Federal Budget 2019-20 – May Federal Election touted

Posted on April 3rd, 2019

Last night’s Federal Budget 2019/20 dubbed by the Treasurer as “back in the black and Australia is back on track,” paves the way for an interesting Federal Election campaign.  Rather than being debated and passed in Parliament this week, the Budget is essentially the blue-print for a May federal election.

Whilst all budgets attract both support and criticism from a plethora of groups, there’s no doubt this budget has a strong focus on major infrastructure and tax cuts for business and middle income earners.

QTIC 2019-20 Federal Budget announcement

 Fact sheet from Kennas 2019/20 Federal Budget

Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) Tourism calls on Government to ‘Budget’ for industry growth

Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) A modest tourism budget amidst a $7.1bn surplus

Small business welcomes Budget surplus, tax cuts and calls for corporate tax rate acceleration

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland (CCIQ) has welcomed the announcement of a budget surplus for the first time in a decade with the nation’s finances benefitting from higher commodity prices with income tax relief, a positive for the nation’s workers.

The Federal Budget papers revealed a surplus of A$7.1 billion effectively being brought forward a year earlier than originally forecast and at a time where receipts from Australia’s mining sector continues to support the economy amidst a backdrop of weakening business confidence and subdued growth.

We have broken down some of the key takeouts of the Federal Budget that are relevant to small business.

OVERALL BUDGET OUTLOOK
  • Total revenue for 2019-20 is expected to be $513.8 billion, an increase of 3.6% on 2018-19.
  • Total expenses are expected to be $500.9 billion, an increase of 2.8% on expenses in 2018-19.
SMALL BUSINESS
  • The instant asset write-off scheme will be increased from $25,000 to $30,000, which businesses with an annual turnover of $50 million can use each time they purchase new assets.
  • Higher tax discount rates for unincorporated small businesses up to $1,000, to 13% in 2020-21.
SKILLS AND TRAINING
  • The Budget includes $525 million for a skills package, which in part is designed to help create 80,000 new apprenticeships in sectors with skills shortages.
  • Businesses that hire apprentices in these industries will receive incentive payments worth $8,000 per placement.
  • The program includes a $2,000 incentive payment for apprentices.
INFRASTRUCTURE
  • Increasing infrastructure investment to $100 billion over the decade, including
    • Bruce Highway at $10 billion.
    • M1 Pacific Highway at $1.2 billion.
    • Beerburrum to Nambour Rail Upgrade at $390 million.
    • Brisbane Metro at $300 million.
    • Melbourne to Brisbane Inland Rail total funding at $9.3 billion.
AGRICULTURE
  • Immediate and targeted relief to Australian farmers dealing with natural disasters.
  • New $3.9 billion Emergency Response Fund.
  • $300 million in grants for flood-affected farmers.
  • $1.8 billion in low-cost loans to support banks offering lower interest rates to flood-affected farmers.
  • $6.3 billion in assistance and concessional loans to support farmers affected by drought.
  • Investing $3.9 billion in the Future Drought Fund.
INCOME TAX
  • Tax relief for low and middle-income earners up to $1,080 for singles and $2,160 for dual income families.
  • 32.5% rate will be lowered to 30% and 37% rate will be abolished in 2024-25.

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