Andrew Barr (I think, hard to say with Labor releases at the moment) is celebrating the ratings agency Standard and Poors keeping the ACT credit rating at AAA:
Retaining the AAA rating is an endorsement of Labor’s fiscal strategy to return the ACT Budget to surplus in a measured and responsible way.
This rating, and our economic [...]

So last night the ACT Treasury announced the release of their pre-election budget update.
The Territory’s financial performance remains within the boundaries outlined in 2012-13 Budget fiscal strategy and Budget Plan. The Budget continues to forecast a return to surplus by 2015-16.
The outlook for the GGS Headline Net Operating Balance for 2012-13 has, however, declined [...]

Michael Pascoe is one of the best economics and business commentators this country has ever produced.
So it’s really something when he comes out in the Sydney Morning Herald singing hosannas to the greater glory of ACT Treasurer Andrew Barr and the tax reforms started in the recent ACT Budget.
it’s been easy to miss that there [...]

The ACT Government had 12 media releases to accompany this year’s budget.
The Greens have this afternoon rather trumped that with an omnibus monster mash of 19 statements.
Subjects covered include:
1. Deficit spending misses opportunity to invest in Canberra’s future
2. ACT first to respond to tax reform advice
3. Greens priority for mental health funding successful
4. Budget a missed opportunity on climate [...]

Liberal Leader Zed Seselja is hopping mad about yesterday’s ACT Budget changes to stamp duty.
ACT Opposition Leader Zed Seselja today labelled ACT Labor’s supposed
commitment to cutting stamp duty as deceptive, saying ACT Labor’s plan would leave many first home buyers who are currently eligible for concessions $8,338 worse off on the purchase of an [...]

First off the mark is the Heart Foundation who are pretty happy with the active living policies.

Chiming in the Liberals think it’s awful:
“Today’s Budget shows that the ACT Labor Government is costing the average Canberra
family over $10,000 every year,” Mr Seselja said today.
“Canberrans have never paid more, and have never received less in return. [...]

Andrew Barr’s office has kicked off the budget reporting with the Budget overview, which is now promising the jam tomorrow surplus in 2015-16.

So what else do we have?
There is “support for local business” which seems to mean spending money.

Also a pretty major overhaul of taxes:
– Conveyancing duty (also known as stamp duty) will be abolished. [...]

Budget lockups are an anachronist joke that’s come down to us from the days when interest rates were announced as part of the Commonwealth budget (and thus would actually impact financial markets).
But the ACT Budget lockup has taken it to new levels with Andrew Barr facebooking photographs from the lockup. Followed by the ABC on [...]

If the Labor Government can announce its good news items pre-budget why not let Zed have a go too?
“Tomorrow’s Budget will very much be a report card on ACT Labor’s 11 years of financial mismanagement,” Mr Seselja said today.
“This is the highest taxing government in Territory history, delivering some of the worst services [...]

Back in 2009 the ACT Government conspired with the ABC to cook their Corroboree Frog captive breeding program fortunately things have recovered since then to the point Simon can be photographed with one of the lovely amphibians.
And he’s also announced some money in tomorrow’s budget for them:
The captive breeding program for the Northern Corroboree frog [...]

Simon Corbell is joining in the good news budget pre-announcement fiesta (imagine the whiteboard work on this lot) with an ABC friendly $666,000 for the women’s legal centre.
Attorney General, Simon Corbell, has announced $666,000 in the 2012-13 Budget to help the Women’s Legal Centre find new and more suitable accommodation so it can continue to [...]

As a dog owning inner northican I’d always thought the lack of dog parks in the dog-rich area was because we know how to walk our dogs without government assistance.
But no, Andrew Barr (still spreading pre-budget pixie dust) has announced that an as-yet unspecified locale will be getting the facility.
“The Budget provides $60,000 in 2012-13 [...]

When the Commonwealth announced matching funds yonks ago this one seemed like a no brainer.
But yesterday Andrew Barr saw fit to let us know it’s in the budget for this year.
T20 here we come.

Yesterday the Liberals took the bold step of promising $210,000 to install card reading parking machines.
This was swiftly followed by Andrew Barr promising to spend $300,000 on the exact same thing.
If only negligible sums could be spent on sensible things during the whole electoral cycle!

Playing the media like a violin today’s budget pre-announcement is $605,000 from Andrew Barr for Exhibition Park:
The works will significantly upgrade the existing ageing facilities and help to attract more events and exhibitions to EPIC.
The Conference Centre and Parkes Room are crucial to hosting larger events as they link the Budawang and the Coorong, EPIC’s [...]

The London Circuit Soviet has not had to cast its gaze far to find something else to pre-announce from the budget.
Joy Burch has gone for a twofer and announced the Canberra Theatre Centre is getting upgrades to the seating in the Playhouse and the Courtyard studio.
“These upgrades will benefit theatre audiences through better seating, new [...]

The ongoing prostitution of the budget process continues with today’s announcement that there’s some money (a bit less than the amount required to build a seagull intersection on a highway) going into childcare.
Making the announcement at Civic Early Childhood Centre, Ms Burch also released the ACT
Education and Care Workforce Strategy 2012-2014, which outlines the Government’s [...]

Budget pre-announcement continues today with an upgrade to Gungahlin’s fenced oval in the form of a grandstand courtesy of Andrew Barr.
I am pleased to announce that $6.5 million has been allocated in this year’s budget for the construction of a new grandstand at the Gungahlin Enclosed Oval.
To be built on the western side of the [...]

Just putting this up as a placeholder until 7.30pm when Swanny either lays waste to Canberra or shows he was just kidding.
Comments on your reading of the budget below thanks.

So here are the papers. Get cracking.

So working through the Budget Overview we find. $33.6 billion in savings.

The Canberra Times anticipates 17,000 job losses in Canberra [...]

The ABC have the news that, in a further prostitution of the budget process as the spinners turn, an extra $12 million for the National Capital Authority is coming tonight, spread over 4 years, and predicated on “simplifying” planning controls on national land.
Regional Australia Minister Simon Crean says the NCA must resolve confusion about [...]

The Liberals’s Zed Seselja and Brendan Smyth are proudly announcing they’ve got the Assembly on board for their Financial Management (Cost of Living) Amendment Bill 2012:
ACT Deputy Opposition Leader Brendan Smyth, who introduced the Bill, said it is disappointing it took legislation for the government to take notice of the cost of living problems they’ve [...]

Andrew Barr has the happy news that the Commonwealth Grants Commission is bestowing extra GST money on the good people of Canberra:
The CGC report recommends draft new relativities – these relativities govern how much each state/territory receives.
The ACT’s relativity has increased, largely because of:
– Rising cost of providing services, notably health; and
– Infrastructure costs [...]

Is it that time of year already?
Katy Gallagher and Andrew Barr have kicked off the budget fan dance with a community pleasing extra $22 million for parks, playgrounds, and other urban amenity out of the money coming in from developers:
“This fund will mean an extra $22 million in 2012-13 for more parks and playgrounds, more [...]

The ACT has dabbled in social media by trying a series of one-hour Virtual Community Cabinets on Twitter, using the hashtag #ACTVCC. But it is pretty hard to have a meaningful discussion about complex government issues in 140 characters or less – including spaces. Or in single crammed sessions held sporadically.
They have also always sought [...]

Andrew Barr is asking for your thoughts on the 2012-13 ACT Budget.
This process provides an important opportunity for the community, representative and peak bodies and individuals to submit their views on what they believe the Government’s revenue and resource allocation priorities should be in 2012?13 and future years.
These ideas will all feed into Government’s revenue [...]