Media regulator must now report news outlet changes
A small add-on law links the list of news businesses to a new fund that pays newsrooms for their reporters. It helps decide which outlets can get a share of money from big tech companies.
Official name: News Journalism Payments (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2026
- Big social media and search companies must pay a charge or do deals with Australian news outlets.
- Money from that charge goes to newsrooms through the new News Journalism Payment Scheme.
- To get paid, an outlet must be on a list kept by the media watchdog.
- This law makes the watchdog tell the scheme's boss whenever an outlet joins, leaves or changes on that list.
Who it affects
- News businesses on the watchdog's list: Changes to their listing will now be passed on to the people who decide their payments.
- The Australian Communications and Media Authority: It is the media watchdog. It must send notices to the Communications Department, which looks after phones, internet and media, each time one of ten listed events happens.
- The head of the Communications Department: They will get the facts they need to check which outlets can be paid.
Code let platforms skip paying
In 2021 Australia brought in the News Media Bargaining Code. It was meant to push big online platforms to pay news outlets for news.
It followed a 2019 report by the competition and consumer watchdog (the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission). That agency checks that businesses compete fairly.
The Parliamentary Library works for all MPs and takes no side. It says Meta, which owns Facebook, then said it would not renew its deals with Australian news outlets. Those deals were thought to be worth $70 million a year. The code let platforms avoid paying by dropping news.
On 12 December 2024 the government said it would bring in a News Bargaining Incentive. Large social media and search companies must pay a charge. They can cut or wipe out the charge by doing deals with Australian news outlets.
Five bills set this up. One of them is the News Journalism Payments Bill. It creates a fund that hands any money raised to newsrooms that qualify. This bill is a small add-on to that one.
The news business register
The media watchdog (the Australian Communications and Media Authority) looks after media and phones. Under the 2021 code, it keeps a list of news businesses that qualify.
To be listed, an outlet must publish news and have a mostly Australian audience. It must also meet professional standards.
Each news business is linked to a company that runs it. The watchdog gives that company a formal OK for the news business. The law calls this an endorsement.
To get money from the new fund, a company must be listed and have the OK at three times. These are when it applies, when it is checked, and for the whole time it is paid.
The head of the Communications Department runs the fund. Before this law, nothing made the watchdog tell the department head about changes on its list.
Ten events ACMA reports
The bill adds a new section to the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, the main law on fair trading. It lists ten events. When one happens, the watchdog must tell the department head as soon as it can. It must give the date and set details.
Three events are about joining. The watchdog must report when it first lists a news business, or lists a company. It must also report when it gives a company the OK for a news business.
Four events are about being removed. The watchdog must report when it takes a news business or a company off the list. It must also report when it takes away an OK.
That can happen if the outlet stops meeting the tests, or gave false or misleading details. The watchdog must also say why.
One event is when a company tells the watchdog its outlet no longer qualifies. Another is when it says the outlet's owners have changed.
The last two are when the watchdog adds a news source to a listed business, or takes one away. A news source could be a website or a newspaper title.
Say a local news site is sold, or stops publishing news. The watchdog would pass this on. The department head could then check whether the site can still be paid.
Privacy
The notices could include names, addresses or phone numbers. The reasons for taking a business off the list are usually not public.
The government says the sharing is kept to what is needed. It says the department must protect the details under the Privacy Act, the main federal privacy law. It must destroy them when they are no longer needed.
Start date
Communications Minister Anika Wells brought the bill to the House of Representatives on 13 August 2026. The House passed it on 19 August 2026.
The Senate passed it on 20 August 2026. The Senate is the second house of Parliament, which checks bills.
The Governor-General signed it into law on 26 August 2026. The Governor-General is the King's stand-in in Australia. It is Act number 76 of 2026.
The new reporting rules start when the News Journalism Payments Act starts. If that law never started, these rules would not start either.
How they voted
| Vote | Result |
|---|---|
| Vote to add a statement Senate, 20 August 2026 Labor 26 no, Greens 9 aye, One Nation 3 aye, Liberal 3 no, Independent 1 aye | Noes won 29 to 13 |
| Vote on a change Senate, 20 August 2026 Labor 25 no, Liberal 17 aye, Greens 9 no, One Nation 3 aye, Nationals 2 aye, LNP 1 aye, Independent 1 no | Noes won 35 to 23 |
| Vote on a change Senate, 20 August 2026 Labor 25 no, Greens 9 aye, Liberal 5 no, One Nation 3 no, Independent 1 aye, Nationals 1 no | Noes won 34 to 10 |
| Vote on a change Senate, 20 August 2026 Labor 26 aye, Greens 9 no, Liberal 4 aye, One Nation 3 aye, Independent 1 no | Ayes won 33 to 10 |
| Vote on a change Senate, 20 August 2026 Labor 26 no, Greens 9 aye, Liberal 4 no, One Nation 3 no, Independent 1 aye | Noes won 33 to 10 |
Its journey through Parliament
| 13 Aug 2026 | House of Representatives: Introduced and read a first time |
| 13 Aug 2026 | House of Representatives: Second reading moved |
| 18 Aug 2026 | House of Representatives: Second reading debate |
| 19 Aug 2026 | House of Representatives: Second reading agreed to |
| 19 Aug 2026 | House of Representatives: Third reading agreed to |
| 20 Aug 2026 | Senate: Introduced and read a first time |
| 20 Aug 2026 | Senate: Second reading moved |
| 20 Aug 2026 | Senate: Second reading debate |
| 20 Aug 2026 | Senate: Second reading agreed to |
| 20 Aug 2026 | Senate: Third reading agreed to |
| 20 Aug 2026 | : Finally passed both Houses |
| 26 Aug 2026 | : Assent Act no : 76 Year : 2026 |