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| Freedom of InformationOverview
Before lodging an application
How to apply
Charging Policy
Contact Information
The Tasmanian Freedom of Information Act 1991 (FOI Act) gives people the right to be provided with information in the possession of Tasmanian Government Departments and local councils, unless the information is exempt from release under the FOI Act. Part 3 of the FOI Act outlines the categories of exempt information such as internal working information, information affecting legal proceedings, information affecting personal privacy and information relating to certain commercial persons.Before lodging an FOI application, prospective applicants are encouraged to seek access to information by contacting the relevant Government Department or local council and/or searching the web site of the relevant Government Department or local council.
A direct approach is usually a quicker and more efficient avenue to obtain information that is generally available.
This is because the FOI Act does not give people an automatic or immediate right to access information held by Government Departments or local councils. There are a number of processes, such as consultations with any persons or businesses to whom the information relates and associated appeal periods, that must be completed before information can be provided in accordance with the FOI Act.
If a direct approach is unsuccessful, or you do not receive all of the information you are seeking, you can always apply for the information under the FOI Act.
If you are unsure about which area in a Government Department to contact to obtain information, you may contact Service Tasmania www.servicetasmania.tas.gov.au (phone 1300 13 55 13 or email sthelp@dpac.tas.gov.au) for advice or referral to the appropriate Government Department.
A FOI request must be made in writing, be clear and succinct but contain sufficient details to enable the FOI Co-ordinator to identify the information sought.
FOI requests must also contain the applicant’s name and contact details, including a postal address to which FOI notices can be sent and a contact telephone number if possible.
A FOI request should also be signed and dated. FOI requests should be sent to the FOI Co-ordinator of the relevant Government Department or local council.
You should also state whether you simply wish to inspect the documents or prefer to have a copy supplied to you.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to use an FOI request form to help ensure that the necessary details are provided. A copy of this form is available on the Department of Justice's website: FOI - DJIR website OR download a copy of the form in either PDF or Word format below:
This is a Portable Document Format (PDF) file and requires the use of Adobe Acrobat Reader. The Reader is easy to download and is free of charge.
From 1 September 2008 the agency commenced charging for FOI requests in accordance with the Act and the Freedom of Information (Fees) Regulations 2004 (www.thelaw.tas.gov.au). It is Agency policy that applicable charges are to be collected unless grounds are established for charges to be waived or reduced.
Unless charges are waived, and depending on the nature of your request, you will be required to pay a charge of between $25 and $400 for the information. The maximum charge for personal information is $100 and for other information it is $400.
The FOI Act (section 17) specifies the principles to be applied in determining the charges to be paid by people requesting information under the Act. The FOI Regulations prescribe the actual charges payable in respect of an FOI request, which are limited to:- a charge for the time taken by the agency to conduct a routine search for the records containing the information requested (25 fee units per hour), excluding additional time spent by the agency in searching for records that have been lost or misplaced
- a charge for supervising your inspection of any material to which access is given (25 fee units per hour)
- a charge for each non-coloured A4 page of information supplied to you (0.2 fee units per page)
- a charge per page for supplying written transcripts of tapes (15 fee units per page)
- reasonable costs of making coloured copies and copies of tapes, films, maps, etc.
(NOTE: the value of a fee unit is automatically indexed in line with movements in the Consumer Price Index for Hobart. For the 2008-09 financial year, 1 fee unit = $1.28. For more information on fee units, go to http://www.treasury.tas.gov.au, search for ‘fee units’ and select the first record listed)
The FOI Act does not permit the agency to charge for the time taken to determine if the information is exempt, or to make a decision.
On receiving your application the agency will make an estimate of charges. If the estimate is that the cost will be more than $25, the agency will notify you to find out whether you wish to proceed with your request. The agency will require you to pay a deposit unless the charges are waived.
You can request a review of the agency's estimate of the expected charges for the information. This will extend the time allowable to the agency to process the request.
In certain circumstances charges may be reduced or waived. For example:- if you are requesting only personal information about yourself the charge may be reduced, so in many cases there will be either minimal or no charge for providing this information
- if you can demonstrate that you have very limited financial means, there will be no charge
- if the agency considers that the request is a routine matter there will be no charge
- if your intended use of the information is for general public interest or benefit then the charge will be reduced by $50
- if you agree to an extension of time for the agency to consider your application then the agency may reduce the charges after discussing the matter with you
If you make an application for waiver or reduction of the charge then you may be required to provide evidence to substantiate you claims.
The agency may require you to pay a deposit before going further if substantial work is required to process your request.
The maximum deposit is $25 if the expected charge is under $100. If the expected charge is greater than $100 then a deposit of 50% of the estimated fee may be required.
The agency will bill you for the charges payable (minus any deposit paid) when the information you have requested is supplied to you.
NOTE: - The time taken to assess an FOI application does not start until either the deposit payment is received or the designated officer has decided to waive or reduce the fee.
- Routine requests may be dealt with outside of the Act. You will be advised if your application can be treated this way..
FOI requests for information in the possession of the Department of Primary Industries and Water can be mailed to:
FOI Coordinator
GPO Box 44
HOBART TAS 7001
General enquiries about FOI or preparing an FOI request, may be directed to:
FOI Coordinator
Strategic Policy Division
Phone: 03 6233 2663
Fax: 03 6236 9744
foi@dpipwe.tas.gov.au
Department switchboard: 1300 368 550 (local call cost within Australia)
Further information on FOI can be found on the Department of Justice website: FOI - DJIR website
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