Important mandatory requirement information

The Australian Government’s policy on the internet listing of contracts is an important accountability and transparency mechanism in Australian Government contracting activity.

Why must I?

On 20 June 2001, the Senate agreed to an Order requiring each Minister to table a letter of advice that all agencies they administer have placed on the internet all contracts which provide for consideration to the value of $100 000 or more. Meeting the Senate Order on departmental and agency contracts  was amended on 4 December 2003 to provide for annual, rather than biannual, reporting by the Auditor-General on agency compliance with the elements of the Order.

What must I do?

The Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines (CPGs) set out the Australian Government’s requirements for publishing information relating to the procurement of property or services including reporting of contracts awarded.

Under the Senate  Order No. 9, agencies must publish details of:

• Each contract entered into by the agency which has not been fully performed or which has been entered into during the previous 12 months, and which provides for a consideration to the value of $100 000 or more.
• The contractor, the amount of the consideration, the subject matter of each such contract, the commencement date of the contract, the duration of the contract, the relevant reporting period and the twelve-month period relating to the contract listings.
• Whether each such contract contains provisions requiring the parties to maintain confidentiality of any of its provisions, or whether there are any other requirements of confidentiality, and a statement of the reasons for the confidentiality.
• An estimate of the cost of complying with this order and a statement of the method used to make the estimate.

How do I?

The Listing of Contract Details on the Internet (Meeting the Senate Order on Departmental and Agency Contracts) – FMG 8 provides guidance to agencies on how to publish contract details on their websites and includes templates for use by agencies.

The guidance should be read in conjunction with the Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines (CPGs) which set out the Australian Government’s requirements for publishing information relating to the procurement of property or services.

Subjects:

• Senate Order
• Contracts
• AusTender
• Procurement