Legislative Transparency Toolkit Concepts, Tools, and Good Practices An Initiative of EUROsociAL+, the Transparency and Access to Information Network, and ParlAmericas This publication has been developed with the technical and financial support of the European Union. Its content is the sole responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union. Additionally, this publication was made possible in part thanks to the generous support of the Government of Canada through Global Affairs Canada. Published in October 2020. TABLE OF CONTENTS Prologue ................................................................................................................................................................7 1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................................................8 2. How to use this toolkit ........................................................................................................................................11 3. Methodology ......................................................................................................................................................12 4. Background on transparency and the right of access to public information .............................................................14 4.1 International sources: Freedom of expression and the right of access to public information ......................................................14 4.2 Basic principles ..........................................................................................................................................................................15 4.3 Active and passive transparency ................................................................................................................................................16 4.4 Associated concepts ...................................................................................................................................................................17 4.5 Transparency in the parliament .................................................................................................................................................18 5. Legislative transparency tools .............................................................................................................................20 5.1 Active transparency ....................................................................................................................................21 Concept ...........................................................................................................................................................................................21 Objective: What is the purpose of active transparency? ...................................................................................................................21 Attributes of information .................................................................................................................................................................22 Model for active transparency information ......................................................................................................................................23 Mainstreaming gender in active transparency .................................................................................................................................27 International good practices in active transparency ........................................................................................................................27 Compliance assessment systems - Management indicators .............................................................................................................33 5.2 Requests for access to public information .....................................................................................................35 Concept ...........................................................................................................................................................................................35 Objective: What is the purpose of access request mechanisms? .......................................................................................................35 Attributes of the process for access to information requests ............................................................................................................36 Model for processing access to information requests .......................................................................................................................38 Mainstreaming gender in the process for access to information requests .......................................................................................42 4 Legislative transparency toolkit | Concepts, tools, and good practices International good practices in the process for access to information requests ...............................................................................43 Compliance assessment systems - Management indicators .............................................................................................................46 5.3 Open data ..................................................................................................................................................48 Concept ...........................................................................................................................................................................................48 Objectives: What is the purpose of open data?.................................................................................................................................48 Open data principles ........................................................................................................................................................................49 Methodology for publishing open data in legislatures .....................................................................................................................50 International good practices in open data .......................................................................................................................................53 Compliance assessment systems - Management indicators .............................................................................................................56 5.4 Communication and accessibility .................................................................................................................58 Concept ...........................................................................................................................................................................................58 Objective: What is the purpose of communication and accessibility? ...............................................................................................58 Attributes of communication and accessibility ................................................................................................................................59 Communication and accessibility tools ............................................................................................................................................60 International good practices in communication and accessibility ....................................................................................................63 Compliance assessment systems - Management indicators .............................................................................................................66 5.5 Records management .................................................................................................................................67 Concept ...........................................................................................................................................................................................67 Objective: What is the purpose of records management? ................................................................................................................67 Attributes for records, document, and archive management ...........................................................................................................68 Records management in parliaments ..............................................................................................................................................69 International good practices in records management and archiving ...............................................................................................72 Compliance assessment systems - Management indicators .............................................................................................................77 Bibliography ..........................................................................................................................................................79 Legislative transparency toolkit | Concepts, tools, and good practices 5 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This project is the result of a joint effort between EUROsociAL+ — the program for cooperation between the European Union and Latin America — and the institutions that are part of the Transparency and Access to Information Network (RTA) and ParlAmericas. We would like to highlight and acknowledge the contributions made by the member parliaments of ParlAmericas and the institutions that comprise