State is entitled to a payment of financial assistance under this section shall not be taken into account for the purposes of section 3 of this Act.
Grants for special research purposes.
6.—(1.) Subject to this section, where, in the period of three years to which this Act applies, a University specified in the Third Schedule incurs expenses in respect of special research purposes and applies moneys derived from a State contribution towards meeting those expenses, there is payable to the State in which the University is situated, for the purpose of financial assistance, an amount equal to—
(a) one-half of those expenses; or
(b) the amount derived from a State contribution that is applied towards meeting those expenses,
whichever is the less.
(2.) The sum of the amounts payable to a State under this section in relation to a University shall not exceed the amount specified in respect of that University in the Third Schedule.
(3.) Where, in the period of three years to which this Act applies—
(a) an amount has been paid to a State by way of financial assistance under the States Grants (Research) Act 1965–1966;
(b) payment of that amount was subject to the condition that the amount would be applied by the State for the purposes of expenditure in connexion with research at a University; and
(c) payment of that amount was not subject to a condition that the State would apply a further amount for the purposes of expenditure in connexion with that research, or was subject to a condition that the State would so apply a further amount, being an amount less than the amount paid to the State,
the Minister may determine that the total of the amounts otherwise payable to the State under this section shall be reduced by such amount as he determines.
(4.) The financial assistance to a State under this section in relation to any expenses of a University is granted on the conditions that—
(a) the State will, in respect of each payment of that financial assistance and without undue delay, pay to the University an amount equal to that payment; and
(b) the State will ensure that the University promptly discharges any outstanding liability in respect of those expenses.
(5.) Except as otherwise approved by the Minister, this section does not apply in relation to expenses of a University in respect of a project referred to in section 5 or section 10 of this Act and, where such an approval is given in respect of any expenses, the State contribution applied towards meeting those expenses shall not be taken into account for the purposes of section 5 or section 10 of this Act, as the case may be.
Capital grants in respect of halls of residence and residential colleges.
7.—(1.) Subject to this section, if—
(a) during the period of three years to which this Act applies, an amount derived by a University from a State contribution is expended on the purchase, erection or alteration of a building of a hall of residence, or an amount derived otherwise than in consequence of the grant of financial assistance by the Commonwealth to the State in which the relevant University is situated is expended by the body administering a residential college on the purchase, erection or alteration of a building of the college;
(b) the Minister has, at the request of the State in which the relevant University is situated, approved the grant of financial assistance in respect of the purchase, erection or alteration; and
(c) the whole or a part of the expenditure is approved by the Commission for the purposes of this section,
there is payable to that State, for the purpose of financial assistance, an amount equal to so much of the expenditure as is so approved by the Commission.
(2.) For the purposes of the last preceding sub-section, expenditure by a University or body on the provision of furnishings and equipment, as approved by the Commission for the purposes of this section, for a building that has been erected by that University or body, or for additions that have been made to a building by that University or body, shall be deemed to be expenditure on the erection or alteration of that building.
(3.) Subject to this section, the sum of the amounts payable under this section in relation to halls of residence of, and colleges affiliated with, a particular University shall not exceed the amount specified in the Fourth Schedule in respect of that University.
(4.) If, at any time during the period of three years to which this Act applies, the Minister certifies that he is satisfied that the amount specified in the Fourth Schedule in respect of a University exceeds by not less than a specified amount the total of the sums that have become payable, and any further sums that may become payable, under this section to a State in relation to that University, the Commission may, subject to the approval of the Minister, determine that this section shall have effect as if—
(a) an amount determined by the Commission, not exceeding the amount specified in the certificate of the Minister, were deducted from the amount specified in the Fourth Schedule in respect of that University; and
(b) an amount equal to, or amounts determined by the Commission and together equal to, the amount so deducted were added to the amount or amounts specified in the Fourth Schedule in respect of such other University or Universities situated in that State or in another State as the Commission determines.
(5.) The financial assistance to a State under this section is granted on the condition that the State will, in respect of each payment of that financial assistance and without undue delay, pay to the University or body administering the hall of residence or residential college in relation to which that payment is made an amount equal to that payment.
Recurrent grants in respect of halls of residence and residential colleges.
8.—(1.) There is payable to each State, in respect of each year to which this Act applies, for the purpose of financial assistance in relation to halls of residence and residential colleges, amounts determined in accordance with this section.
(2.) In relation to each hall of residence, there is payable to a State under this section in respect of a year an amount of Five thousand dollars.
(3.) In relation to each residential college, there is payable to a State under this section in respect of a year the amount that is specified in the following table in relation to the number of resident students of the college in the year:—
| Number of resident students | Amount | | ------------------------------------------------------------
This is an opening excerpt, not the complete document.