Statutory Corporation
Encyclopedia
A statutory corporation or public body is a corporation created by statute
. While artificial legal personality
is almost always the result of statutory intervention, a statutory corporation does not include corporation
s owned by shareholders whose legal personality derives from being registered under a relevant company statute.
Common examples of statutory corporations include Bar Council
s, municipal council
s, universities
, central bank
s and government regulators.
, statutory corporations are created by Acts of state or federal parliaments. Current statutory corporations include Australia Post
, Airservices Australia
, the Australian Rail Track Corporation
and the Australian Egg Corporation
. The purpose of their separation from normal government operations is to ensure profitability, and in theory, independence of decision making from the state or national government (to ensure that decisions are made on a commercial basis with less or no political interference.)
As statutory corporations, their regulatory and business conditions may be significantly different from private-sector companies. An example of this in Australia is the regulatory conditions placed on the national communications company Telstra
.
A significant number of the statutory corporations are private commercial operations, a number of which have been privatised, in part or in whole, since the 1980s: these have included the national airline Qantas
, Telstra
(also previously known as Telecom Australia), and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia
.
. An example of a statutory corporation is a "Kassenärztliche Vereinigung", a body involved in the provision of out-patient medical services in a German state.
This is a corporate body created by the legislature with defined powers and functions and is financially independent with a clear control over a specified area or a particular type of commercial activity. It is a corporate person and has the capacity of acting in its own name. Statutory corporations therefore have the power of the government and considerable amount of operating flexibility of private enterprises.
Few are
, a statutory corporation is a body corporate, which is created under a particular Act of the Oireachtas, which is expected to operate as if it were a commercial company (with or without a subsidy
from the Exchequer, depending on whether or not it would make a profit without one). Such bodies do not have shareholders, but are typically boards appointed by a sponsor minister. The provisions of the Companies' Acts do not typically directly apply to such bodies, although their founding legislation may specify similar requirements. As they are not formally companies they do not make a profit
or loss
, but rather a surplus or deficit.
The statutory corporation format was usually the form most state-sponsored bodies of the Republic of Ireland
took until recent years, however usual policy today is that a private limited company by shares or public limited company
incorporated under the Companies' Acts is set up instead, with the relevant Minister holding 100% of the issued share capital. Nonetheless several prominent statutory corporations continue to exist, such as Radio Telefís Éireann, the Electricity Supply Board
, and Bord Gáis Éireann
, the term "public body" is the general denomination for administrative division
s within the Dutch state or certain other types of governmental organisations.
, a statutory corporation is a corporate body created by statute. It typically has no shareholders and its powers are defined by the Act of Parliament which creates it, and may be modified by later legislation. Such bodies were often created to provide public services, examples including British Railways, the National Coal Board
and the Post Office Corporation. Other examples include the county council
s, the National Assembly for Wales
, Channel Four Television Corporation and the Olympic Delivery Authority
. The phrase is not used to describe a company which operates as a conventional shareholder-owned company registered under the Companies Acts.
See also
s and counties are often created by legislative acts. Some organizations such as a transit district
or special purpose corporations such as a university
, are also created by statute. In some states, a city or country can be created by petition of a certain number or percentage of voters or landholders of the affected area, which then causes a municipal corporation to be chartered as a result of compliance with the appropriate law. Corporations to be established for most other purposes are usually just incorporated as any other non-profit corporation, by filing the paperwork with the appropriate agency as part of the formation of the entity.
At the Federal level, a small number of corporations are created by Congress
. Prior to the District of Columbia being granted the ability to issue corporate charters in the late 19th century, corporations operating in the District required a congressional charter
. With limited exceptions, most corporations created by Congress are not federally chartered, but are simply created as District of Columbia corporations as a result of the enabling law.
There are a number of federally chartered corporations that still exist, some relatively famous ones include the Boy Scouts of America
, each of the Federal Reserve Bank
s, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
. The basic advantage for being federally chartered is that no other corporation anywhere in the United States is allowed to have the same name.
Statute
A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs a state, city, or county. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. The word is often used to distinguish law made by legislative bodies from case law, decided by courts, and regulations...
. While artificial legal personality
Legal personality
Legal personality is the characteristic of a non-human entity regarded by law to have the status of a person....
is almost always the result of statutory intervention, a statutory corporation does not include corporation
Corporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
s owned by shareholders whose legal personality derives from being registered under a relevant company statute.
Common examples of statutory corporations include Bar Council
Bar council
A bar council , in a Commonwealth country and in the Republic of Ireland, the Bar Council of Ireland is a professional body that regulates the profession of barristers together with the King's Inns. Solicitors are generally regulated by the Law society....
s, municipal council
Municipal council
A municipal council is the local government of a municipality. Specifically the term can refer to the institutions of various countries that can be translated by this term...
s, universities
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
, central bank
Central bank
A central bank, reserve bank, or monetary authority is a public institution that usually issues the currency, regulates the money supply, and controls the interest rates in a country. Central banks often also oversee the commercial banking system of their respective countries...
s and government regulators.
Australia
In AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, statutory corporations are created by Acts of state or federal parliaments. Current statutory corporations include Australia Post
Australia Post
Australia Post is the trading name of the Australian Government-owned Australian Postal Corporation .-History:...
, Airservices Australia
Airservices Australia
Airservices Australia is an Australian Government agency, responsible for providing safe and environmentally sound air traffic control management and related airside services to the aviation industry within the Australian Flight Information Region...
, the Australian Rail Track Corporation
Australian Rail Track Corporation
Australian Rail Track Corporation is a federal government owned corporation established in 1997 that owns, leases, maintains and controls the majority of main line standard gauge railway lines on the mainland of Australia, known as the Defined Interstate Rail Network .-History:The Interstate...
and the Australian Egg Corporation
Australian Egg Corporation
The Australian Egg Corporation Limited is the major marketer of eggs in Australia. It is a producer-owned corporation, representing approximately 400 commercial egg producers and based in Sydney. The activities of AECL include marketing, research and development, and policy services...
. The purpose of their separation from normal government operations is to ensure profitability, and in theory, independence of decision making from the state or national government (to ensure that decisions are made on a commercial basis with less or no political interference.)
As statutory corporations, their regulatory and business conditions may be significantly different from private-sector companies. An example of this in Australia is the regulatory conditions placed on the national communications company Telstra
Telstra
Telstra Corporation Limited is an Australian telecommunications and media company, building and operating telecommunications networks and marketing voice, mobile, internet access and pay television products and services....
.
A significant number of the statutory corporations are private commercial operations, a number of which have been privatised, in part or in whole, since the 1980s: these have included the national airline Qantas
Qantas
Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia. The name was originally "QANTAS", an initialism for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services". Nicknamed "The Flying Kangaroo", the airline is based in Sydney, with its main hub at Sydney Airport...
, Telstra
Telstra
Telstra Corporation Limited is an Australian telecommunications and media company, building and operating telecommunications networks and marketing voice, mobile, internet access and pay television products and services....
(also previously known as Telecom Australia), and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia
Commonwealth Bank of Australia
The Commonwealth Bank of Australia is a multinational bank with businesses across New Zealand, Fiji, Asia, USA and the United Kingdom. Commonwealth Bank provides a variety of financial services including retail, business and institutional banking, funds management, superannuation, insurance,...
.
Germany
The Körperschaft des öffentlichen Rechts (KdöR) is a statutory corporation of GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. An example of a statutory corporation is a "Kassenärztliche Vereinigung", a body involved in the provision of out-patient medical services in a German state.
India
Statutory corporation are public enterprises into existence by a Special Act of the Parliament. The Act defines its powers and functions, rules and regulations governing its employees and its relationship with government departments.This is a corporate body created by the legislature with defined powers and functions and is financially independent with a clear control over a specified area or a particular type of commercial activity. It is a corporate person and has the capacity of acting in its own name. Statutory corporations therefore have the power of the government and considerable amount of operating flexibility of private enterprises.
Few are
- Airport Authority of India
- Damodar Vally corporation
- National Highway authority of India
- Central warehousing Corporation
- Inland Waterways authority of India
- Food Corporation of India
Ireland
In the Republic of IrelandRepublic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, a statutory corporation is a body corporate, which is created under a particular Act of the Oireachtas, which is expected to operate as if it were a commercial company (with or without a subsidy
Subsidy
A subsidy is an assistance paid to a business or economic sector. Most subsidies are made by the government to producers or distributors in an industry to prevent the decline of that industry or an increase in the prices of its products or simply to encourage it to hire more labor A subsidy (also...
from the Exchequer, depending on whether or not it would make a profit without one). Such bodies do not have shareholders, but are typically boards appointed by a sponsor minister. The provisions of the Companies' Acts do not typically directly apply to such bodies, although their founding legislation may specify similar requirements. As they are not formally companies they do not make a profit
Profit (accounting)
In accounting, profit can be considered to be the difference between the purchase price and the costs of bringing to market whatever it is that is accounted as an enterprise in terms of the component costs of delivered goods and/or services and any operating or other expenses.-Definition:There are...
or loss
Income statement
Income statement is a company's financial statement that indicates how the revenue Income statement (also referred to as profit and loss statement (P&L), statement of financial performance, earnings statement, operating statement or statement of operations) is a company's financial statement that...
, but rather a surplus or deficit.
The statutory corporation format was usually the form most state-sponsored bodies of the Republic of Ireland
State-sponsored bodies of the Republic of Ireland
A State-Sponsored Body is the name given in Ireland to a state-owned enterprise , that is to say, a commercial business which is benficially owned, either completely or majority, by the Irish Government...
took until recent years, however usual policy today is that a private limited company by shares or public limited company
Public limited company
A public limited company is a limited liability company that sells shares to the public in United Kingdom company law, in the Republic of Ireland and Commonwealth jurisdictions....
incorporated under the Companies' Acts is set up instead, with the relevant Minister holding 100% of the issued share capital. Nonetheless several prominent statutory corporations continue to exist, such as Radio Telefís Éireann, the Electricity Supply Board
Electricity Supply Board
The Electricity Supply Board , is a semi-state electricity company in Ireland. While historically a monopoly, the ESB now operates as a commercial semi-state concern in a liberalised and competitive market...
, and Bord Gáis Éireann
Netherlands
In the NetherlandsKingdom of the Netherlands
The Kingdom of the Netherlands is a sovereign state and constitutional monarchy with territory in Western Europe and in the Caribbean. The four parts of the Kingdom—Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten—are referred to as "countries", and participate on a basis of equality...
, the term "public body" is the general denomination for administrative division
Administrative division
An administrative division, subnational entity, or country subdivision is a portion of a country or other political division, established for the purpose of government. Administrative divisions are each granted a certain degree of autonomy, and are required to manage themselves through their own...
s within the Dutch state or certain other types of governmental organisations.
United Kingdom
In the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, a statutory corporation is a corporate body created by statute. It typically has no shareholders and its powers are defined by the Act of Parliament which creates it, and may be modified by later legislation. Such bodies were often created to provide public services, examples including British Railways, the National Coal Board
National Coal Board
The National Coal Board was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the mines on "vesting day", 1 January 1947...
and the Post Office Corporation. Other examples include the county council
County council
A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries.-United Kingdom:...
s, the National Assembly for Wales
National Assembly for Wales
The National Assembly for Wales is a devolved assembly with power to make legislation in Wales. The Assembly comprises 60 members, who are known as Assembly Members, or AMs...
, Channel Four Television Corporation and the Olympic Delivery Authority
Olympic Delivery Authority
The Olympic Delivery Authority is the statutory corporation responsible for ensuring delivery of venues, infrastructure and legacy for the 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in London...
. The phrase is not used to describe a company which operates as a conventional shareholder-owned company registered under the Companies Acts.
See also
- A non-departmental public bodyNon-departmental public bodyIn the United Kingdom, a non-departmental public body —often referred to as a quango—is a classification applied by the Cabinet Office, Treasury, Scottish Government and Northern Ireland Executive to certain types of public bodies...
is a classification to certain types of public bodies.- QuangoQuangoQuango or qango is an acronym used notably in the United Kingdom, Ireland and elsewhere to label an organisation to which government has devolved power...
(Quasi-non-governmental organisation) is a commonly used acronym to refer to a non-departmental public body.
- Quango
- The Scottish public bodiesScottish public bodiesPublic bodies of the Scottish Government are organisations that are funded by the Scottish Government. It includes executive and advisory non-departmental public bodies ; tribunals; and nationalised industries....
is used to indicate all Quango's and other organisations in Scotland.
United States
At the state level, municipal corporationMunicipal corporation
A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...
s and counties are often created by legislative acts. Some organizations such as a transit district
Transit district
A transit district or transit authority is a special-purpose district organized as either a corporation chartered by statute, or a government agency, created for the purpose of providing public transportation within a specific region....
or special purpose corporations such as a university
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
, are also created by statute. In some states, a city or country can be created by petition of a certain number or percentage of voters or landholders of the affected area, which then causes a municipal corporation to be chartered as a result of compliance with the appropriate law. Corporations to be established for most other purposes are usually just incorporated as any other non-profit corporation, by filing the paperwork with the appropriate agency as part of the formation of the entity.
At the Federal level, a small number of corporations are created by Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
. Prior to the District of Columbia being granted the ability to issue corporate charters in the late 19th century, corporations operating in the District required a congressional charter
Congressional charter
A congressional charter is a law passed by the United States Congress that states the mission, authority and activities of a group. Congress issued federal charters from 1791 until 1992 under Title 36 of the United States Code....
. With limited exceptions, most corporations created by Congress are not federally chartered, but are simply created as District of Columbia corporations as a result of the enabling law.
There are a number of federally chartered corporations that still exist, some relatively famous ones include the Boy Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
, each of the Federal Reserve Bank
Federal Reserve Bank
The twelve Federal Reserve Banks form a major part of the Federal Reserve System, the central banking system of the United States. The twelve federal reserve banks together divide the nation into twelve Federal Reserve Districts, the twelve banking districts created by the Federal Reserve Act of...
s, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is a United States government corporation created by the Glass–Steagall Act of 1933. It provides deposit insurance, which guarantees the safety of deposits in member banks, currently up to $250,000 per depositor per bank. , the FDIC insures deposits at...
. The basic advantage for being federally chartered is that no other corporation anywhere in the United States is allowed to have the same name.
See also
- Government agencyGovernment agencyA government or state agency is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, such as an intelligence agency. There is a notable variety of agency types...
- Statutory Agency
- Crown corporation
- Government-owned corporationGovernment-owned corporationA government-owned corporation, state-owned company, state-owned entity, state enterprise, publicly owned corporation, government business enterprise, or parastatal is a legal entity created by a government to undertake commercial activities on behalf of an owner government...
- Regulatory agency
- Public bodies
- Non-departmental public bodyNon-departmental public bodyIn the United Kingdom, a non-departmental public body —often referred to as a quango—is a classification applied by the Cabinet Office, Treasury, Scottish Government and Northern Ireland Executive to certain types of public bodies...
- Federal agencyFederal agencyFederal agency may refer to:*United States federal agencies—see List of United States federal agencies*Federal agency -See also:*Government agency*Statutory corporation*Statutory Agency*Crown corporation*Government-owned corporation...