Governance Framework

Establishes procedural requirements for administration of income and expenditure under the FMA, including handling of unidentified money, surplus money, and unpresented cheques Mandatory

Evidence: Compliance with income/expenditure administration procedures

Prescribes investigation procedures for loss or damage to public property, including investigator appointment, employee representation rights, and reporting requirements Mandatory

Evidence: Investigation reports for loss/damage incidents

Provides for inspection of records of authorities by authorised persons Mandatory

Evidence: Records available for inspection

Applies to

Department, Public Body — All categories

Detail

Financial Management Regulations 2024

Summary

The Financial Management Regulations 2024 (S.R. No. 28/2024) are subordinate legislation made under the Financial Management Act 1994. They establish procedural details for income/expenditure administration, investigation of loss or damage to public property, and inspection of authority records. As regulations, they sit above Standing Directions in the order of precedence (Direction 1.7).

This is a relatively thin instrument — the substantive governance obligations flow from the FMA and Standing Directions. The Regulations primarily deal with operational procedures rather than procurement-specific requirements.

Structure

Part	Content
Part 1	Preliminary — definitions, objectives, authorising provisions
Part 2	Administration of Income and Expenditure — unidentified and surplus money, unpresented cheques
Part 3	Investigation of Loss or Damage — preliminary notice, investigator appointment, employee representation, conduct of investigation, witness procedures, reporting
Part 4	Inspection of Records of Authorities

Part 3 — Investigation of Loss or Damage (Key Detail)

The most substantive part of the Regulations prescribes a formal investigation framework:

Preliminary notice before investigation commences
Appointment of investigator by the accountable officer
Employee representation rights during investigation
Access to assistance and information for all parties
Notice to relevant employee of the investigation
Conduct of investigation — procedural fairness requirements
Witness procedures — including where witness suspected of causing loss
Report on completed investigation — formal report with copies to relevant parties

Order of Precedence (Direction 1.7)

In the Standing Directions hierarchy, the order of precedence is:

1. FMA 1994 (primary legislation)
2. Financial Management Regulations 2024 (subordinate legislation)
3. Standing Directions 2018 (ministerial directions)
4. Instructions (issued by Secretary DTF)

The Regulations prevail over Standing Directions where there is any inconsistency.

Relationships

Mandated By

Legislation FMA Subordinate legislation made under the Financial Management Act 1994

Relates To

Standing Direction SDs FM Regulations sit in the Standing Directions order of precedence (Direction 1.7) — Regulations take precedence over Standing Directions

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