Annual report to Parliament on the Administration of the Access to Information Act – 2021-2022

From: Transport Canada

ISSN 2816-6353

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Introduction

The purpose of the Access to Information Act

The Access to Information Act (the Act) provides Canadian citizens, permanent residents of Canada within the meaning of subsection 2(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, and individuals who are present in Canada, a right of access to information contained in federal government records subject to certain specific and limited exceptions. The Act complements, but does not replace, other means of obtaining government information.

This report is prepared in accordance with section 94 of the Access to Information Act, which requires the Minister of Transport to submit an annual report to Parliament on the administration of the Act following the close of each fiscal year, and section 20 of the Service Fees Act. This report describes how Transport Canada (TC) fulfilled its responsibilities and obligations for the reporting period April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022.

About Transport Canada

TC is responsible for developing and overseeing the Government of Canada’s transportation policies and programs so that Canadians can have access to a safe, secure, innovative and integrated transportation system that promotes trade, economic growth and a cleaner environment.

For more information about TC, visit our website.

Organizational structure

The Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Office is part of the Corporate Services Group. The Director of the ATIP Office is the ATIP Coordinator for TC. Consistent with best practices identified by the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS), TC’s ATIP Coordinator is positioned within three levels of the Minister. The Coordinator reports to the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Assistant Deputy Minister (ADM), Corporate Services, who in turn reports to the Deputy Minister.

The ATIP Office was restructured during the reporting period and is comprised of five units, as follows:

  • Two units dedicated to access to information operations;
  • One unit responsible for access to personal information operations and internal advisory services, as well as a project to process older, late files;
  • One unit responsible for access to information policy and internal advisory services, including those related to proactive publication; and
  • One unit responsible for privacy policy and internal advisory services related to the administration of the Privacy Act.

The majority of ATIP Office employees work in the National Capital Region. A satellite office was launched on April 1, 2021, based in the Quebec Region, at TC’s Dorval Regional Office. Within the ATIP Office, 29.5 person-years were dedicated to access to information activities as of March 31, 2022. In addition, numerous TC employees and executives throughout the department were involved in the search, retrieval and preparation of recommendations to enable and inform the processing of requests in accordance with the Act.

The ATIP Office works closely with departmental liaison officers, who are the main points of contact between the ATIP Office and subject matter experts. They are responsible for ensuring requests tasked to their group or regional office are handled promptly and that relevant records are forwarded from Offices of Primary Interest (OPIs) to the ATIP Office in accordance with established procedures and timelines.

Delegation Order

Responsibilities associated with the administration of the Act are delegated to departmental officials through a delegation order signed by the Minister of Transport (see Annex A for the signed Delegation Order). At TC, the ATIP Coordinator has full delegated authority.

Performance 2021–2022

This section highlights key information on the department’s performance for fiscal year 2021-2022. See Annex B for the complete Statistical Report.

Requests under the Access to Information Act

During the 2021-2022 fiscal year, TC received 782 access to information requests, an increase of 152 requests from the previous year. In addition, 503* requests were carried over from previous years for a total of 1,285 open requests. Of the 1,285 requests, 718 were completed during the reporting period. On March 31, 2022, the ATIP Office was carried over 567 requests to the 2022-2023 fiscal year.

Year-over-year trends

 

2018-2019

2019-2020

2020-2021

2021-2022

Requests received

 1076 739 628* 782

Requests closed

 1080 690 583 718

Responded within legislated deadline

 81% 87% 68% 76%

* The 2020-2021 Annual Report indicated 630 requests were received and 505 were carried over to 2021-2022. These figures have been adjusted due to two requests having been opened in error.

During the reporting period, 76% of requests were completed within legislated deadlines, a marked improvement on the previous fiscal year’s results, thanks to diminishing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, a strengthened management team and a focus on training and development of a growing number of analysts.

Completion time of requests

TC endeavours to complete every access to information request in a timely manner. Of the 718 requests completed in 2021-2022, almost half (46%) were completed within 30 days. The amount of time it takes to complete requests can be an indication of the volume of records and their complexity, which can lead to a requirement for an extended legislated deadline. For example, a request is more complex when high volumes of relevant records are retrieved, when they contain multiple types of sensitive information, when they require consultations with multiple parties, or when legal advice is needed regarding the application of the Act.

Completion time of requests

1 to 30 days

31 to 60 days

61 to 120 days

121 to 180 days

181 to 365 days

More than 365 days
332 102 61 43 67 113

TC seeks to minimize the number of new requests that go beyond legislated timelines while continuing to reduce the number of late and older requests. Requests carried over from previous years may be within legislated timelines or have become late. Of the 567 requests carried over from previous reporting periods, 370 requests were beyond legislated timelines. With dedicated resources, TC has been completing more late files with the aim of eliminating this backlog.

Open requests outstanding from previous reporting periods

Fiscal year open requests were received

Open requests that are within legislated timelines as of March 31, 2022

Open requests that are beyond legislated timelines as of March 31, 2022

Total
Received in 2021–2022 184 78 262
Received in 2020–2021 10 90 100
Received in 2019–2020 1 119 120
Received in 2018–2019 2 39 41
Received in 2017–2018 0 26 26
Received in 2016–2017 0 13 13
Received in 2015–2016 or earlier 0 5 5
Total 197 370 567

Several factors continued to affect completion times in 2021-2022, most notably persistent recruitment and retention challenges, as well as adjustments through a changing pandemic context.

Extensions

Under specific circumstances, the Act contains provisions for departments to extend the legislated deadline if the request cannot be completed within the 30-day time limit. Of the 327 extensions cited during the reporting year, 86 were due to unreasonable interference with the operations of government (e.g., a large volume of responsive records were found or a lengthy search through a large number of records was required), 118 were for necessary consultations within the federal government, and the remaining 123 extensions were for conducting consultations with third parties. More than one type of extension may apply to the same request.

For each required extension, in accordance with the Act, the ATIP Office notified both the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada (OIC) and the requester.

Dispositions

TC makes every effort to disclose as much information as possible and to uphold the spirit of the Act. Of the 718 requests closed this reporting period, 14% were released in full (97), 42% were released in part (301), and only 2.5% of requests were withheld in their entirety (18). For the remainder, there were no responsive records for 183 requests, 113 requests were abandoned, and another six requests were transferred to other departments.

In most cases, redacted information pertained to the application of the following provisions of the Act: section 19 was applied in 264 requests to protect personal information; subsection 20(1) was applied in 137 requests to protect a third party’s sensitive information; and subsection 21(1) was applied in 122 requests to protect sensitive information related to the operations of government.

Consultations received from other government institutions and organizations

TC received 179 consultations from other government institutions and organizations during the reporting period regarding TC information they held that was responsive to access to information requests they had received. These consultations represented a 43% increase from the previous year. In addition, 39 consultations were carried over from the previous reporting period for a total of 218 consultations. Of these, 187 consultations were completed and 31 were carried forward into the next fiscal year, 25 of which were within negotiated timelines.

Other services provided by the ATIP Office

In addition to processing access to information requests, the ATIP Office also provides copies of previously released records to requesters. The list of completed access to information requests is published on the Open Government website and copies of previous response packages can be requested informally. During 2021-2022, TC responded to 153 such informal requests.

Since June 2019, when the Act was amended and Part II - Proactive Publication was added, TC’s ATIP Office has reviewed several records prior to their publication, including briefing material prepared for multiple parliamentary committee appearances by the Minister and the Deputy Minister, notes for question period, and titles of memoranda to the Minister and the Deputy Minister. For each review, the ATIP Office provided recommendations in accordance with the spirit of the Act to internal groups responsible for the disclosure of information.

The ATIP Office also provided recommendations on the protection of sensitive information to concerned parties or the public in support of departmental programs. This included the review of responsive records to motions for the production of papers by the House of Commons Standing Committees.

COVID-19 impact

TC’s ATIP Office employees continued to work predominantly from home throughout 2021-2022, having successfully embedded operational changes following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the effectiveness of these changes in allowing digital processing of records, the pandemic continued to impose certain constraints on the ATIP Office’s capabilities during this period:

  • TC had partial capacity to retrieve and process records classified at above Protected B level due to security requirements and on-site health and safety restrictions.
  • For a total of six weeks, public health recommended avoiding workplaces; therefore, work was focused on records classified at Protected B level or lower.
  • Consultation responses from other federal institutions continued to be delayed during this period.
  • Certain TC groups and program areas that were required to provide critical transportation-related services during the pandemic continued to face challenges when tasked with retrieving records.

Refer to the Statistical Report at Annex B for details on TC’s capacity to process records in 2021-2022.

Fees

The Service Fees Act requires a responsible authority to report annually to Parliament on the fees collected by the institution. With respect to fees collected under the Access to Information Act, the information below is reported in accordance with the requirements of section 20 of the Service Fees Act.

In accordance with the changes to the Access to Information Act that came into force on June 21, 2019, TC may only charge an application fee of $5, as set out in paragraph 7(1)(a) of the Regulations. Pursuant to the Directive on Access to Information Requests, issued on July 13, 2022, institutions can waive this application fee as deemed appropriate.

In 2021-2022, application fees were collected for 682 requests for a total revenue of $3,410, and application fees were waived or refunded for 100 requests representing a total of $500.

The cost of administering the Act during fiscal year 2021-2022 amounted to $3,040,086, or 80% of the ATIP Office’s budget. This excludes costs incurred throughout the department for the search, retrieval and preparation of recommendations to enable and inform the processing of requests in accordance with the Act, as well as legal costs related to consultation or advice.

Training and awareness

The goal of training and awareness is to familiarize or further educate TC employees on the principles and procedures of ATIP, responsibilities and expectations regarding the retrieval and reviewing of records, the provision of recommendations, and the overall importance of ATIP as it pertains to TC’s daily operations.

Training is delivered by experienced ATIP practitioners through a number of different channels:

  • Monthly virtual training sessions are delivered to TC staff members, who continue to attend in high numbers (776 registered participants over the course of the 2021-2022 year).
  • Ad-hoc training is provided to various programs on specific areas that regularly affect subject matter experts and record holders.
  • Analysts joining the ATIP Office benefited from both in-house and external training.

As part of its Engagement Strategy, the ATIP Office worked to sustain high levels of visibility and transparency within the 2021-22 reporting period:

  • A monthly ATIP bulletin featuring news, updates, latest developments and information regarding access to information and privacy is shared with all partners across the department.
  • Meetings between ATIP Office management and liaison officers are held to share details of latest initiatives and gain a better understanding of each party’s challenges.
  • TC’s CFO and ADM, Corporate Services, regularly raised access to information matters with colleagues.
  • The ATIP Director shared information and provided updates and advice at the Director General Horizontal Committee (DGH) and various other TC committees.

These initiatives ensured awareness of access to information matters at all levels of management, allowed for their proactive consideration and helped effectively address issues and sensitive matters.

Policies, guidelines, procedures and initiatives

The ATIP Office has mostly maintained and refined processes and procedures that were deployed successfully in 2020-2021 to enable staff to work from home. Some improvements to those have since been made, such as a modified procedure for OPIs to reduce bottlenecks during search and retrieval of large volumes of records.

In 2020-2021, TC invested in resources to address the backlog of late access to information requests. Although this backlog reduction project has been impacted by the pandemic, it has still resulted in significant progress since 2019-2020, resulting in the completion of over a third of the targeted files.

TC is looking at various options to further modernize its ATIP processes:

  • Exploring the use of robotic process automation technology to reduce the time spent on performing repetitive tasks. One such automation script was successfully implemented this year for the entry of new requests in the ATIP case management system.
  • Working with other departments to share knowledge and leverage from existing software solutions.
  • Planning for a modern request processing software to replace TC’s current software.

Summary of key issues and actions taken on complaints

Transport Canada strives to provide timely access to requested records and to apply, when necessary, specific and limited redactions as prescribed under the Act. Nonetheless, applicants have the right to file a complaint with the OIC regarding any matter relating to the processing of their requests. In 2021-2022, 55 complaints were filed with the OIC regarding TC’s processing of requests. Issues identified in complaints included the applications of extensions, alleged missing records, alleged improper application of exemptions, and time delays. More than one type of complaint may be filed for the same request.

A total of 35 complaints were resolved during the reporting period, some of which had been submitted several years ago:

  • Most (18) were resolved during the course of the investigation.
  • The OIC concluded that nine complaints were well founded and two were not well founded.
    • Of the nine well founded complaints, two were resolved following OIC recommendations, and one was resolved after the Information Commissioner issued TC with an order to disclose additional information.
  • Six complaints were discontinued.

To effectively process complaints, specific actions were taken within the ATIP Office and with key partners, including collaboration between ATIP management and the OIC on a regular basis in an effort to agree on priorities and commitments. A Liaison Officer for all matters relating to complaints has helped support timely communications and stronger oversight on actions required in response to complaint investigations. Regular ATIP management meetings to monitor and discuss complaint files helped ensure requests were progressing according to commitments and issues were resolved.

Open complaints outstanding from previous reporting periods

Fiscal year open complaints were received by institution

Number of open complaints
Received in 2021-2022 38
Received in 2020-2021 39
Received in 2019-2020 10
Received in 2018-2019 7
Received in 2017-2018 5
Received in 2016-2017 1
Received in 2015-2016 or earlier 2
Total 102

The ATIP Office shares information on new complaints and reports from the Information Commissioner more broadly within the department. These efforts raised awareness on the importance of providing complete records to the ATIP Office in a timely manner, with detailed rationales explaining the sensitivity of records. For each investigation, TC provided tombstone information to the OIC in a timely manner.

Monitoring compliance

The ATIP Office engaged departmental officials at various levels to ensure access to information requests were processed in a timely and efficient manner, as well as ensure the sound administration of the Act.

The ATIP Director met regularly with managers and supervisors to review on-time performance. Analysts were trained to leverage the specialized ATIP processing software to track timelines for requests under their responsibility. This was supplemented with regular bilateral meetings between analysts and their supervisor to receive guidance and ensure compliance with legislation.

Various reports were prepared to assist in tracking the status of requests. Reports were provided to staff, reminding them of requests coming due within the next three weeks, with oversight conducted by the management team. A similar report, sent weekly by the ATIP Office to TC groups and regional offices, assisted in tracking all outstanding record retrieval tasks in response to requests and pending internal consultation responses, along with a weekly report on their compliance in meeting timelines. As TC officials focused on the department’s core mandate while faced with several unique transportation-related challenges in 2021-2022, the provision of records to the ATIP office was affected; however, overall, records and recommendations were provided on time to the ATIP office at a rate of 70%.

Throughout the reporting period, monitoring and tracking reports were discussed by the CFO and ADM of Corporate Services with colleagues to raise awareness and foster collaboration. The ATIP Director reached out to executives through various committees to raise awareness and considerations for efficient administration of the Act (e.g., to discuss the design of new programs and the importance of information management practices, such as the retention and disposal of information).

Members of the ATIP management team were paired with OPI Liaison Officers in each group and regional office to maintain regular communication and address questions and concerns proactively. This approach continues to contribute to greater understanding and enhanced collaboration between the ATIP Office and OPIs.

Annex A: Delegation Order

Access to Information Act and Privacy Act delegation

The Minister of Transport, pursuant to subsection 95(1) of the Access to Information Act and subsection 73(1) of the Privacy Act, delegates the persons holding the positions set out in the attached schedule, including persons designated to act in their absence, to exercise the powers, duties and functions of the Minister of Transport as the head of the Department of Transport, under the provisions of these Acts and related RegulationsFootnote 1, set out in the attached schedule opposite each position.

This delegation replaces all previous designations.

Dated at the City of Ottawa, in the Province of Ontario, this 30th day of March, 2021.

Omar Alghabra
Minister of Transport

Schedule

Position

Access to Information Act and regulations

Privacy Act and regulations
Deputy Minister Full authority Full authority
Associate Deputy Minister Full authority Full authority
Assistant Deputy Minister, Corporate Services, and Chief Financial Officer Full authority Full authority
Director, ATIP Full authority

Full authority except:

PA: 8(2)(m)
Managers, ATIP

Full authority except:

ATIA: 6.1(1)

Full authority except:

PA: 8(2)(j) and 8(2)(m)
Senior ATIP Advisors (PM-05) ATIA: 7(a), 8(1), 9, 19, 27(1), 33, and 43(1) PA: 14(a), 15, and 26

Annex B: Transport Canada’s Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act

Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act

Name of institution: Transport Canada

Reporting period: April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022

Section 1: Requests Under the Access to Information Act

1.1 Number of requests
 

Number of requests
Received during reporting period   782
Outstanding from previous reporting periods   503*
Outstanding from previous reporting period 210  
Outstanding from more than one reporting period 293  
Total   1285
Closed during reporting period   718
Carried over to next reporting period   567
Carried over within legislated timeline 197  
Carried over beyond legislated timeline 370  

* The figure reported in 2020-2021 was 505 requests however due to an error, this number has been adjusted.

1.2 Sources of requests

Source

Number of requests
Media 126
Academia 7
Business (private sector) 283
Organization 21
Public 212
Decline to Identify 133
Total 782
1.3 Channels of requests

Source

Number of requests
Online 705
E-mail 45
Mail 27
In person 0
Phone 0
Fax 5
Total 782

Section 2: Informal requests

2.1 Number of informal requests

 

Number of requests
Received during reporting period 53
Outstanding from previous reporting periods 196
  • Outstanding from previous reporting period: 51
  • Outstanding from more than one reporting period: 145
Total 249
Closed during reporting period 153
Carried over to next reporting period 96
2.2 Channels of informal requests

Source

Number of requests
Online 48
E-mail 5
Mail 0
In person 0
Phone 0
Fax 0
Total 53
2.3 Completion time of 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
9 6 3 6 8 16 105 153
2.4 Pages released informally

Less Than 100
pages released

100-500
pages released

501-1000
pages released

1001-5000
pages released

More than 5000
pages released

Number of requests

Pages released

Number of requests

Pages released

Number of requests

Pages released

Number of requests

Pages released

Number of requests

Pages released
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2.5 Pages re-released informally

Less Than 100
pages re-released

100-500
pages re-released

501-1000
pages re-released

1001-5000
pages re-released

More than 5000
pages re-released

Number of requests

Pages re-released

Number of requests

Pages re-released

Number of requests

Pages re-released

Number of requests

Pages re-released

Number of requests

Pages re-released
123 2836 19 4137 7 4231 4 6584 0 0

Section 3: Applications to the Information Commissioner on declining to act on 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
Withdrawn during reporting period 0
Carried over to next reporting period 0

Section 4: Requests closed during the reporting period

4.1 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 1 52 15 9 4 5 11

97
Disclosed in part 5 76 31 46 35 56 52

301
All exempted 1 1 2 1 0 1 0

6
All excluded 1 0 0 2 2 3 2

10
No records exist 43 86 52 1 1 0 0

183
Request transferred 5 1 0 0 0 0 0

6
Request abandoned 53 5 2 2 1 2 48

113
Neither confirmed nor denied 0 2 0 0 0 0 0

2
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0
Total 109 223 102 61 43 67 113

718
4.2 Exemptions

Section

Number of requests
13(1)(a) 7
13(1)(b) 0
13(1)(c) 6
13(1)(d) 2
13(1)(e) 1
14 2
14(a) 1
14(b) 0
15(1) 4
15(1) - I.A.* 5
15(1) - Def.** 1
15(1) - S.A.*** 0
16(1)(a)(i) 0
16(1)(a)(ii) 0
16(1)(a)(iii) 0
16(1)(b) 2
16(1)(c) 18
16(1)(d) 0
16(2) 3
16(2)(a) 4
16(2)(b) 2
16(2)(c) 36
16(3) 0
16.1(1)(a) 0
16.1(1)(b) 0
16.1(1)(c) 1
16.1(1)(d) 0
16.2(1) 0
16.3 0
16.4(1)(a) 0
16.4(1)(b) 0
16.5 0
16.6 0
17 1
18(a) 0
18(b) 4
18(c) 0
18(d) 1
18.1(1)(a) 0
18.1(1)(b) 0
18.1(1)(c) 0
18.1(1)(d) 2
19(1) 264
20(1)(a) 2
20(1)(b) 91
20(1)(b.1) 1
20(1)(c) 33
20(1)(d) 10
20.1 0
20.2 0
20.4 0
21(1)(a) 55
21(1)(b) 58
21(1)(c) 7
21(1)(d) 2
22 0
22.1(1) 0
23 24
23.1 0
24(1) 11
26 3

* I.A.: International Affairs
** Def.: Defence of Canada
*** S.A.: Subversive Activities

4.3 Exclusions

Section

Number of requests
68(a) 5
68(b) 0
68(c) 0
68.1 0
68.2(a) 0
68.2(b) 0
69(1) 0
69(1)(a) 2
69(1)(b) 0
69(1)(c) 0
69(1)(d) 0
69(1)(e) 5
69(1)(f) 1
69(1)g) re (a) 4
69(1)g) re (b) 0
69(1)g) re (c) 2
69(1)g) re (d) 0
69(1)g) re (e) 4
69(1)g) re (f) 3
69.1(1) 0
4.4 Format of information released

Paper

Electronic

Other

E-record

Data set

Video

Audio
5 393 3 4 0 0
4.5 Complexity
4.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed for paper and e-record formats

Number of pages processed

Number of pages disclosed

Number of requests
80597 52743 529
4.5.2 Relevant pages processed per request disposition for paper and e-record formats by size of requests

Disposition

Less Than 100
pages processed

100-500
pages processed

501-1000
pages processed

1001-5000
pages processed

More than 5000
pages processed

Number of requests

Pages processed

Number of requests

Pages processed

Number of requests

Pages processed

Number of requests

Pages processed

Number of requests

Pages processed
All disclosed 85 1425 8 1976 1 525 3 6958 0 0
Disclosed in part 202 5032 71 15305 17 12170 10 16969 1 5113
All exempted 5 70 0 0 1 539 0 0 0 0
All excluded 10 214 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Request abandoned 92 758 12 2812 5 3414 4 7317 0 0
Neither confirmed nor denied 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 396 7499 91 20093 24 16648 17 31244 1 5113
4.5.3 Relevant minutes processed and disclosed for audio formats

Number of minutes processed

Number of minutes disclosed

Number of requests
0 0 0
4.5.4 Relevant minutes processed per request disposition for audio formats by size of requests

Disposition

Less than 60 minutes processed

60 - 120 minutes processed

More than 120 minutes processed

Number of requests

Minutes processed

Number of requests

Minutes processed

Number of requests

Minutes processed
All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0
All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0
All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0
Request abandoned 0 0 0 0 0 0
Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0 0 0 0
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 0 0
4.5.5 Relevant minutes processed and disclosed for video formats

Number of minutes processed

Number of minutes disclosed

Number of requests
88 88 4
4.5.6 Relevant minutes processed per request disposition for video formats by size of requests

Disposition

Less Than 60 minutes processed

60 - 120 minutes processed

More than 120 minutes processed

Number of requests

Minutes processed

Number of requests

Minutes processed

Number of requests

Minutes processed
All disclosed 2 21 1 64 0 0
Disclosed in part 1 3 0 0 0 0
All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0
All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0
Request abandoned 0 0 0 0 0 0
Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0 0 0 0
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 3 24 1 64 0 0
4.5.7 Other complexities

Disposition

Consultation required

Legal advice sought

Other

Total
All disclosed 27 0 0 27
Disclosed in part 159 0 0 159
All exempted 2 0 0 2
All excluded 1 0 0 1
Request abandoned 33 1 0 34
Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0 0
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner 0 0 0 0
Total 222 1 0 223
4.6 Closed requests
4.6.1 Requests closed within legislated timelines
Number of requests closed within legislated timelines 545
Percentage of requests closed within legislated timelines (%) 75.9
4.7 Deemed refusals
4.7.1 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
173 20 3 0 150
4.7.2 Requests closed beyond legislated timelines (including any extension taken)

Number of days past legislated timelines

Number of requests past legislated timeline where no extension was taken

Number of requests past legislated timeline where an extension was taken

Total
1 to 15 days 6 6 12
16 to 30 days 2 6 8
31 to 60 days 2 5 7
61 to 120 days 4 11 15
121 to 180 days 6 3 9
181 to 365 days 10 21 31
More than 365 days 28 63 91
Total 58 115 173
4.8 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 5: Extensions

5.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

Disposition of requests where an extension was taken

9(1)(a)
Interference with operations/ workload

9(1)(b)
Consultation

9(1)(c)
Third-party notice

Section 69

Other
All disclosed 4 0 13 10
Disclosed in part 49 0 82 90
All exempted 1 0 0 2
All excluded 2 2 7 0
Request abandoned 30 2 12 21
No records exist 0 0 0 0
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner 0 0 0 0
Total 86 4 114 123
5.2 Length of extensions

Length of extensions

9(1)(a)
Interference with operations/ workload

9(1)(b)
Consultation

9(1)(c)
Third-party notice

Section 69

Other
30 days or less 26 0 18 4
31 to 60 days 12 0 23 58
61 to 120 days 24 3 39 33
121 to 180 days 20 0 18 15
181 to 365 days 4 1 16 12
365 days or more 0 0 0 1
Total 86 4 114 123

Section 6: Fees

Fee type

Fee collected

Fee waived

Fee refunded

Number of requests

Amount

Number of requests

Amount

Number of requests

Amount
Application 682 $3,410.00 98 $490.00 2 $10.00
Other fees 0 $0.00 0 $0.00 0 $0.00
Total 682 $3,410.00 98 $490.00 2 $10.00

Section 7: Consultations received from other institutions and organizations

7.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and other organizations

Consultations

Other Government of Canada institutions

Number of pages to review

Other organizations

Number of pages to review
Received during the reporting period 157 5259 22 809
Outstanding from the previous reporting period 38 2355 1 11
Total 195 7614 23 820
Closed during the reporting period 166 6524 21 818
Carried over within negotiated timelines 23 434 2 2
Carried over beyond negotiated timelines 6 656 0 0
7.2 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 10 32 20 19 5 2 10 98
Disclose in part 1 9 5 8 2 0 4 29
Exempt entirely 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Exclude entirely 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1
Consult other institution 6 14 4 7 0 0 1 32
Other 3 2 0 0 0 1 0 6
Total 20 57 29 35 7 3 15 166
7.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations outside the Government of Canada

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 4 9 1 0 0 0 0 14
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 1 0 3 0 1 0 0 5
Other 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 2
Total 5 10 5 0 1 0 0 21

Section 8: Completion time of consultations on cabinet confidences

8.1 Requests with Legal Services

Number of days

Fewer than 100 pages processed

100-500
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 2 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 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
61 to 120 1 9 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 4 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
8.2 Requests with Privy Council Office

Number of days

Fewer than 100 pages processed

100-500 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 9: Investigations and reports of finding

9.1 Investigations

Section 32 Notice of intention to investigate

Subsection 30(5) Ceased to investigate

Section 35 Formal representations
55 5 10
9.2 Investigations and reports of finding

Section 37(1) Initial reports

Section 37(2) Final reports

Received

Containing recommendations issued by the Information Commissioner

Containing orders issued by the Information Commissioner

Received

Containing recommendations issued by the Information Commissioner

Containing orders issued by the Information Commissioner
3 2 1 3 2 1

Section 10: Court action

10.1 Court actions on complaints

Section 41

Complainant (1)

Institution (2)

Third party (3)

Privacy Commissioner (4)

Total
0 0 0 0 0
10.2 Court actions on third party notifications under paragraph 28(1)(b)

Section 44 - under paragraph 28(1)(b)
0

Section 11: Resources related to the Access to Information Act

11.1 Allocated costs

Expenditures

Amount
Salaries $2,209,920
Overtime $24,283
Goods and services $805,883
  • Professional services contracts: $695,034
  • Other: $110,849
Total $3,040,086
11.2 Human Resources

Resources

Person years dedicated to Access to Information activities
Full-time employees 25.2
Part-time and casual employees 0.3
Regional staff 0
Consultants and agency personnel 4
Students 0
Total 29.5

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