2015-2016 Annual Report on the Administration of the Access to Information Act

Introduction

The purpose of the Access to Information Act (Act) is to protect the public’s right to access records under the control of government institutions, while ensuring that the use of exemptions and exclusions is limited and specific. The Act also specifies that any decisions on the disclosure of information should be reviewed independently of government. To this end, the Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) was established under the Act in 1983 as an independent oversight body reporting to Parliament.

When the OIC became subject to the Access to Information on April 1, 2007, the organization committed to providing exemplary service to requesters seeking information about its investigations and operations.

In the subsequent nine years, the OIC has lived up to that commitment, quickly responding to requests and disclosing a broad range of information. As a further service to requesters, the OIC stopped charging any fees for making access requests in 2010.

This report, prepared and tabled in accordance with section 72 of the Access to Information Act, reviews the OIC’s access to information activities for 2015–2016, a record year for access for the organization.

The OIC received 120 formal access requests in 2015–2016—its highest volume to date—and completed all but one of them during the year. The organization also achieved the notable average completion time for these files of 16.6 days. This is the second lowest in the OIC’s history. (See box, right, for these and other highlights.)

About the OIC

The OIC is an independent public body created in 1983 under the Access to Information Act. The OIC’s primary responsibility is to conduct efficient, fair and confidential investigations into complaints about federal institutions’ handling of access to information requests. The OIC primarily uses mediation and persuasion to resolve complaints. The OIC brings cases to the Federal Court to ensure the Act is properly applied and interpreted.

The OIC also supports the Information Commissioner in her advisory role to Parliament and parliamentary committees on all matters pertaining to access to information. The OIC actively makes the case for greater freedom of information in Canada through targeted initiatives such as Right to Know Week and ongoing dialogue with Canadians, Parliament and federal institutions.

Organizational structure

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This organizational chart shows the titles of the two senior officials at the Office of the Information Commissioner who report to the Information Commissioner: Assistant Commissioner, Complaints Resolution and Compliance, and General Counsel and Director, Legal Services. In addition, the chart shows that Corporate Services falls under the responsibility of the Assistant Commissioner and Public Affairs under the responsibility of the General Counsel.

Complaints Resolution and Compliance mediates and investigates complaints about the processing of access to information requests and any issues related to requesting or obtaining access to records under the Act, and makes formal recommendations to institutions and heads of institutions, as required.

Legal Services represents the Commissioner in court as she seeks to clarify points of access law and uphold information rights. Lawyers provide legal advice on investigations, and on administrative and legislative matters, as well as customized reference tools and training on recent case law. Legal Services also monitors legislative developments to determine their possible effect on the Commissioner’s work and access to information in general.

Public Affairs conducts communications and external relations with a wide range of stakeholders, notably Parliament, governments and the media. Public Affairs also provides input to the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat on improving the administration of the Act. Public Affairs is responsible for the OIC’s access to information and privacy function.

Corporate Services provides strategic and corporate leadership for planning and reporting, human resources and financial management, security and administrative services, internal audit and evaluation, and information management and technology.

Access to information activities at the OIC

Secretariat

The OIC has a small team of specialists who carry out the organization’s access to information and privacy (ATIP) activities. In 2015–2016, the ATIP Secretariat comprised the Acting Director (full time) and the Junior ATIP Officer (part time), both supported by a consultant (part time).

Secretariat staff process requests, provide training on access matters to new staff, and develop and implement policies and procedures.

In 2015–2016, the Secretariat held two training sessions for employees on their responsibilities under the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act, with a total of 23 staff in attendance.

In March 2016, the Secretariat introduced A-Tips, a regular series of tips and reminders posted on the OIC intranet to remind employees about their access to information and privacy responsibilities.

ATIP staff monitor the progress of requests to ensure they are processed efficiently, and generate reports on all open requests through the electronic case management system, for review by senior management.

The Acting Director is the co-leader with the Director of Information Management and Information Technology of the OIC’s working group on implementing the government’s open government action plan. The group is reviewing the OIC’s information holdings to determine what it could release proactively online.

The Acting Director and other OIC officials hold full delegated authority under the Act. Appendix A contains a copy of the delegation order. The OIC expects to fill the Director’s position on a permanent basis in 2016–2017.

Information Commissioner ad hoc

Requesters who are of the view that the OIC has improperly handled their access request are entitled to file a complaint. To prevent any conflict of interest and to ensure the integrity of the complaint process, the independent Information Commissioner ad hoc investigates complaints regarding access requests submitted to the OIC.

David Loukidelis was appointed as Commissioner ad hoc on May 4, 2015, taking over from John Sims. The Commissioner ad hoc, who is assisted by an investigator, has the same powers and obligations as the Information Commissioner with respect to conducting investigations and making recommendations. Appendix B contains the two delegation orders that were in effect for Mr. Loukidelis in 2015–2016.

2015–2016 statistics and trends

Appendix C contains the OIC’s statistical report on the Access to Information Act for 2015–2016. The following sets out some highlights from that report, along with notable trends related to workload, timeliness and disclosure over the years the OIC has been subject to the Act.

Workload

The OIC received 120 new requests in 2015–2016, the most it has received in the nine years it has been covered by the Act, and a 35-percent increase from 2014–2015. There were no requests carried over from 2014–2015.

As Figure 1 shows, there was considerable interest in accessing records from the OIC in 2007–2008 and 2008–2009, since it was the first time requesters could formally seek such information. The number of requests dropped and levelled off between 2009–2010 and 2013–2014, followed by noticeable increases in 2014–2015 and 2015–2016.

Figure 1: New requests, 2007–2008 to 2015–2016

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This bar graph shows the number of new requests the Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) received each year between 2007–2008 and 2015–2016, as follows:

• In 2007–2008, the OIC received 93 requests.
• In 2008–2009, the OIC received 113 requests.
• In 2009–2010, the OIC received 28 requests.
• In 2010–2011, the OIC received 46 requests.
• In 2011–2012, the OIC received 48 requests.
• In 2012–2013, the OIC received 44 requests.
• In 2013–2014, the OIC received 33 requests.
• In 2014–2015, the OIC received 89 requests.
• In 2015–2016, the OIC received 120 requests.

 

Nearly three quarters (72.5 percent) of the new requests in 2015–2016 came from members of the public. Members of the media or businesses submitted the remaining requests. Receiving the majority of requests from the public is typical for the OIC. With the exception of the first two years the organization was subject to the Act, individual members of the public have always been the most frequent requesters, accounting for 55 percent or more of new requests each year. In both 2007–2008 and 2008–2009, businesses were the source of the most requests.

In 2015–2016, 44 percent of the new requests the OIC received were from one requester. The requests covered a variety of subject matters and arrived in batches of 15 or 20. The overall volume tested the capacity of ATIP staff to complete requests promptly and prior to the deadlines set out in the Access to Information Act. To ensure they could work efficiently and effectively, ATIP staff grouped the requests by subject matter, and clarified exactly what type of information the requester was seeking.

Given the OIC’s work investigating complaints, the OIC receives numerous requests for investigation files each year. In 2015–2016, the OIC received 68 such requests. The remaining requests were for administrative records (such as correspondence, briefing notes and statistics).

Figure 2: Number of pages processed, 2010–2011 to 2015–2016

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This fever chart shows the number of pages the Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) processed for the requests it completed each year from 2010–2011 to 2015–2016, as follows:

• In 2010–2011, the OIC processed 7,206 pages.
• In 2011–2012, the OIC processed 25,187 pages.
• In 2012–2013, the OIC processed 27,083 pages.
• In 2013–2014, the OIC processed 25,782 pages.
• In 2014–2015, the OIC processed 36,457 pages.
• In 2015–2016, the OIC processed 43,327 pages.

 

In completing all but one of the 120 new requests in 2015–2016 (99 percent completion rate), OIC ATIP staff processed a record 43,327 pages. This is a 19-percent increase from 2014–2015. As Figure 2 shows, it also stands in stark contrast to the 7,206 pages processed to respond to 46 requests in 2010–2011 (the first year the OIC reported the number of pages it handled). Overall, the number of pages the OIC has processed in response to access requests has jumped 500 percent in the last six years.

In terms of complexity, 6 percent of completed requests in 2015–2016 required ATIP staff to process more than 1,000 pages per request. The OIC usually considers a request to be large when it involves that number of pages or more. Half of the requests completed required processing between 101 and 1,000 pages each. The remainder of the requests (43 percent) involved processing fewer than 100 pages per request.

In addition to formal access requests, the OIC receives informal requests each year. These are often requests for records that had been released previously. The OIC responded to 18 such requests in 2015–2016, compared to 12 in 2014–2015 and 24 in 2013–2014.

The final component of the OIC’s access request-related workload is consultations—that is, when other institutions seek the OIC’s input on requests they have received that touch on the OIC’s business or involve its records. Institutions generally ask for recommendations on whether any information should be exempted from release. The OIC’s general practice is to not provide recommendations on the application of exemptions in response to consultation requests. This is because the Commissioner could later be required to investigate complaints about the institution’s use of those provisions of the Act to withhold information. Not making recommendations allows the Commissioner to maintain impartiality and avoid conflicts of interest.

The OIC nonetheless received 24 such requests in 2015–2016. This is the highest number of consultations in the six years the OIC has reported such figures but is comparable to other reporting periods (22 in 2014–2015 and 21 in 2010–2011). In other years, the OIC received fewer than 20 consultation requests.

Timeliness

A hallmark of exemplary service to requesters is timeliness. Indeed, responding to access requests as promptly as possible underpins the entire access system.

Figure 3: Completion time for access requests, 2015–2016

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This pie chart sets out the time it took the Office of the Information Commissioner to complete 119 requests in 2015–2016. The Office of the Information Commissioner completed 53 percent of these requests in 15 days or less; 41 percent in 16 to 30 days; 3 percent in 31 to 60 days; and 3 percent in 61 to 120 days.

Of the 119 requests the OIC closed in 2015–2016 (a 31-percent increase from 2014–2015), 94 percent were completed in less than 30 days (Figure 3)—53 percent in 15 days or less and 41 percent in 16 to 30 days. The Access to Information Act sets 30 days as the timeframe within which institutions should respond to requests.

When institutions determine that they will be unable to complete a request in 30 days, they may take a time extension. In keeping with the principle of timeliness, institutions strive to make these extensions as short as possible.

In 2015–2016, the OIC took four time extensions to respond to requests. One of these was for less than 30 days, two for 31 to 60 days and one for 61 to 120 days. The longer extensions were required to accommodate consultations with other institutions about requested records. The shortest extension was necessary to locate and sort through a large volume of records.

The OIC completed all 119 requests in 2015–2016 before their deadline (either 30 days or the extended date), such that the OIC had none of what are known as “deemed refusals.”

Figure 4: Average completion time for requests, 2008–2009 to 2015–2016

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This fever chart shows the average time the Office of the Information Commissioner took to complete requests each year from 2008–2009 to 2015–2016, as follows: 36.11 days (2008–2009); 32.97 days (2009–2010); 15 days (2010–2011); 22 days (2011–2012); 30.4 days (2012–2013); 25.5 days (2013–2014); 19 days (2014–2015); and 16.56 days (2015–2016).

Another measure of timeliness is the average time it takes to complete a request.

The OIC’s average completion time for requests for 2015–2016 was 16.6 days, the second lowest to date.

As Figure 4 shows, in five of the eight years for which figures are available, the OIC achieved an average completion time for requests of less than 30 days. The highest average completion time (36.11 days) was in 2008–2009.

Disclosure

The purpose of the Access to Information Act is to protect the right to access records under the control of government institutions, while ensuring that the use of any exemptions and exclusions is limited and specific. In line with this purpose, the OIC seeks to release as much information as possible to requesters and withhold only what the law requires.

In 2015–2016, the OIC disclosed all the records in response to 26 requests (22 percent of the 119 files completed, the largest proportion since 2008–2009). These included requests for annual statistics, briefing notes about non-investigative matters and the aggregate salary costs for investigators for the last seven years.

The OIC released part of the information requested for 64 of 119 files (54 percent). In many of these cases, the requests related to investigations. The OIC may not release any investigation records before an investigation is complete and the complaint closed, and only some afterwards, as set out in section 16.1 of the Act. Figure 5 provides a nine-year trend.

Figure 5: Disclosure of records, 2007–2008 to 2015–2016

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This bar chart shows the percentage of requests the Office of the Information Commissioner completed between 2007–2008 and 2015–2016 for which all records were disclosed and for which records were disclosed in part, as follows:

• 2007–2008: 33 percent all disclosed; 46 percent disclosed in part.
• 2008–2009: 25 percent all disclosed; 59 percent disclosed in part.
• 2009–2010: 13 percent all disclosed; 74 percent disclosed in part.
• 2010–2011: 20 percent all disclosed; 43 percent disclosed in part.
• 2011–2012: 16 percent all disclosed; 48 percent disclosed in part.
• 2012–2013: 6 percent all disclosed; 48 percent disclosed in part.
• 2013–2014: 16 percent all disclosed; 45 percent disclosed in part.
• 2014–2015: 16 percent all disclosed; 57 percent disclosed in part.
• 2015–2016: 22 percent all disclosed; 54 percent disclosed in part.

In 2015–2016, the OIC received 21 new requests for which no records were found. This represented 18 percent of the total request volume, which was slightly higher than the 16 percent average over the last five years. Seven of these requests were for contracts in months during which none were created. A further nine requests were for information that the OIC had already disposed of, in line with required schedules for destroying records.

Figure 6: Exemptions claimed, 2015–2016

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This pie chart sets out the various exemptions the Office of the Information Commissioner claimed in 2015–2016, as follows: paragraph 16.1(1)(c) (58 percent); subsection 19(1) (26 percent); section 23 (12 percent); paragraph 16(2)(c) (2 percent); paragraph 13(1)(c) (1 percent); and paragraph 20(1)(c) (1 percent).

The OIC claimed 90 exemptions and 9 exclusions when responding to requests in 2015–2016—a ratio of 0.83 exemptions/exclusions per completed request.

Paragraph 16.1(1)(c) of the Act, which specifically exempts records associated with the OIC’s investigations, accounted for 58 percent of the 90 exemptions the OIC invoked in 2015–2016. This is a mandatory exemption, as are all others the OIC applied, except section 23. This is the only discretionary exemption the OIC invoked.

Indeed, with the exception of 2008–2009, paragraph 16.1(1)(c) has been either the OIC’s most or second-most used exemption, as Table 1 shows. Section 19 (personal information) has been the other commonly claimed exemption. Other exemptions in the top three in at least one year since the OIC became subject to the Act are sections 21 (operations of government), section 20 (third-party information), other paragraphs of section 16 (law enforcement) and section 23 (solicitor-client privilege).

Table 1: Commonly claimed exemptions, 2007–2008 to 2015–2016

The Act also excludes certain information, such as Cabinet confidences (section 69). Six of the nine exclusions the OIC cited in 2015–2016 were under section 69. The remaining three exclusions cited were under section 68 (information publicly available or published).

Complaints

In 2015–2016, the Information Commissioner ad hoc received 11 complaints about the OIC’s handling of access requests, in particular about its search for records and how it applied exemptions. The Information Commissioner ad hoc investigated eight of these complaints and found them to be not well founded. The investigations of the other three complaints were not completed during the year and have been carried over to 2016–2017.

The annual report of the Information Commissioner ad hoc was published along with the Commissioner’s annual report.

Appendix A: Delegation order, Access to Information Act

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Delegation orders for the purpose of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act

Arrêté de délégation en vertu de la Loi sur l’accès à l’informationet de la Loi sur la protection des renseignements personnels

The Information Commissioner of Canada, pursuant to Section 73 of the Access to Information Act and of the Privacy Act, hereby designates the persons holding the positions set out in the schedule hereto, or the persons occupying on an acting basis those positions, to exercise the powers and functions of the Information Commissioner of Canada as the head of a government institution that is, the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada. This Delegation Order supersedes all previous Delegation Orders pursuant to section 73.

This delegation order is effective on September 8, 2015

Dated, at the City of Gatineau, this 8 day of September 2015

Original signed by

En vertu de l’article 73 de la Loi sur l’accès à l’information et de la Loi sur la protection des renseignements personnels, la Commissaire à l’information du Canada délègue aux titulaires des postes mentionnés à l’annexe ci-après, ainsi qu’aux personnes occupant à titre intérimaire lesdits postes, les attributions dont elle est investie en qualité de responsable d’une institution fédérale, c’est-à-dire le Commissariat à l’information du Canada.  Le présent arrêté de délégation annule et remplace tout arrêté antérieur fait en vertu de l’article 73.

Cet arrêté de délégation prend effet le 8 septembre 2015.

Daté, à la ville d’Gatineau, ce 8 jour de septembre 2015

Original signé par

______________________________________________

Suzanne Legault
Information Commissioner of Canada
Commissaire à l’information du Canada

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Schedule / Annexe

Position / Poste

 

General Counsel (Director of Legal Services)/
Avocate générale (Directrice des services juridiques)

Director, ATIP Secretariat/
Directeur, Secrétariat de l’AIPRP

ATIP Officer/
Agent de l’AIPRP

Privacy Act and Regulations/
Loi sur la protection des renseignements personnels et règlement.

 

Full Authority/
Autorité Absolue

Full Authority/
Autorité Absolue

Sections of the Act / articles de la Loi : 15, 17(2)(b)

Sections of the Regulations / articles du Règlement : 9, 11(2), 11(4), 13(1), 14

Access to Information Act and Regulations/
Loi sur l’accès à l’information et règlement.

Full Authority/
Autorité Absolue

Full Authority/
Autorité Absolue

Full Authority/
Autorité Absolue

Sections of the Act / articles de la Loi : 4(2.1), 8(1), 9, 11(2), 11(3), 11(4), 11(5), 11(6), 12(2), 12(3), 27(1), 27(4), 29(1).

Sections of the Regulations / articles du Règlement : 6(1), 7(2), 7(3), 8, 8.1

Appendix B: Delegation orders, Information Commissioner ad hoc

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Information Commissioner’s Delegation of authority to the Commissioner ad hoc pursuant to section 59 of the Access to Information Act

Délégation du Commissaire à l’information des pouvoirs et fonctions au Commissaire ad hoc en vertu des dispositions de l’article 59 de la Loi sur l’accès à l’information

Pursuant to subsection 59(1) of the Access to Information Act (the “Act”), the Information Commissioner of Canada duly appointed pursuant to section 54 of the Access to Information Act, does hereby authorize David Loukidelis, as Commissioner ad hoc, to exercise or perform all of the powers, duties and functions of the Information Commissioner set out in the Access to Information Act, including sections 30 to 37 and section 42 inclusive of the Access to Information Act,  for the purpose of receiving and independently investigate any complaint described in section 30 of the Access to Information Act arising in response to access requests made in accordance with the Act to the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada.

This delegation is effective May 4, 2015 for a six month period until such time as it is revoked, amended or renewed.

En vertu des dispositions de l’article 59 de la Loi sur l’accès à l’information, le Commissaire à l’information du Canada, nommé selon l’article 54 de la Loi sur l’accès à l’information, délègue à David Loukidelis à titre de Commissaire ad hoc, tous les pouvoirs et fonctions qui lui sont conférés par la Loi sur l’accès à  l’information, incluant les articles 30 à 37 et l’article 42 de la Loi afin de recevoir et de faire enquête de façon indépendante au sujet de toute plainte énumérée à l’article 30 de la Loi provenant des réponses aux demandes de communication faites au Commissariat à l’information du Canada en vertu de la Loi.

Cette délégation prendra effet le 4 mai 2015 pour une période de six mois, ou jusqu’à ce qu’elle soit révoquée, modifiée ou renouvelée.

 

Dated at Gatineau, this 29 day of April 2015.

Original signed by

Signée à Gatineau, le 29 avril 2015.

Original signé par

 

______________________________
Suzanne Legault
Information Commissioner of Canada
Commissaire à l’information du Canada

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Information Commissioner’s Delegation of authority to the Commissioner ad hoc pursuant to section 59 of the Access to Information Act

Délégation du Commissaire à l’information des pouvoirs et fonctions au Commissaire ad hoc en vertu des dispositions de l’article 59 de la Loi sur l’accès à l’information

Pursuant to subsection 59(1) of the Access to Information Act (the “Act”), the Information Commissioner of Canada duly appointed pursuant to section 54 of the Access to Information Act, does hereby authorize David Loukidelis , as Commissioner ad hoc, to exercise or perform all of the powers, duties and functions of the Information Commissioner set out in the Access to Information Act, including sections 30 to 37 and section 42 inclusive of the Access to Information Act,  for the purpose of receiving and independently investigate any complaint described in section 30 of the Access to Information Act arising in response to access requests made in accordance with the Act to the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada.

This delegation is effective November 3, 2015 for a one year period until such time as it is revoked, amended or renewed.

En vertu des dispositions de l’article 59 de la Loi sur l’accès à l’information, le Commissaire à l’information du Canada, nommé selon l’article 54 de la Loi sur l’accès à l’information, délègue à David Loukidelis à titre de Commissaire ad hoc, tous les pouvoirs et fonctions qui lui sont conférés par la Loi sur l’accès à  l’information, incluant les articles 30 à 37 et l’article 42 de la Loi afin de recevoir et de faire enquête de façon indépendante au sujet de toute plainte énumérée à l’article 30 de la Loi provenant des réponses aux demandes de communication faites au Commissariat à l’information du Canada en vertu de la Loi.

Cette délégation prendra effet le 3 novembre 2015 pour une période de 1 an, ou jusqu’à ce qu’elle soit révoquée, modifiée ou renouvelée.

 

Dated at Gatineau, this 29 day of October 2015.

Original signed by

Signée à Gatineau, le 29 octobre 2015.

Original signé par

 

______________________________
Suzanne Legault
Information Commissioner of Canada
Commissaire à l’information du Canada

Appendix C: 2015–2016 statistical report

Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act

Name of institution: Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada

Reporting period: 2015-04-01 to 2016-03-31

Part 1: Requests Under the Access to Information Act

1.1  Number of requests

1.2  Sources of requests

1.3  Informal requests

Note: All requests previously recorded as “treated informally” will now be accounted for in this section only.

Part 2: Requests Closed During the Reporting Period

2.1  Disposition and completion time

2.2  Exemptions

2.3  Exclusions

2.4  Format of information released

2.5  Complexity

2.5.1  Relevant pages processed and disclosed

2.5.2  Relevant pages processed and disclosed by size of requests

2.5.3  Other complexities

2.6  Deemed refusals

2.6.1  Reasons for not meeting statutory deadline

2.6.2  Number of days past deadline

2.7  Requests for translation

Part 3: Extensions

3.1  Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

3.2 Length of extensions

Part 4: Fees

Part 5: Consultations Received From Other Institutions and Organizations

5.1  Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and organizations

5.2  Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions

5.3  Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations

Part 6: Completion Time of Consultations on Cabinet Confidences

6.1  Requests with Legal Services

6.2 Requests with Privy Council Office

Part 7: Complaints and Investigations

Part 8: Court Action

Part 9: Resources Related to the Access to Information Act

9.1 Costs

9.2 Human Resources

Note: Enter values to two decimal places.