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How government works in Australia
Federal, state & local government responsibilities
Australia was created as a Federation of States in 1901, and has three layers of government - local, state and federal. It can be difficult to understand where the responsibilities of each level of government stop & start as there are some areas in which there seems to be an overlap. The purpose of the table below is to help clarify which level of government is responsible for what.
The funding of health, education and infrastructure is an area in which there may be particular confusion between state and federal responsibilities. The Federal Government collects the bulk of our taxes (income tax, GST) and redistributes it to the states for the funding of health, education and infrastructure. While it is the state government's role to provide efficient services where they are needed, the services are funded by the Federal Government. So both governments may impact the quality of service delivery - ie the efficiency of state government operations as well as the choices made by the state government in where and how to allocate the funds, enabled by the level of funding provided by the Federal Government.
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As you know, Australia has a constitution that lays down basic rights and laws for everyone, but each State, like NSW and Tasmania also have their own constitutions that govern how they must operate. Sometimes there may be conflicts between state and federal law, and where this occurs federal law applies.
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The table below is a generalised snapshot, and we hope it will assist you in understanding who is responsible for what. Let us know if you want more information on this topic in future updates of the website:
Responsibility | Federal | State | Local |
|---|---|---|---|
Health | Medicare (pays doctors);
PBS & drug regulation;
Funding for state hospitals;
Subsidise/regulate aged care;
Food regulation; | Hospitals (including nurses and other staff);
Ambulance;
Enforce food regulation; | Health inspections of shops and food retail outlets;
Aged care services; |
Environment | Compliance with international treaties (eg areas declared world heritage; COP/Climate change agreements); | Land zoning & development;
Agriculture & fishing;
Environmental protection including waster disposal & pollution control; | Local land zoning & development;
Trees, parks & footpaths;
Garbage collection;
Local environment controls; |
Education | Universities & higher education;
Funding for state education; | Schools, teachers & curriculum;
Vocational education (eg TAFE); | Kindergarten, preschools and child care; |
Defence; Borders; Foreign Policy & Trade; | Immigration; Quarantine;
Defence;
Foreign policy: trade & tariffs;
Maritime Law; | States ratify (agree to) international trade agreements made by the Federal Government; | |
Law & Order | Federal laws eg Marriage Act;
Federal criminal law eg drugs, customs, corporate/tax, migration etc; | State laws eg traffic violations, violence, corruption, breaches of the peace;
State police & prisons; | Enforces building regulation & compliance incl boarding houses; Parking infringements; |
Business & Workplace | Banking & insurance;
Media regulation including ABC funding;
Copyright law;
Bankruptcy & insolvency; | Industrial relations;
Consumer law;
Workplace law; | |
Public Service (other) | Federal executive govt eg treasury, environment, health, defence;
Weights & measures; Laws for territories; Federal police; Intelligence services; | State executive govt eg treasury, environment, health, planning;
State public service: police & emergency services, school teachers, nurses; | Council workers: gardeners, garbage collection, parking police; |
Utilities | Postal & telecommunications including internet services; | Power, gas, water, sewage;
Renewable energy generation;
Management of State assets (eg water, power), including decisions to privatise; | |
Citizenship | Citizenship; Marriage Act; | Registration of births, deaths & marriages; | |
Community support, Lifestyle and The Arts | National Institutions incl National Library, Gallery, Sport & others;
Federal grants to the Arts sector via Aust'n Council for the Arts; | Sport & recreation; State Library; Regulation of gambling, racing; States sports centre; Arts grants; Public housing; Domestic violence shelters; | Local facilities: sports fields & playgrounds, swimming pools, markets, art & culture; Meals on wheels, Domestic violence shelters; |
Transport & Infrastructure | National roads & railways;
Regulation of airlines; | Public transport: rail, road;
Management of major state roads, including decisions to privatise (eg toll roads);
State rail lines; | Local roads, street signs and bus stops; |
Resources & Mining | Owns Australia's mineral resources;
Grants offshore mining licences;
Grants mineral export licenses; | Owns state's mineral resources;
Grants mining licenses at ministerial discretion; | |
Tax & Finance | Income & company tax, GST;
Tax redistribution to fund states;
Pensions & welfare payments;
Custom tariffs on imports; | Land tax, stamp duty (house & car);
Gambling taxes;
Car registration;
Funding to local councils; | Local rates & taxes |
What's in a name?
In 1900 the Australian Constitution declared the name of the federation of Australian states as the 'Commonwealth of Australia'. The word 'commonwealth' was originally derived from a term that means 'for the good of all'. The Australian Federal Government is also called the Commonwealth Government or simply 'The Australian Government'.
