The complainant alleged that Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) took an extension for an unreasonable amount of time under subsection 9(1) of the Access to Information Act, and that it improperly processed two requests as one. The request was for updated Consultation Agreement between Canada and the MNA and related documents from January 1, 2024, to May 20, 2025. The allegation falls under paragraph 30(1)(c) of the Act.

The Information Commissioner concluded that the time extension taken by CIRNAC was unreasonable. In particular, a consultation with 12 pages of records was sent to the Department of Justice (Justice) with a response time of an estimated 90 days, based on Justice’s service standards. In the absence of any additional complexity, the Information Commissioner determined that the 90-day timeline was not justified.

The Information Commissioner concluded that it was not unreasonable for CIRNAC to treat the request as singular, in the circumstances of this request.

The Information Commissioner ordered that CIRNAC provide a complete response to the access request no later than 36 business days following the date of the final report.

CIRNAC gave notice to the Commissioner that it would be implementing the order.

The complaint is well founded.