prepare an annual report in accordance with Schedule 1 for each financial year; and
(b) give it to the responsible Minister by the deadline for the financial year for presentation to the Parliament.
Note: Section 34C (other than subsection 34C(2)) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 applies to annual reports prepared under this section.
(2) The deadline is:
(a) the 15th day of the 4th month after the end of the financial year; or
Note: The deadline will be 15 October if the financial year ends on 30 June. Financial year is defined in section 5.
(b) the end of such further period granted under subsection 34C(5) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.
10 Modified requirements for first year of existence
(1) If a Commonwealth authority is established during the last 3 months of a financial year:
(a) the directors are not required to prepare an annual report for that financial year; and
(b) the period from the time of establishment to the end of the financial year must be dealt with in the next annual report.
(2) If a Commonwealth authority is established during the first 9 months of a financial year, the annual report for the financial year must cover the period from the time of establishment to the end of the financial year.
11 Contravention of annual report rules by directors
(1) A director of a Commonwealth authority contravenes this subsection if the director:
(a) causes a directors’ reporting rule to be contravened; or
(b) fails to take all reasonable steps to comply with, or secure compliance with, a directors’ reporting rule.
Note: This subsection is a civil penalty provision (see Schedule 2).
(1A) A director of the authority commits an offence if the director contravenes subsection (1) and the contravention is dishonest.
Penalty: 2,000 penalty units or imprisonment for 5 years, or both.
(2) If a contravention of a directors’ reporting rule consists of an omission from the financial statements, it is a defence if the defendant proves that the information omitted was immaterial and did not affect the giving of a true and fair view of the matters required by the Finance Minister’s Orders to be included in the statements.
(3) In this section:
directors’ reporting rule means section 9 or any of the requirements of Schedule 1 that impose obligations on the directors.
12 Audit of relevant subsidiary’s financial statements
(1) Subject to subsection (4), the directors of a Commonwealth authority must do whatever is necessary to ensure that all relevant subsidiary’s financial statements are audited by the Auditor-General.
(2) For a subsidiary that is a Corporations Act company that, under the Corporations Act 2001, is required to have those statements audited, the Auditor-General’s report on the subsidiary’s financial statements must be prepared using the relevant rules in the Corporations Act 2001. Those rules must also be used for other subsidiaries, so far as is practicable.
(3) The directors of the authority must give the report to the responsible Minister, together with a copy of the relevant subsidiary’s financial statements.
(4) Relevant financial statements of a subsidiary do not have to be audited by the Auditor-General if:
(a) the subsidiary is incorporated or formed in a place outside Australia; and
(b) either:
(i) under the law applying to the subsidiary in that place, the Auditor-General cannot be appointed as auditor of the subsidiary; or
(ii) in the Auditor-General’s opinion, it is impracticable or unreasonable for the Auditor-General to audit, or to be required to audit, the statements.
(5) In this section:
relevant subsidiary’s financial statements, in relation to a Commonwealth authority, means financial statements of an entity for an annual accounting period of the entity, where the entity is a subsidiary of the authority at the end of that accounting period.
Subdivision B
Other reporting obligations
13 Interim reports
(1) The Finance Minister may, by notice in the Gazette, require particular Commonwealth authorities or a class of Commonwealth authorities to give the responsible Minister either:
(a) an interim report for the first 6 months of a financial year; or
(b) an interim report for each of the following periods:
(i) the first 3 months of each financial year;
(ii) the first 6 months of each financial year;
(iii) the first 9 months of each financial year.
(2) The interim report must include:
(a) a report of operations, prepared by the directors in accordance with the Finance Minister’s Orders; and
(b) financial statements, prepared by the directors in accordance with the Finance Minister’s Orders; and
(c) a report prepared by the Auditor-General in accordance with the regulations.
(3) The directors must give the interim report to the responsible Minister within 2 months after the end of the period to which the report relates.
(4) The responsible Minister may grant an extension of time in special circumstances.
(5) The responsible Minister must table the interim report in each House of the Parliament as soon as practicable.
14 Estimates
(1) The directors of a Commonwealth authority (other than a GBE) must prepare budget estimates for each financial year, and for any other periods directed by the responsible Minister.
(2) The estimates:
(a) must be in the form required by the responsible Minister; and
(b) must be given to the responsible Minister within the time required by the responsible Minister.
15 Responsible Minister to be notified of significant events
(1) If a Commonwealth authority, or any of its subsidiaries, proposes to do any of the following things, the directors of the Commonwealth authority must immediately give the responsible Minister written particulars of the proposal:
(a) form a company or participate in the formation of a company;
(b) participate in a significant partnership, trust, unincorporated joint venture or similar arrangement;
(c) acquire or dispose of a significant shareholding in a company;
(d) acquire or dispose of a significant business;
(e) commence or cease a significant business activity;
(f) make a significant change in the nature or extent of its interest in a significant partnership, trust, unincorporated joint venture or similar arrangement.
(2) The responsible Minister may give written guidelines to the directors that are to be used by the directors in deciding whether a proposal is covered by subsection (1).
16 Keeping responsible Minister and Finance Minister informed
(1) The directors of a Commonwealth authority must:
(a)