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Office of the Australian Information Commissioner Annual Report 2014–15

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Office of the Australian Information Commissioner Annual Report 2014–15 Annual Report 2014 –15 Annual Report 2014-15 ISSN 1839-5155 Creative Commons With the exception of the Commonwealth Coat of Arms, and to the extent that copyright subsists in a third party, this report, its logo and front page design are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au/deed.en). Content from this publication should be attributed as: Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, Annual Report 2014–15. Enquiries regarding the licence and any use of the Annual Report are welcome at: Office of the Australian Information Commissioner GPO Box 5218 Sydney NSW 2001 Telephone: 1300 363 992 Email: [email protected] Senator the Hon George Brandis QC Attorney-General Parliament House CANBERRA ACT 2600 Dear Attorney I am delighted to provide to you, for presentation to the Parliament, the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s (OAIC) Annual Report for the year ending 30 June 2015. Subsection 63(1) of the Public Service Act 1999 requires that I give this report to you to be tabled in the Parliament. Section 30 of the Australian Information Commissioner Act 2010 (AIC Act) requires the Australian Information Commissioner to prepare an annual report under section 46 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 on the OAIC’s operations, including a report on freedom of information matters (defined in section 31 of the AIC Act) and privacy matters (defined in section 32 of the AIC Act). The Annual Report includes reports on data collected from Australian Government ministers and agencies in relation to activity under the Freedom of Information Act 1982. I certify that the OAIC has prepared a fraud risk assessment and fraud control plan and has in place appropriate fraud prevention, detection, investigation, reporting and data collection procedures and processes that meet the specific needs of the OAIC. The OAIC has taken all reasonable measures to minimise the incidence of fraud. I certify that this report has been prepared in accordance with the Requirements for Annual Reports 2015. Yours sincerely Timothy Pilgrim PSM Acting Australian Information Commissioner 28 September 2015 v Contents Message from the Acting Australian Information Commissioner ....................................................xi Part A Corporate Chapter — One Year in review ................................................................................................................................4 Chapter Two — Organisation overview ........................................................................................................... 10 Chapter Three — Management and accountability ................................................................................. 18 Chapter Four — Communication and engagement .................................................................................. 28 Part B Promote and secure the protection of personal information Chapter Five — Privacy advice and law............................................................................................................ 42 Chapter Six — Privacy compliance ..................................................................................................................... 58 Part C Promote and secure open government Chapter Seven — Freedom of information policy and compliance ...............................................96 Chapter Eight — Agency freedom of information .................................................................................. 110 Appendices Appendix One — Agency resource statement and resources for outcomes......................... 140 Appendix Two — Financial statements 2014–15 .................................................................................... 142 Appendix Three — Information Publication Scheme ........................................................................... 183 Appendix Four — Memorandums of understanding ............................................................................ 184 Appendix Five — Speeches and presentations ....................................................................................... 186 Appendix Six — Committee members ........................................................................................................... 190 Appendix Seven — Acronyms ............................................................................................................................. 191 Appendix Eight — List of requirements ....................................................................................................... 194 Index .............................................................................................................................. 199 vii Office of the Australian Information Commissioner Annual Report 2014–15 Important information about this report This Annual Report records the activities of the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) for 2014–15. It reports on ‘freedom of information matters’ and ‘privacy matters’, as required by ss 30, 31 and 32 of the Australian Information Commissioner Act 2010. In each reporting year from 1982–83 until 2010–11, a separate report on the operation of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) was provided to Parliament, as required by s 93 of the FOI Act. These freedom of information (FOI) annual reports were prepared using data collected from Australian Government ministers and agencies subject to the FOI Act. In 2010–11, the FOI Annual Report was provided jointly by the Australian Information Commissioner and the then Minister for Privacy and Freedom of Information. A separate FOI Annual Report has not been published since 2010–11. The material previously published in such reports has been published in the OAIC Annual Report and on the OAIC website. viii Guide to the report Use this guide to assist you in locating the pages of the report of interest to you. Chapter One — Year in review This Chapter provides a summary of significant issues, developments and achievements during the year, and an outline of the year ahead. Chapter Two — Organisation overview This Chapter explains the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s (OAIC) role, functions and organisation structure and introduces its Commissioners. This section also provides an overview of the outcomes and Key Performance Indicators of the OAIC. Chapter Three — Management and accountability This Chapter contains an overview of the OAIC’s administrative arrangements, management of human resources and corporate governance. Chapter Four — Communication and engagement This Chapter outlines the OAIC’s communication and educational activities, and involvement in international networks and forums. Chapter Five — Privacy advice and law This Chapter outlines the OAIC’s work in supporting organisations and agencies to implement and comply with privacy law reforms that commenced in March 2014. It also describes other privacy policy activities of the OAIC including advice and submissions. Chapter Six — Privacy compliance This Chapter describes the work of the OAIC in relation to its privacy compliance functions, including handling enquiries and complaints, undertaking assessments and Commissioner initiated investigations and monitoring data-matching activities. Chapter Seven — Freedom of information policy and compliance This Chapter describes the OAIC’s activities in relation to its freedom of information (FOI) functions, including handling enquiries and complaints, and reviewing decisions. Chapter Eight — Agency freedom of information This Chapter describes the FOI activities of agencies and ministers in relation to the Freedom of Information Act 1982. Appendices The appendices contain the financial statements and material to support other sections of this report. ix Office of the Australian Information Commissioner Annual Report 2014–15 Contact officer For enquiries about this report or for copies please contact: Director, Strategic Communications and Coordination Office of the Australian Information Commissioner GPO Box 5218 SYDNEY NSW 2001 Telephone: + 61 2 9284 9800 Fax: + 61 2 9284 9666 Email: [email protected] Website: www.oaic.gov.au Enquiries line: 1300 363 992 (local call) This report is also available free of charge on the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) website at www.oaic.gov.au. Non-English speakers If you speak a language other than English and need help please call the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450 and ask for the Australian Government Office of the Australian Information Commissioner on 1300 363 992. This is a free service. Accessible formats All OAIC publications can be made available in a range of accessible formats for people with disabilities. If you require assistance, please contact the OAIC. x Message from the Acting Australian Information Commissioner, Timothy Pilgrim PSM When reflecting on the 2014–15 financial year, one thing stands out. While successfully embedding the most significant reforms to the Privacy Act 1988 (Privacy Act) since its enactment was a major milestone, it was the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s (OAIC) ability to achieve this collaboratively with business, Australian Government agencies and consumer groups during an uncertain time for the OAIC that is most commendable. Following the Australian Government’s announcement in May 2014 that the OAIC would be disbanded and new arrangements put in place for the administration
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