ParliamentParliamentary departmentExists today
Department of the Senate
1901 – present
Parliamentary department, headed by the Clerk of the Senate, that supports the Senate, the President, senators and Senate and joint committees.
How it came into existence
Established in 1901 to serve the Senate when the first Commonwealth Parliament met in Melbourne. It had no Commonwealth predecessor.
Legislation: Parliamentary Service Act 1999
Changes during its life
- 9 May 1927Moved with the Parliament from Melbourne to the provisional Parliament House in Canberra.
- 1988Moved into the new Parliament House on Capital Hill.
- 5 December 1999The Parliamentary Service Act 1999 commenced, giving the department its statutory basis and making its staff parliamentary service employees.
Main functions
- Procedural advice to the President and senators
- Chamber support and the Journals of the Senate
- Secretariat support to Senate and joint committees
- Parliamentary education and public information
- Services to senators
Where it sits
- Type of body
- Non-corporate Commonwealth entity
- Portfolio
- Parliamentary Departments
- Accountable authority
- The Clerk of the Senate – Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 section 12(2) item 2, see also Parliamentary Service Act 1999 section 7
- ABN
- 23 991 641 527
Lineage
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Sources
Primary sources
- List of Commonwealth entities and companies under the PGPA Act, 1 July 2026 (Department of Finance)
- Australian Government Organisations Register (Department of Finance, data.gov.au) (listed from 11 December 2014 to the latest release (30 June 2026))