Information Commissioner puts departments on notice over Freedom of Information requests

In a speech made to mark Right to Know day, Commissioner Angelene Falk put government agencies on notice in their observation of the Freedom of Information Act, which governs how information is made available to members of the public.

Ms Falk said her office has experienced an increase in people seeking reviews of their Freedom of Information denials on the "practical refusal" basis, which is when departments say a request would unreasonably divert resources.

"A reoccurring issue was whether the agency took reasonable steps to assist an applicant," Ms Falk said, reminding those present at the Information Contact Officer Network event that they are obligated to help people with their requests.

"There is a legislated obligation to assist applicants to review the scope of their request so that the practical refusal reason no longer exists.

"Taking a narrow approach to this obligation is not in keeping with the objectives of the FOI Act and may lead to an [Information Commissioner] review and/or FOI complaint."

In a wide-ranging speech, Ms Falk also reminded bureaucrats they are required to release information requested under Freedom of Information laws on online disclosure logs, and that her office can investigate if disclosure logs are compliant with the guidelines.

"This year, we are taking a very close look at how disclosure logs are operating, and whether these obligations are being met," Ms Falk said.

While some agencies make documents available for downloads, including the wording of the request and why some documents were excluded or redacted, others only include a brief description of the documents and requests for the files must be emailed. Some departments are more responsive than others in this regard.

Ms Falk encouraged government departments to be more open and transparent with government information, including making personal information easier for people to access without using the Freedom of Information scheme. Requests for personal information, like that held by Centrelink, Veterans' Affairs, or Home Affairs about recipients or applicants, continue to make up more than 80 per cent of applications.

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Government agencies were also encouraged to look at patterns in requests and consider making meeting minutes and statistics available online.

"A combination of proactive disclosure of agency information and administrative access schemes will streamline operations and provide efficiencies for your agency, freeing you up to spend more time on matters that need detailed consideration," Ms Falk said.

The number of Freedom of Information requests increased 13 per cent year on year in 2018-19, but that followed a 13 per cent drop the year before. About 13 per cent of requests were refused completely, down on 16 per cent the year before but up from 10 per cent in 2016-17.

Requests for review of decisions by the Information Commissioner had risen 80 per cent over the last four years Ms Falk said, contributing to an increase in delays in decisions in these cases.

Of those seeking review, 18 per cent are from members of the media.

"One key element in our democracy is our press," Ms Falk said, detailing how delays in access to information was one of the main issues raised by journalists.