Guide to This Report

OTHER SOURCES OF INFORMATION
ACCRUAL-BASED REPORTING

This report is the Secretary's account to the Minister for Transport and Regional Services of the performance of the Department of Transport and Regional Services during 1998-99. Where appropriate, information on developments subsequent to 30 June has been included in the interests of providing a more complete report.

The Secretary's and Corporate Overviews outline major developments and changes that occurred during 1998-99.

The main body of the report provides an assessment of the Department's performance against the outputs and administered items structure set out in the 1998-99 Portfolio Budget Statements (PBS) and 1998-99 Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements.

The appendixes to the report include additional statistical information and other material required of departmental annual reports. The report concludes with a list of acronyms and abbreviations, and indexes.

OTHER SOURCES OF INFORMATION

Information about the Department, its functions and publications is available on its website or by contacting the Communications and Public Affairs Unit:

Director
Communications and Public Affairs
Department of Transport and Regional Services
PO Box 594
CANBERRA ACT 2601

Tel: (02) 6274 7522
Fax: (02) 6274 7706
Email: publicaffairs@DOTARS.gov.au

ACCRUAL-BASED REPORTING

The Department of Transport and Regional Services 1998-99 PBS reflected the Department's commitment to move towards an output-based accrual budgeting framework from the 1998-99 Budget. The financial statements were prepared on a program basis similar to 1997-98.

The 1998-99 PBS outputs structure was based on services provided by individual divisions and correlated closely the standard program structure outlined in previous PBSs. Thus it is relatively easy to compare 1998-99 information with previous years. For example:

Previous Program Structure	1998-99 Output Class Structure
Program 1 Aviation
1.1 Aviation Policy	1. Aviation
1.2 Aviation Operations	2. Airports
1.3 Investigating for Aviation Safety - Bureau of Air Safety Investigation	3. Air Safety Investigation
1.4 International Air Services Commission	4. International Air Services Commission Secretariat
Program 2 Land Transport
2.1 Road and Rail Policy Development	5. Road, Rail and Infrastructure Policy and Programs
2.2 Federal Office of Road Safety	6. Road Safety
Program 3 Maritime	10. Maritime
Program 4 Regional Development	9. Regional Development, Territories and Local Government
Program 5 Corporate Direction and Support 5.1 Executive 5.2 Management Support and Advice	(no longer reported separately)
5.3 Research - Bureau of Transport Economics	8. Research
Program 6 Territories and Local Government	9. Regional Development, Territories and Local Government
(previously disbursed throughout several sub-programs)	7. Transport and Trade Development

There is no Output Class analogous to the former Executive and Management Support and Advice subprograms. Key management initiatives are addressed in the Corporate Overview. Corporate appears as a separate program for financial reporting purposes.

This report includes for each output class performance information against that planned in the 1998-99 PBS.

The Department's planned major activities during 1998-99 were directed toward the Government achieving five outcomes sought for the community:

sustainable economic and employment growth;
equity;
transport safety and security;
protection of the national interest in Australia's territories; and
protection of the environment.

Performance measures are more detailed than under the previous program structure and are closely aligned with the activities described under each output class.

In reporting against the transitional output class structure, the Department aims to provide a document that will improve the level and quality of information available to Senators and Members.

The future

The 1999-2000 PBS was prepared on a service delivery, rather than an organisational, basis. The structure better reflects the outputs and services the Department will provide to Ministers and on their behalf.

The Ministers' desired outcome for 1999-2000 of Linking Australia through transport and regional services reflects the Government's priorities:

economic prosperity and employment;
accessibility;
environmental sustainability;
safety;
national culture; and
effective governance.

The 10 Output Classes of 1998-99 have been refined to five Output Groups for 1999-2000 to describe better the nature of the goods and services purchased from the Department by the Government:

Policy Advice and Ministerial Services;
Regulatory, Investigative and Safety Services;
Services to Communities;
Services for Industry and Government; and
Revenue Administration.

There are two Administered Item Groups for 1999-2000:

Services to Communities Administered on Behalf of the Commonwealth; and
Services to Industry Administered on Behalf of the Commonwealth.