Regional Development Australia Fund (RDAF)

The Australian Government has allocated almost $1 billion to the Regional Development Australia Fund (some of which is subject to the passage of the Minerals Resource Rent Tax).

The RDAF is administered by the Department of Regional Australia, Local Government, Arts and Sport (the Department).

ROUND TWO

On 3 November 2011, Minister for Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government, the Hon Simon Crean MP, launched Round Two of the RDAF and provided a further $200 million to support priority projects in regional Australia.

Key changes

• A two-stage application and assessment process, including a short paper-based Expression of Interest (EOI)

• A stronger role for Regional Development Australia (RDA) committees;

• Applicants can submit one EOI and application for a single project;

• Maximum grant of $15 million;

• Preference for applications that demonstrate partnership funding of 1:1 for grant requests of $5 million and less, and 1:2 for grant requests of more than $5 million;

• At least 50 per cent of partnership funding must be cash;

• Not-for-profit organisations must have a minimum annual income of $1.5 million;

• Projects located in capital cities must demonstrate how the proposed project will benefit the broader region, or other parts of regional Australia; and

• Provision of guidance on content of mandatory documents.

Expressions of Interest

RDAF Round Two - Expressions of Interest

Expressions of Interest (EOIs) for Round Two applicants closed on Thursday, 1 December 2011.

Regional Development Australia (RDA) committees have considered all EOIs from their region and selected up to three priority projects to proceed to full application.

The Department has advised both selected and unsuccessful applicants of the outcome of their EOI. A list of all EOIs and outcomes of the assessment process - [PDF: 708 KB].

The Department has invited the proponents of the priority projects in each RDA region to submit a full application. A list of all projects to proceed to full application - [PDF: 405 KB].

An outline of the process followed to select the proponents proceeding to full application is [PDF: 404 KB].

Proponents of EOIs which are not proceeding to full application should contact their RDA committee for feedback. RDA committees will provide feedback to proponents by the end of February 2012.

If proponents have any further enquiries in relation to RDAF Round Two, please email the RDAF Inbox at RDAF@regional.gov.au.

RDAF Round Two - Full Applications closed COB Wednesday, 15 February 2012 (5pm local time)

Applications for Round Two of RDAF have now closed.

The Department has commenced the assessment of applications to ensure compliance with the eligibility criteria, and to determine value-for-money and risk. The Advisory Panel will consider all eligible applications and provide advice to the Minister on the most meritorious projects.

A list of projects to be funded from Round Two is expected to be announced by the Minister in late May 2012. Advice on the outcome of application will be provided to all proponents. The Department will also provide feedback to proponents following the Minister's announcement.

A Frequently Asked Questions Document on the Application and Assessment Process - [PDF: 682 KB].

Round Three

This website will be updated to reflect announcements on Round Three.

Any queries on the GMS Portal or the online form should be directed to the Infoline on 1800 005 494.

• Regional Development Australia Fund - Guidelines for Round Two [PDF: 936 KB]
• Regional Development Australia Fund - Amendments to Guidelines for Round Two [PDF: 259 KB]
• Regional Development Australia Fund - draft Funding Agreement template [PDF: 878 KB]

Round Two Timeline

Milestone	Anticipated Dates
RDA Regional Plans finalised	Monday 31 October 2011
RDAF Round Two announced	Thursday 3 November 2011
RDAF Round Two Guidelines published	Thursday 3 November 2011
Expressions of Interest open	Thursday 3 November 2011
Expressions of Interest close	Thursday 1 December 2011
RDA committee decisions on Expressions of Interest	Wednesday 21 December 2011
Notification of outcomes of the Expression of Interest process by the Department	Wednesday 11 January 2012
Full applications for Round Two close	Wednesday 15 February 2012
Minister announces successful projects	Commences mid to late May 2012
Funding Agreements negotiated and executed	Within 8 weeks of Minister's announcement

ROUND ONE

Outcomes of Round One

The Department of Regional Australia, Local Government, Arts and Sport received a very strong response to RDAF Round One, with 553 applications submitted by local government and not-for-profit organisations. Up to $150 million was approved for investment-ready projects that supported the growth of local communities across the country. This was extended from $100 million due to the strong response from communities.

All eligible applications were assessed by the RDAF Advisory Panel. Applications were required to meet the mandatory program criteria outlined in the program guidelines.

Under Round One, grants of between $500,000 and $25 million will support 35 projects across the country.

For more information on Round One can be found here.

Feedback for Applicants

Requests for feedback for Round One applicants closed on Monday, 7 November 2011. Feedback was available to applicants since the announcement of successful projects on 7 September 2011.

RDAF ADVISORY PANEL

In each round of the RDAF all eligible applications are assessed by an expert independent Advisory Panel - [PDF: 213 KB].

The panel comprises of:

• Mr Christian Zahra (Chair);
• Professor Barbara Norman (Deputy Chair);
• Mr Justin Hanney;
• Mr Brad Orgill; and
• Professor Fiona McKenzie

COMPLAINTS

To review the process on how to lodge a complaint about a decision, download the following document - [PDF: 140 KB].