The ACT branch of the Labor party received $790,985 from its investment arm in the 2016-17 financial year, making the 1973 Foundation the biggest form of income for any of the major parties.
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In data released on Thursday, ACT Labor declared receipts of $2,434,788 with the almost $800,000 payment making up 32 per cent of the party's income. It also received $38,000 from the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union and $47,575 from the Community and Public Sector Union.
The latest release covers the lead up to the 2016 ACT election and the months following the 2016 federal election, with returns from the Australian Electoral Commission making up the bulk of declared receipts for the major parties.
Labor received $959,703 from the ACT electoral commission, while the Liberals received slightly less at $917,438.
The ACT branch of the Liberal party declared receipts of $1,997,602, with $190,901 coming from the federal branch of the party. Highlighting the long delay in federal donations disclosures, the $95,000 donation from Forrest couple Craig and Eva Edwards to the ACT Liberals is included in documents released this week, despite the donation being made in September 2016 and reported in October of that year.
The ACT Greens declared $668,192 in receipts, with $408,721 coming from ACT elections.
The disclosures reveal that Labor-associated entities continue to reap huge value from pokies, with the CFMEU's ACT branch reporting $1,750,000 from the Tradies Club. Of its $4 million in receipts, the union also received $390,000 from its training arm Creative Safety Initiatives. The CFMEU also declared $292,500 from its property arm, the Marque Northbourne Trust.
Canberra Labor Clubs reported just under $75 million in receipts for the financial year, but didn't declare any payments made to political parties or other entities. The ACT Gambling and Racing Commission revealed last year that the Labor Clubs made $24 million directly from gaming machines in the same period.
The combination of the two elections falling in the one 12 month period led to a bump in receipts for the major parties, with the Liberals experiencing a 41 per cent jump year on year, Labor with a 44 per cent increase and the Greens with a 54 per cent bump.
Under federal disclosure laws, only donations of more than $13,200 are required to be disclosed, but under ACT laws donations of $1000 or more must be disclosed.
