Introduction to the ACT Budget

This information session, hosted and facilitated by ACTCOSS provides an overview of the ACT budget and supports members to navigate and read key documents. 

The session will cover a broad overview of how public sector budgets work by stepping through the politics of budget-making and the role of key actors in creating it. This includes the different roles and priorities of politicians and public servants in crafting a budget. It will explore how the budget is structured, with some practical advice for reading and understanding the different documents that end up in the budget.

About the facilitator: 
Jacob Priergaard a social policy researcher who joined ACTCOSS in June 2025. Jacob began his career in the Australian Public Service, working on social security and then health policy before completing a PhD at ANU. His research looks at how public institutions, including budgets, shape policies that impact disadvantaged people.

Jacob joined ACTCOSS as a generalist Senior Policy Advisor and is leading ACTCOSS’ submissions to the ACT budget.