The bill provides the remaining seven-twelfths of funding for Australia’s Parliamentary Departments for the 2025–26 financial year, reintroducing lapsed appropriations and applying an $800 million savings measure on non-wage and consultant spending. It ensures continuous funding for the Department of the Senate, Department of the House of Representatives, Department of Parliamentary Services and the Parliamentary Budget Office.

The Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Bill (No. 1) 2025-2026 re-authorises appropriations from the Consolidated Revenue Fund for the Parliamentary Departments to cover the final seven months of the 2025–26 financial year and fund Budget measures. In accordance with sections 53 and 54 of the Constitution, it is a separate bill from ordinary annual services. The Bill is structured as follows:

• Part 1 (Clauses 3–5): definitions of terms (e.g. "departmental item", "administered item"), interpretation via the 2025–26 Portfolio Budget Statements, and treatment of notional transactions under the PGPA Act.
• Part 2 (Clauses 6–10): appropriations for departmental items (operational expenses and minor assets), administered items (grant and benefit programs), administered assets and liabilities, and equity injections (major capital projects and liability reductions).
• Part 3 (Clause 11): Advance to the responsible Presiding Officer (APO) provisions, allowing limited additional urgent allocations ($300,000 for each departmental head, $1 million for Parliamentary Services).
• Part 4 (Clauses 12–14): crediting to special accounts, ongoing CRF appropriation adjustments under sections 74 and 75 of the PGPA Act, and automatic repeal on 1 July 2028.

Schedule 1 lists the specific appropriation amounts for each Parliamentary Department, net of recoverable GST. The Bill largely mirrors the lapsed 47th Parliament version and reflects the $800 million election-commitment savings on consultants, contractors and non-wage expenses.