Striking the Right Balance for Transparency

Table of Contents

• Message from the Commissioner
• Introduction
• Chapter 1: Extending coverage
  • Criteria for adding institutions
  • Ministers’ offices
  • Parliament
  • Courts
• Chapter 2: The right of access
  • Duty to document
  • Duty to report
  • Extending access
  • Frivolous and vexatious requests
  • Confirm or deny the existence of a record
  • Format of information
  • Fees
• Chapter 3: Timeliness
  • How to address the culture of delay
    • Limit extensions to the extent strictly necessary, with legislated timelines
    • Permission to extend
    • Allow extensions for multiple and simultaneous requests
    • Consultations with other institutions and affected parties
    • Failing to respond to a consultation request
    • Consultations with third parties
    • Allow extensions when information is to be published.
    • Extension notices
• Chapter 4: Maximizing disclosure
  • Exemptions
    • Injury-based
    • Discretionary
    • Time-limited
    • Public interest override
    • Independent oversight
  • Information related to other governments (sections 13, 14 and 15)
  • Harm to inter-governmental affairs (sections 14 and 15)
  • National security (sections 15 and 69.1)
  • Law enforcement and investigations (section 16)
  • Personal information (section 19)
  • Third party information (section 20)
  • Advice and recommendations (section 21)
  • Solicitor-client privilege (section 23)
  • Cabinet confidences (section 69)
  • Creating a law of general application
    • Restrictions to the right of access found in other laws.
    • Exemptions and exclusions for institutions brought under the coverage of the Act as a result of the Federal Accountability Act
• Chapter 5: Strengthening oversight
  • Oversight models
    • Ombudsperson model
    • Order-making model
    • Adopting a more effective model
    • Discretion to adjudicate
    • Mediation
    • Enforcement of orders
  • Other powers.
    • Commissioner-initiated investigations
    • Compliance audits
    • Investigative powers
    • Education
    • Research
    • Advisory function
  • Appointment and term of the Commissioner
• Chapter 6: Open information
  • Obligation to publish information of public interest
  • Publication schemes
  • Exclusion for published material, material available for purchase or library or museum material (section 68)
• Chapter 7: Criminal liability and civil responsibility
  • Obstruction
  • Failure to document
  • Failure to report
  • Spectrum of sanctions
    • No liability where acting in good faith
    • Criminal offences – increasing fines
    • Administrative monetary penalties
    • Term and condition of employment for employees, directors and officers of institutions
  • Referral of criminal offences
    • Suspending investigations
    • Notifying authorities
• Chapter 8: Mandatory periodic review of the Act
• List of recommendations
• Annex: Sources