2019-2020 Annual Report to Parliament on the Access to Information Act
October 2020
Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
30 Victoria Street, 1st Floor
Gatineau, Quebec
K1A 1H3
Telephone: 819-994-5444, 1-800-282-1376
Fax 819-994-5424
Follow us on Twitter: @privacyprivee
Introduction
The Access to Information Act (ATIA) came into effect on July 1, 1983. It provides Canadian citizens, permanent residents and any person and corporation present in Canada a right of access to information contained in government records, subject to certain specific and limited exceptions.
When the Federal Accountability Act received Royal Assent on December 12, 2006, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) was added to Schedule I of the ATIA along with other Agents of Parliament. Therefore, while not initially subject to the ATIA, the OPC became so on April 1, 2007.
Section 94 of the ATIA requires that the head of every federal government institution submit an annual report to Parliament on the administration of the Act within their institutions during the fiscal year.
The OPC is pleased to submit its thirteenth Annual Report which describes how we fulfilled our responsibilities under the ATIA in 2019-2020.
Mandate and Mission of the OPC
The mandate of the OPC is to oversee compliance with both the Privacy Act (PA), which covers the personal information handling practices of federal government departments and agencies, and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), Canada’s private sector privacy law.
The OPC’s mission is to protect and promote the privacy rights of individuals.
The Commissioner works independently from any other part of the government to investigate privacy complaints from individuals with respect to the federal public sector and certain aspects of the private sector. In public sector matters, individuals may complain to the Commissioner about any matter specified in section 29 of the PA.
For matters relating to personal information in the private sector, the Commissioner may investigate complaints under section 11 of PIPEDA except in the provinces that have adopted substantially similar privacy legislation, namely Quebec, British Columbia, and Alberta. Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador now fall into this category with respect to personal health information held by health information custodians under their health sector privacy laws. However, even in those provinces with substantially similar legislation, and elsewhere in Canada, PIPEDA continues to apply to personal information collected, used or disclosed by all federal works, undertakings and businesses, including personal information about their employees. PIPEDA also applies to all personal data that flows across provincial or national borders, in the course of commercial activities.
The Commissioner focuses on resolving complaints through negotiation and persuasion, using mediation and conciliation if appropriate. However, if voluntary cooperation is not forthcoming, the Commissioner has the power to summon witnesses, administer oaths and compel the production of evidence. In cases that remain unresolved, particularly under PIPEDA, the complainant or the Commissioner may take the matter to Federal Court and seek a court order to rectify the situation.
As a public advocate for the privacy rights of Canadians, the Commissioner carries out the following activities:
- Investigating complaints and issuing reports with recommendations to federal government institutions and private sector organizations to remedy situations, as appropriate;
- Pursuing legal action before federal courts where appropriate to resolve outstanding matters;
- Assessing compliance with obligations contained in the PA and PIPEDA through the conduct of independent audit and review activities;
- Advising on, and reviewing, Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs) of new and existing government initiatives;
- Providing legal and policy analyses and expertise to help guide Parliament’s review of evolving legislation to ensure respect for individuals’ right to privacy;
- Responding to inquiries from parliamentarians, individual Canadians and organizations seeking information and guidance, and taking proactive steps to inform them of emerging privacy issues;
- Promoting privacy awareness and compliance, and fostering understanding of privacy rights and obligations through proactive engagement with federal government institutions, private-sector organizations, industry associations, legal community, academia, professional associations, and other stakeholders;
- Preparing and disseminating public education materials, positions on evolving legislation, regulations and policies, guidance documents and fact sheets for use by the general public, federal government institutions and private sector organizations;
- Conducting research and monitoring trends in technological advances and privacy practices, identify systemic privacy issues that need to be addressed by federal government institutions and private sector organizations and promoting integration of best practices; and
- Working with privacy stakeholders from other jurisdictions in Canada and on the international scene to address global privacy issues that result from ever increasing transborder data flows.
Organizational Structure
The Privacy Commissioner is an Officer of Parliament who reports directly to the House of Commons and the Senate. The Commissioner may be assisted by Assistant Commissioners, who have delegated responsibilities under both the PA and PIPEDA.
In 2018, the OPC, following an organizational review, adopted a new structure to support the Privacy Commissioner’s vision to be more proactive, and to focus efforts where there can be an impact for the greatest number of Canadians.
The core responsibility of the OPC is the protection of privacy rights of Canadians. To do this, the OPC’s work falls into two program areas — Compliance and Promotion. Both areas are part of the OPC’s mandate and are important in protecting privacy.
The OPC’s organizational structure is now comprised of three sectors: the Compliance Sector, the Policy and Promotion Sector, and the Corporate Management Sector. The work of each sector is overseen by a Deputy Commissioner. The three Deputy Commissioners, as well as the Legal Services Directorate, report directly to the Privacy Commissioner. The Commissioner is also supported by the OPC’s Executive Secretariat.
The OPC is structured in the following way:
Compliance Sector
The Compliance Program, headed by the Deputy Commissioner, Compliance, focuses on addressing existing privacy compliance problems through a variety of enforcement activities to ensure violations of the law are identified and that remedies are recommended. This includes investigations into complaints filed by Canadians, but also a shift towards more proactive enforcement, such as, proactive Commissioner-initiated investigations or, in certain cases, audits, to review issues that aren’t being addressed through the complaint system.
The Compliance Sector includes three directorates: the Privacy Act Compliance Directorate (public sector), the PIPEDA Compliance Directorate (private sector) and the Compliance, Intake and Resolution Directorate (public and private sectors).
Privacy Act Compliance Directorate
The PA Compliance Directorate investigates complaints under the Privacy Act from individuals who believe they have not been given access to their personal information held by government institutions, or feel that their information has been inappropriately, collected, used, disclosed or managed. The Directorate also investigates complaints and conducts audits that are initiated by the Commissioner.
PIPEDA Compliance Directorate
The PIPEDA Compliance Directorate investigates complaints under the PIPEDA from individuals about the collection, use and disclosure of their personal information in the course of commercial activities. The Directorate also investigates complaints and conducts audits that are initiated by the Commissioner, including sector-wide investigations.
Compliance, Intake and Resolution Directorate
The Compliance, Intake and Resolution Directorate is a new directorate within the Compliance Sector. It is responsible for receiving and quickly resolving complaints received under the PIPEDA and the Privacy Act. The Directorate also:
- reviews mandatory reporting of data breaches submitted by private-sector organization and federal institutions, and tracks them;
- investigates privacy breaches;
- ensures compliance monitoring.
On January 1, 2020, the Compliance, Intake and Resolution Directorate’s Executive Director took on the role of Chief Privacy Officer for the OPC.
Policy and Promotion Sector
The Promotion Program, headed by the Deputy Commissioner, Policy and Promotion, is forward-looking and aims to inform Canadians of their rights and how to exercise them, and to bring organizations into compliance with the law. This involves, for example, the development and promotion of general—yet practical—information and guidance, reviewing and commenting on Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs), and offering industry advice on specific initiatives. The goal is to share information and advice with businesses and departments when they are designing their services so that Canadians may enjoy the benefits of innovation without undue risk to their privacy.
The Policy and Promotion Sector includes five directorates: the Government Advisory Directorate, the Business Advisory Directorate, the Policy, Research and Parliamentary Affairs Directorate, the Technology Analysis Directorate and the Communications Directorate.
Government Advisory Directorate
The Government Advisory Directorate provides advice and recommendations to federal public sector institutions in relation to specific programs and initiatives, as well as in the review of PIAs and information sharing agreements submitted by departments and agencies. This group also undertakes various outreach initiatives with the federal public sector in order to encourage compliance with the Privacy Act.
Business Advisory Directorate
The Business Advisory Directorate provides advice to businesses subject to PIPEDA in the context of advisory services for new programs and initiatives, reviews for existing privacy practices and proactive engagements with the business community. This group also undertakes various outreach initiatives with the private sector in order to encourage compliance with PIPEDA.
Policy, Research and Parliamentary Affairs Directorate
The Policy, Research and Parliamentary Affairs Directorate develops strategic policy positions on legislative bills, government policies and private sector initiatives; supports the Commissioner’s appearances before Parliament; develops guidance for public and private sector; and conducts applied research on emerging privacy issues in support of this work. This Directorate also manages the OPC Contributions Program which funds external researchers and non-profit organizations to advance and apply new knowledge about data protection in the private sector.
Technology Analysis Directorate
The Technology Analysis Directorate identifies and analyzes technological trends and developments in electronic platforms and digital media; conducts research to assess the impact of technology on the protection of personal information in the digital world and provides strategic analysis and guidance on complex, varied and sensitive technological issues involving government and commercial systems that store personal information.
Communications Directorate
The Communications Directorate focuses on providing strategic advice and support for the planning and execution of public education and communications activities. Activities relate to the production and dissemination of information for Canadians and organizations aimed at increasing awareness of privacy rights and obligations through, for example, media monitoring and analysis, public opinion polling, media relations, publications, special events, various outreach campaigns and the OPC web site. The Directorate is also responsible for responding to requests for information from the public and organizations regarding privacy rights and responsibilities through the OPC’s Information Centre.
Corporate Management Sector
The Corporate Management Sector is led by the Deputy Commissioner, Corporate Management. The Corporate Management Sector includes four directorates: the Human Resources Directorate, the Finance and Administration Directorate, the Information Management/Information Technology Directorate, and the Business Planning, Performance, Audit and Evaluation Directorate.
The Corporate Management Sector provides advice and integrated administrative services such as corporate planning, resource management, financial management, information management/technology, human resources and people management and general administration to managers and staff.
Legal Services Directorate
The Legal Services Directorate reports directly to the Privacy Commissioner. The Directorate provides legal advice in relation to PIPEDA and PA investigations and audits, and in support of other operational activities across the OPC. It represents the OPC in litigation matters before the courts and in negotiations with other parties. The Directorate also includes OPC’s Access to Information and Privacy Program.
Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
Text version
Organizational Chart
Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
- Privacy Commissioner
- Executive Secretariat
- Legal Services Directorate
- ATIP Directorate
- Deputy Commissioner – Compliance Sector
- PIPEDA Compliance Directorate
- Privacy Act Compliance Directorate
- Compliance, Intake and Resolution Directorate
- Deputy Commissioner – Corporate Management Sector
- Human Resources Directorate
- Finance and Administration Directorate
- IM/IT Directorate
- Business Planning, Performance, Audit and Evaluation Directorate
- Deputy Commissioner – Policy and Promotion Sector
- Policy, Research and Parliamentary Affairs Directorate
- Technology Analysis Directorate
- Government Advisory Directorate
- Business Advisory Directorate
- Communications Directorate
The ATIP Directorate is headed by a Director who is supported by two senior analysts.
Under section 95(1) of the ATIA, as the head of the OPC, the Privacy Commissioner’s authority has been delegated to the ATIP Director with respect to the application of the ATIA and its Regulations. A copy of that Delegation Order is attached as Appendix A.
The ATIP Director also served as the OPC’s Chief Privacy Officer until December 31, 2019. This function has since been delegated to the Compliance, Intake, and Resolution Directorate’s Executive Director.
ATIP Directorate Activities
Training employees
In the reporting fiscal year, three ATIP training sessions were offered to 68 OPC employees, including new employees and those returning from extended leave or temporary assignments elsewhere.
Access to Information Act Statistical Interpretation
The OPC’s Statistical Report on the ATIA is attached in Appendix B.
The OPC received 94 formal requests under ATIA in 2019-2020. This was in addition to the 8 requests carried forward from the previous year, for a total of 102 requests.
Thirteen of the requests received during the reporting period were carried forward to the 2020-2021 reporting year. Responses were therefore provided to 87% of all requests handled in 2019-20 during the fiscal year.
The OPC processed all 39 requests for consultations received from other institutions during the fiscal year within the reporting period. Of the 39 requests, 31 were answered within 15 days, 7 were answered within 16 to 30 days and the last one was answered within 31 to 60 days.
The OPC also received 90 informal requests for access to information during this period.
Requests under the ATIA
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Requests under the ATIA
| Year | 2017/2018 | 2018/2019 | 2019/2020 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Received | 49 | 49 | 94 |
| Transferred | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Processed | 47 | 47 | 89 |
In 2019-2020 the ATIP Directorate closed 89 requests for information received by the OPC (97.8% were closed within legislated timelines), which represented 18,201 pages of information processed. While the overall number of requests processed in 2019-20 (89) increased when compared to 2018/19 (47) there was a decrease of 5% in relation to the number of pages processed when compared to the 19,151 pages processed in the previous year. Of these 89 responses, 1 was for a request that had been received in 2017-2018 and 7 were from the 2018-2019 reporting year.
Extensions were claimed with respect to 25 requests. In all, the OPC responded to 54 requests within the first 30 days. Given the complexities of the information and the requirement to consult with other entities, the extensions claimed for 25 requests were for more than 30 days.
Of the 89 requests completed during the fiscal year, 49 were for Briefing Notes (or lists of Briefing Notes) prepared by the OPC on various topics, including: connected cars, social media, cybersecurity, data breaches, Artificial Intelligence etc.
In addition, to the requests for briefing notes, 12 requests sought access to information regarding investigations or complaints, 5 concerned privacy breaches that were reported to the OPC, 1 was for information relating to privacy impact assessments submitted by federal institutions, 9 requests were for contracts (or contract-related information) entered into by the OPC for goods and services, and the remainder were for miscellaneous information or information that was not under the control of the OPC.
The OPC endeavours to release as much information as possible. Of the 89 requests processed, the documents were released in their entirety in 27 cases, and in 46 cases the OPC made partial releases. Of the remaining requests, 11 were abandoned by the applicants, 1 had all material exempted and 4 requests had no relevant records.
Section 16.1(1)(d) of the ATIA prohibits the OPC from releasing information it obtained during the course of its investigations or audits, even after the matter and all related proceedings have been concluded. The OPC, however, cannot refuse to disclose information it created during the course of an investigation or audit, once they and any related proceedings are completed – and subject to any applicable exemptions. With respect to requests for access to PA and PIPEDA investigation files, none were disclosed in their entirety–all had some information withheld under paragraph 16.1(1)(d) and in most cases under subsection 19(1). Additional information was withheld under sections 20, 21, 23 and 24 of the ATIA.
The exemption provision invoked most often was subsection 19(1) (Personal information of others), followed by section 16.1(1)(d), which involves investigations by the OPC, sections 21(1)(a) and (b) (Operations of Government), 20(1)(c) (Information the disclosure of which could result in losses to a third party) and section 23 (Solicitor-client privilege). In other cases this year, the OPC also withheld information under one or more of the following sections of the ATIA: 13(1)(a), (b) and (d), 14(a), 15(1), 16(1)(d), 16(2), 16(2)(c) 17, 20(1)(b), 21(1)(d), 22, and 24(1).
Requests under ATIA by source
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Requests under the ATIA by source
| Year | Media | Business | Public | University | Organization |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017/2018 | 18 | 14 | 16 | 0 | 1 |
| 2018/2019 | 15 | 19 | 12 | 0 | 1 |
| 2019/2020 | 55 | 6 | 14 | 2 | 9 |
Of the 94 requests received this reporting year, the media and businesses submitted 55 and 6 respectively, for a total of 61 requests (65%), while the public submitted 14 requests (15%), organizations submitted 9 (10%) and academia accounts for 2%. Eight applicants refused to be identified.
In addition to processing its own ATIA requests, the OPC was consulted by federal institutions on 39 occasions on a total of 577 pages. All of the 39 consultation requests completed by the OPC in 2019-2020 were consultations received from other government institutions. Of these requests, 31 (79%) were completed within 15 days, 7 (18%) were completed within 16-30 days and 1 (3%) was completed within 31-60 days. The OPC recommended full disclosure in 26 cases.
Application fees amounted to $240.00 during the reporting period.
In the cases where records were provided, paper copies were given to the requestors on 10 occasions, while electronic copies were given on 63 occasions.
It is important to note that processing times for access to information requests are tracked on a weekly basis by the ATIP team using the access to information management system.
COVID-19 Operational impact
The COVID-19 pandemic created challenges for individuals throughout the OPC.
Most OPC staff have been teleworking since mid-March 2020. The OPC ATIP office was able to work at its usual capacity throughout the pandemic period. Other Directorates of the OPC, however, were more impacted by the situation, which may have caused delays in responding to certain requests.
Proactive Publication
Since Bill C-58 came into force in June 2019, the OPC has been publishing lists of briefing note titles on a monthly basis as required pursuant to section 88(b) of the ATIA, and has seen a significant increase in requests for briefing notes or memorandums prepared for the Commissioner. While we had 49 requests for briefing notes in 2019-2020, in 2018-2019 we had only 5 requests for briefing note lists and 1 request for 4 briefing notes. It is still too early to comment on the overall impact of the Bill C-58 amendments to the ATIA, however, due to the unusual nature of the COVID-19 situation that has likely influenced the volume of requests. We will continue to monitor this trend going into the next reporting period.
Moreover, we have not yet had a chance to see what the impact of the requirement pursuant to section 88(c) of the ATIA to proactively publish the briefing material prepared for the Commissioner for parliamentary appearances will be as given the unusual parliamentary schedule in 2019-2020 there were no materials produced from parliamentary appearances during the 2019-2020 reporting period.
Reporting on access to information fees for the purposes of the Service Fees Act
The Service Fees Act requires a responsible authority to report to Parliament annually on the fees the institution has collected.
For fees collected under the Access to Information Act, the following information is reported in accordance with section 20 of the Service Fees Act.
- Enabling authority: Access to Information Act
- Fee amount: $5, the only fee charged for an access to information request
- Total revenues: $240
- Fees waived: $120
In accordance with the Interim Directive on the Administration of the Access to Information Act published on May 5, 2016, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada waives all fees under the Act and Regulations, with the exception of the $5 filing fee set out in paragraph 7(1)(a) of the Regulations. - Cost of operating the program: $173,430
Access to Information Act complaints against the OPC
This reporting year, the OPC received one amended notification of complaint by the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada (OIC) for a complaint pursuant to the ATIA. This complaint is still active and is being carried over to the next reporting period. Moreover, the Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) rendered decisions concerning 2 other complaint cases received in previous years. The OIC deemed these complaints to be not substantiated. No further measures were needed to be taken further to these findings by the OIC.
For additional information on the OPC’s activities, please visit www.priv.gc.ca.
Additional copies of this report may be obtained from:
Director, Access to Information and Privacy
Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
30 Victoria Street, 1st Floor
Gatineau, Quebec K1A 1H3
Access to Information-Related Policy Instruments
No work on privacy policy instruments was done during the reporting year.
Appendix A – Access to Information Act
Delegation Order
Pursuant to subsection 95(1) of the Access to Information Act, the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, as the head of the government institution, hereby delegates the following powers, duties, or functions to the person holding the position set out below, or to the person occupying on an acting basis that position, as specified below:
| Position | Legislative Authority |
|---|---|
| Director, ATIP |
Access to Information Act: Full authority Access to Information Regulations: Full authority |
For greater clarity, this delegation to the position set out above, or to the person occupying on an acting basis that position, includes all powers, duties, and functions as they existed prior to June 21, 2019 under section 73 of the Access to Information Act to be exercised with respect to any complaint, investigation, application, judicial review or appeal that was initiated before June 21, 2019.
This delegation of authority supersedes any previous delegation of the powers, duties and functions set out herein.
Dated at the City of Gatineau, this 1st day of October, 2020
(Original signed by)
Daniel Therrien
Privacy Commissioner of Canada
Access to Information Act
| 4(2.1) | Shall assist the person in connection with the request, respond to the request accurately and completely and provide timely access in the format requested |
|---|---|
| 7 | Respond to request for access within 30 days; give access or give notice |
| 8(1) | Transfer of Request to government institution with greater interest |
| 9 | Extend time limit for responding to request for access |
| 11(2), (3), (4), (5), (6) | Additional fees |
| 12(2)(b) | Decide whether to translate requested record |
| 12(3) | Decide whether to give access in an alternative format |
| 13(1) | Shall refuse to disclose information obtained in confidence from another government |
| 13(2) | May disclose any information referred to in 13(1) if the other government consents to the disclosure or makes the information public |
| 14 | May refuse to disclose information injurious to the conduct of federal-provincial affairs |
| 15 | May refuse to disclose information injurious to international affairs or defence |
| 16 | Series of discretionary exemptions related to law enforcement and investigations; security; and policing services for provinces or municipalities. |
| 16.1(1) | In force April 1, 2007 - Specific to four named Officers of Parliament - Auditor General, Commissioner of Official Languages, Information Commissioner and Privacy Commissioner - shall refuse to disclose information obtained or created by them in the course of an investigation or audit |
| 16.1(2) | In force April 1, 2007 - Specific to two named Officers of Parliament – Information and Privacy Commissioner - shall not refuse under 16.1(1) to disclose any information created by the Commissioner in the course of an investigation or audit once the investigation or audit and related proceedings are concluded |
| 17 | May refuse to disclose information which could threaten the safety of individuals |
| 18 | May refuse to disclose information related to economic interests of Canada |
| 18.1(1) | May refuse to disclose confidential commercial information of Canada Post Corporation, Export Development Canada, Public Sector Pension Investment Board, or VIA Rail Inc. |
| 18.1(2) | Shall not refuse under 18.1(1) to disclose information relating to general administration of the institution |
| 19 | Shall refuse to disclose personal information as defined in section 3 of the Privacy Act, but may disclose if individual consents, if information is publicly available, or disclosure is in accordance with section 8 of Privacy Act |
| 20 | Shall refuse to disclose third party information, subject to exceptions |
| 21 | May refuse to disclose records containing advice or recommendations |
| 22 | May refuse to disclose information relating to testing or auditing procedures |
| 22.1 | May refuse to disclose draft report of an internal audit |
| 23 | May refuse to disclose information subject to solicitor/client privilege |
| 24 | Shall refuse to disclose information where statutory prohibition (Schedule II) |
| 25 | Shall disclose any part of record that can reasonably be severed |
| 26 | May refuse to disclose where information to be published |
| 27(1),(4) | Third party notification |
| 28(1),(2),(4) | Receive representations of third party |
| 29(1) | Disclosure on recommendation of Information Commissioner |
| 32 | Receive notice of investigation by Information Commissioner |
| 33 | Advise Information Commissioner of third party involvement |
| 35(2) | Right to make representations to the Information Commissioner during an investigation |
| 37(1) | Receive Information Commissioner’s report of findings of the investigation and give notice of action taken |
| 37(4) | Give complainant access to information after 37(1)(b) notice |
| 43(1) | Notice to third party (application to Federal court for review) |
| 44(2) | Notice to applicant (application to federal Court by third party) |
| 52(2)(b) | Request that section 52 hearing be held in the National Capital Region |
| 52(3) | Request and be given right to make representations in section 51 hearings |
| 69 | Refuse to provide information that is excluded from the Act as a cabinet confidence |
| 71 | Provide facilities for public to inspect manuals; exempt information may be severed from manuals |
| 72(1) | Prepare annual report to Parliament |
Access to Information Regulations
| 5 | Inform requester of certain procedures regarding access |
|---|---|
| 6(1) | Procedures relating to transfer of access request to another government institution under 8(1) of the Act |
| 7(2) and (3) | Require payment of additional fees for access in certain situations |
| 8 | Form of Access |
| 8.1 | Determinations with respect to the conversion of records into different formats |
Appendix B – Statistical Report
Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act
Name of institution: Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
Reporting period: 2019-04-01 to 2020-03-31
Section 1: Requests under the Access to Information Act
1.1 Number of Requests
| Number of requests | |
|---|---|
| Received during reporting period | 94 |
| Outstanding from previous reporting period | 8 |
| Total | 102 |
| Closed during reporting period | 89 |
| Carried over to next reporting period | 13 |
1.2 Sources of requests
| Source | Number of requests |
|---|---|
| Media | 55 |
| Academia | 2 |
| Business (private sector) | 6 |
| Organization | 9 |
| Public | 14 |
| Decline to identify | 8 |
| Total | 94 |
1.3 Informal requests
| Completion time | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 to 15 days | 16 to 30 days | 31 to 60 days | 61 to 120 days | 121 to 180 days | 181 to 365 days | More than 365 days | Total |
| 90 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 90 |
| Note: All requests previously recorded as "treated informally" will now be accounted for in this section only. | |||||||
Section 2: Decline to act on vexatious, made in bad faith or abuse of right requests
| Number of requests | |
|---|---|
| Outstanding from previous reporting period | 0 |
| Sent during reporting period | 0 |
| Total | 0 |
| Approved by the Information Commissioner during reporting period | 0 |
| Declined by the Information Commissioner during reporting period | 0 |
| Carried over to next reporting period | 0 |
Section 3: Requests closed during the reporting period
3.1 Disposition and completion time
| Disposition of requests | Completion time | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 to 15 days | 16 to 30 days | 31 to 60 days | 61 to 120 days | 121 to 180 days | 181 to 365 days | More than 365 days | Total | |
| All disclosed | 5 | 17 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 |
| Disclosed in part | 7 | 20 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 46 |
| All exempted | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No records exist | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Request transferred | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Request abandoned | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 |
| Neither confirmed nor denied | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Decline to act with the approval of the Information Commisioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 25 | 39 | 11 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 89 |
3.2 Exemptions
| Section | Number of requests |
Section | Number of requests |
Section | Number of requests |
Section | Number of requests |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13(1)(a) | 2 | 16(2) | 2 | 18(a) | 0 | 20.1 | 0 | |
| 13(1)(b) | 3 | 16(2)(a) | 0 | 18(b) | 0 | 20.2 | 0 | |
| 13(1)(c) | 0 | 16(2)(b) | 0 | 18(c) | 0 | 20.4 | 0 | |
| 13(1)(d) | 1 | 16(2)(c) | 4 | 18(d) | 0 | 21(1)(a) | 13 | |
| 13(1)(e) | 0 | 16(3) | 0 | 18.1(1)(a) | 0 | 21(1)(b) | 12 | |
| 14 | 0 | 16.1(1)(a) | 0 | 18.1(1)(b) | 0 | 21(1)(c) | 0 | |
| 14(a) | 1 | 16.1(1)(b) | 0 | 18.1(1)(c) | 0 | 21(1)(d) | 1 | |
| 14(b) | 0 | 16.1(1)(c) | 0 | 18.1(1)(d) | 0 | 22 | 1 | |
| 15(1) | 0 | 16.1(1)(d) | 18 | 19(1) | 29 | 22.1(1) | 0 | |
| 15(1) - I.A.Footnote * | 2 | 16.2(1) | 0 | 20(1)(a) | 0 | 23 | 12 | |
| 15(1) - Def.Footnote ** | 0 | 16.3 | 0 | 20(1)(b) | 1 | 23.1 | 0 | |
| 15(1) - S.A.Footnote *** | 1 | 16.3(1) | 0 | 20(1)(b.1) | 0 | 24(1) | 3 | |
| 16(1)(a)(i) | 0 | 16.4(1)(a) | 0 | 20(1)(c) | 11 | 26 | 0 | |
| 16(1)(a)(ii) | 0 | 16.4(1)(b) | 0 | 20(1)(d) | 0 | |||
| 16(1)(a)(iii) | 0 | 16.5 | 0 | |||||
| 16(1)(b) | 0 | 16.6 | 0 | |||||
| 16(1)(c) | 0 | 17 | 1 | |||||
| 16(1)(d) | 2 | |||||||
3.3 Exclusions
| Section | Number of requests | Section | Number of requests | Section | Number of requests |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 68(a) | 3 | 69(1) | 0 | 69(1)(g) re (a) | 0 |
| 68(b) | 0 | 69(1)(a) | 0 | 69(1)(g) re (b) | 0 |
| 68(c) | 0 | 69(1)(b) | 0 | 69(1)(g) re (c) | 0 |
| 68.1 | 0 | 69(1)(c) | 0 | 69(1)(g) re (d) | 0 |
| 68.2(a) | 0 | 69(1)(d) | 0 | 69(1)(g) re (e) | 0 |
| 68.2(b) | 0 | 69(1)(e) | 0 | 69(1)(g) re (f) | 0 |
| 69(1)(f) | 0 | 69.1(1) | 0 |
3.4 Format of information released
| Paper | Electronic | Other |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | 63 | 0 |
3.5 Complexity
3.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed
| Number of pages processed | Number of pages disclosed | Number of requests |
|---|---|---|
| 18201 | 9275 | 85 |
3.5.2 Relevant pages processed and disclosed by size of requests
| Disposition | Less than 100 pages processed | 101-500 pages processed | 501-1000 pages processed | 1001-5000 pages processed | More than 5000 pages processed | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | |
| All disclosed | 26 | 472 | 1 | 107 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Disclosed in part | 32 | 536 | 8 | 1790 | 2 | 1497 | 4 | 4873 | 0 | 0 |
| All exempted | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Request abandoned | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Neither confirmed nor denied | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 68 | 1008 | 10 | 1897 | 2 | 1479 | 5 | 4873 | 0 | 0 |
3.5.3 Other complexities
| Disposition | Consultation required |
Assessment of fees |
Legal advice sought |
Other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All disclosed | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Disclosed in part | 5 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 11 |
| All exempted | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Request abandoned | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| Neither confirmed nor denied | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 8 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 17 |
3.6 Closed requests
3.6.1 Number of requests closed within legislated timelines
| Requests closed within legislated timelines |
|
|---|---|
| Number of requests closed within legislated timelines | 87 |
| Percentage of requests closed within legislated timelines (%) | 97.8 |
3.7 Deemed refusals
3.7.1 Reasons for not meeting Legislated Timelines
| Number of Requests Closed Past the Legislated Timelines | Principal Reason | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interference with Operations / Workload | External Consultation | Internal Consultation | Other | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
3.7.2 Requests closed beyond legislated timelines (including any extension taken)
| Number of Days Past Legislated Timelines |
Number of Requests Past Legislated Timelines Where No Extension Was Taken |
Number of Requests Past Legislated Timelines Where An Extension Was Taken |
Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 to 15 days | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 16 to 30 days | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 31 to 60 days | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 61 to 120 days | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 121 to 180 days | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 181 to 365 days | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| More than 365 days | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 0 | 2 | 2 |
3.8 Requests for translation
| Translation requests | Accepted | Refused | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| English to French | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| French to English | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Section 4: Extensions
4.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests
| Disposition of Requests Where an Extension Was Taken |
9(1)(a) Interference With Operations |
9(1)(b) Consultation |
9(1)(c) Third-Party Notice |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Section 69 | Other | |||
| All disclosed | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Disclosed in part | 5 | 0 | 9 | 6 |
| All exempted | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No records exist | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Request abandoned | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 5 | 0 | 13 | 7 |
4.2 Length of extensions
| Length of Extensions | 9(1)(a) Interference With Operations |
9(1)(b) Consultation |
9(1)(c) Third-Party Notice |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Section 69 | Other | |||
| 30 days or less | 2 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
| 31 to 60 days | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 61 to 120 days | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 121 to 180 days | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 181 to 365 days | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 365 days or more | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 5 | 0 | 13 | 7 |
Section 5: Fees
| Fee Type | Fee Colllected | Fee Waived or Refunded | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Requests | Amount | Requests | Amount | |
| Application | 48 | $240 | 24 | $120 |
| Other fees | 0 | $0 | 0 | $0 |
| Total | 48 | $240 | 24 | $120 |
Section 6: Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and organizations
6.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and organizations
| Consultations | Other Government of Canada Institutions | Number of Pages to Review | Other Organizations | Number of Pages to Review |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Received during reporting period | 39 | 577 | 0 | 0 |
| Outstanding from the previous reporting period | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 39 | 577 | 0 | 0 |
| Closed during the reporting period | 39 | 577 | 0 | 0 |
| Carried over to next reporting period | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
6.2 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions
| Recommendation | Number of Days Required to Complete Consultation Requests | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 to 15 Days | 16 to 30 Days | 31 to 60 Days | 61 to 120 Days | 121 to 180 Days | 181 to 365 Days | More Than 365 Days | Total | |
| Disclose entirely | 19 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 |
| Disclose in part | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Exempt entirely | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Exclude entirely | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Consult other institution | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Total | 31 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 |
6.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations
| Recommendation | Number of Days Required to Complete Consultation Requests | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 to 15 Days | 16 to 30 Days | 31 to 60 Days | 61 to 120 Days | 121 to 180 Days | 181 to 365 Days | More Than 365 Days | Total | |
| Disclose entirely | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Disclose in part | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Exempt entirely | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Exclude entirely | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Consult other institution | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Section 7: Completion time of consultations on Cabinet confidences
7.1 Requests with Legal Services
| Number of days | Fewer than 100 pages processed | 101-500 pages processed | 501-1000 pages processed | 1001-5000 pages processed | More than 5000 pages processed | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | |
| 1 to 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 to 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 31 to 60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 61 to 120 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 121 to 180 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 181 to 365 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| More than 365 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
7.2 Requests with Privy Council Office
| Number of days | Fewer than 100 pages processed | 101-500 pages processed | 501-1000 pages processed | 1001-5000 pages processed | More than 5000 pages processed | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | Number of Requests | Pages Disclosed | |
| 1 to 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 to 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 31 to 60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 61 to 120 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 121 to 180 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 181 to 365 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| More than 365 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Section 8: Complaints and Investigations
| Section 32 Notice of intention to investigate | Subsection 30(5) Ceased to investigate | Section 35 Formal representations | Section 37 Reports of finding received | Section 37 Reports of finding containing recommendations issued by the Information Commissioner | Section 37 Reports of finding containing orders issued by the Information Commissioner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Section 9: Court Action
9.1 Court actions on complaints received before June 21, 2019 and on-going
| Section 41 (before June 21, 2019) | Section 42 | Section 44 |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 1 |
9.2 Court actions on complaints received after June 21, 2019 and ongoing
| Complainant (1) | Institution (2) | Third Party (3) | Privacy Commissioner (4) | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Section 10: Resources Related to the Access to Information Act
10.1 Costs
| Expenditures | Amount | |
|---|---|---|
| Salaries | $172,903 | |
| Overtime | $0 | |
| Goods and services | $527 | |
| Professional services contracts | $0 | |
| Other | $527 | |
| Total | $173,430 | |
10.2 Human Resources
| Resources | Person Years Dedicated to Access to Information Activities |
|---|---|
| Full-time employees | 1.90 |
| Part-time and casual employees | 0.00 |
| Regional staff | 0.00 |
| Consultants and agency personnel | 0.00 |
| Students | 0.00 |
| Total | 1.90 |
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