Other Information

Training Sessions in 2019

Access Charges Masterclass  

This is the first time we have offered the opportunity for you to get clarity once and for all on how the access charges and deposit provisions of the Victorian FOI Act work.   For everyone from absolute beginners to veterans of FOI world.  If you want to master access charges and have confidence in being able to handle charges associated with any FOI request, this session is for you.  

When:  Friday, 22 February 2019 

Time:  TBA, half day

Location: Our office, Level 9/99 William Street, MELBOURNE 3000 (corner Lt Collins St and William St)

Click the link for more information or to register.

*Discounts apply for early bird registrations and for more than 3 attendees register from the same organisation.

Q&A

Q: In what circumstances can I not process a request because the diversion of resources required to process the request is unreasonable?

A: Section 25A(1) of the FOI Act allows an agency to refuse access without processing the request if the agency is satisfied that the work involved in processing the request would substantially and unreasonably divert the resources of the agency from its other operations.  The section is referring to the resources reasonably required to process the request consistent with attendance to other priorities and operations of the agency.  Whilst it may be tempting to decide that all requests involving 200 pages or more or 50 hours of work is an unreasonable diversion of resources, this may not be the case depending on the nature of your agency and the specific request received.  Two hundred pages may be one annual report or 200 separate documents comprised of photos, emails and letters.  Fifty hours of work may be unreasonable to a small statutory board yet reasonable for a large, well-staffed agency that is used to dealing with FOI requests.  Other factors that can be relevant to determining if the diversion of resources is unreasonable include:

(a)        whether the request is a reasonably manageable one within  statutory timelines, having regard to the size of your agency and the extent of its resources usually available for dealing with FOI requests;

(b)       whether diverting staff members from existing tasks would cause other work to fall behind;

(c)         the extent to which the subject matter dealt with in the request is already public knowledge;

(d)          the public interest in the disclosure of documents relating to the subject matter of the request;

(e) the extent to which your agency may have already addressed the subject matter of the request outside the FOI Act;

(f) whether the applicant has constructively participated in a consultation process with a view to narrowing the request; and

                             (i) whether the terms of the request are sufficiently precise to allow officers to locate the documents within a reasonable time and with the exercise of reasonable effort.

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

FOI Solutions would like to thank all agencies for using our services to assist with the operations of your organisation this year.  We wish you all a happy and safe Christmas and we look forward to working with you in the New Year.