Documenting Democracy
Australia's Story
Commonwealth
Return to original scan
View amendments
10 August 1967 | 29 July 1977

Return to list of
Commonwealth documents
Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act
Amendment to Section 128, pages 24 and 25


Amendments
After the Referendum on 21 May 1977, the Constitution Alteration (Referendums) Act 1977 (enacted on 29 July 1977) made the following additions to Section 128:


128. This Constitution shall not be altered except in the following manner:–

The proposed law for the alteration thereof must be passed by an absolute majority of each House of the Parliament, and not less than two nor more than six months after its passage through both Houses the proposed law shall be submitted in each State and Territory to the electors qualified to vote for the election of members of the House of Representatives.

But if either House passes any such proposed law by an absolute majority, and the other House rejects or fails to pass it, or passes it with any amendment to which the first-mentioned House will not agree, and if after an interval of three months the first-mentioned House in the same or the next session again passes the proposed law by an absolute majority with or without any amendment which has been made or agreed to by the other House, and such other House rejects or fails to pass it or passes it with any amendment to which the first-mentioned House will not agree, the Governor-General may submit the proposed law as last proposed by the first-mentioned House, and either with or without any amendments subsequently agreed to by both Houses, to the electors in each State and Territory qualified to vote for the election of the House of Representatives.

When a proposed law is submitted to the electors the vote shall be taken in such manner as the Parliament prescribes. But until the qualification of electors of members of the House of Representatives becomes uniform throughout the Commonwealth, only one-half the electors voting for and against the proposed law shall be counted in any State in which adult suffrage prevails.

And if in a majority of the States a majority of the electors voting approve the proposed law, and if a majority of all the electors voting also approve the proposed law, it shall be presented to the Governor-General for the Queen's assent.

No alteration diminishing the proportionate representation of any State in either House of the Parliament, or the minimum number of representatives of a State in the House of Representatives, or increasing, diminishing, or otherwise altering the limits of the State, or in any manner affecting the provisions of the Constitution in relation thereto, shall become law unless the majority of the electors voting in that State approve the proposed law.

In this section, "Territory" means any territory referred to in section one hundred and twenty-two of this Constitution in respect of which there is in force a law allowing its representation in the House of Representatives.




Source: Constitution Alteration (Referendums) Act 1977 (No. 84 of 1977). (NAA: A1559/1, 84/1977)
Effect
Although Section 122 of the Constitution enables the Parliament to grant representation to a Territory in either the Senate or the House of Representatives, this amendment to Section 128 was necessary to enable voters in the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory to vote in referendums.

search  |  site map | copyright  |  credits  |  about this site  |  contact  |  back to top