Commonwealth State Agreements

An intergovernmental agreement (ACCORD) is an agreement between the Commonwealth and the governments of the states and territories (the states). Although intergovernmental agreements are not legally binding, they express the obligation of governments to cooperate on specific goals or objectives. For most agreements, the intergovernmental agreement is in force once it has been signed by the Commonwealth and a state or territory. Under the CSTDA, the governments of Australia, the states and territories contribute to a research and development trust fund dedicated to research on disability issues of national importance. The Australian Government is responsible for the administration of the Trust Fund on behalf of all jurisdictions. The Working Group on Disability Policy and Research is responsible for selecting research projects based on the fact that they focus on the states/territories and the Australian government and that they must seek to address national disability issues. The first CSHA only provided funds for the construction of new housing, and 50% of these apartments had to go to former defense personnel. The apartment should only be for renting — the Commonwealth has provided credit funds and the states should be responsible for providing the services. Much of the housing built by the first CSHA was located on large plots of land on the outskirts of Australia`s major cities and was partly responsible for the urban sprawl that marked the post-war years. The Commonwealth States Disability Agreement (CSTDA) provides the national framework for providing government support for services to persons with disabilities. Under the three agreements signed to date (the first in 1991), state and territory governments are responsible for planning, policy-making and managing housing support, community support, community access and acute care services for persons with disabilities. The Australian government has similar responsibilities when it comes to specialized employment assistance. Governments recognize that the nature of services can change over time.

For example, services that were once classified as employment services for persons with disabilities may change their activities over time, so they are now better classified as community access services/day option services. Similarly, services that originally focused on daytime options may have increased their orientation to employment to such an extent that they are considered more appropriate than employment services for persons with disabilities. It can better meet the needs of these services and their clients so that the level of government with administrative responsibility changes to accommodate the agreed responsibilities under the CSTDA. The agreement was concluded as follows: The Agreement Search Tool provides access to all funding agreements between the Commonwealth and state and territory governments. The current CSHA expires in mid-2003 and efforts are already underway to start negotiations on a new agreement from 2003. The 1999 agreement is intended to support families and individuals who cannot be adequately housed in the private market. It builds on the 1996 agreement on strengthening accountability and reporting mechanisms and how results are measured. An essential feature of this agreement is that housing assistance must be needs-based, contrary to the previous concept of security of ownership.

The FfR underpins the Australian federal system and accounts for about 25% of total Commonwealth Government expenditure and about 40% of public and territorial expenditure. . . .