Final Report of the Select Special Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act Review Committee

Report of the Select Special Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act Review Committee

INTRODUCTION

The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIP Act) was given Royal Assent in 1994 and enacted on October 1, 1995 for Provincial Government Ministries. It was extended to cover school jurisdictions on September 1, 1998 and health care bodies on October 1, 1998. It will be extended to cover post-secondary educational institutions and local government bodies in 1999. (Throughout this report these local public bodies may be referred to collectively as "the MASH sector".)

The Act provides people with a right of access to records in the custody or control of a public body, including access to their own records, subject to specific exceptions. The Act also establishes limitations to the collection, use and disclosure of personal information by public bodies, to protect the privacy of individuals.

In 1993, when Premier Klein introduced this legislation he encouraged Albertans to present their views on it through an all-party Panel formed to gather and incorporate public input. The Panel recommended that three years after implementation of the Act, an all-party Legislative Assembly Committee be established to undertake a formal review. This recommendation was included in the Act as section 91.

MANDATE

On March 2, 1998 the Legislative Assembly of Alberta passed a motion appointing an all-party Committee to review the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, (referred to in this report as the "FOIP Act" or the "Act") pursuant to section 91 of the Act. The Committee's mandate was to determine if the Act is meeting the intent of the original legislation in balancing access to information with protecting the privacy of individuals, and to provide to the Assembly a report that includes any recommended amendments.

In addition to reviewing the operation of the legislation in Provincial Government Ministries, the Committee also looked at the implications of the legislation on schools, hospitals, post- secondary educational institutions, municipalities and other local public bodies that are being phased into the Act.

The Committee consists of:

Mr. Gary Friedel, Chairman, MLA, Peace River
Mr. Ron Stevens, Vice-Chairman, MLA, Calgary-Glenmore
Ms Pam Barrett, MLA, Edmonton-Highlands
Mr. Mike Cardinal, MLA, Athabasca-Wabasca
Mr. Gary Dickson, MLA, Calgary-Buffalo
Mr. Denis Ducharme, MLA, Bonnyville-Cold Lake
Ms Pamela C. Paul, MLA, Edmonton-Castle Downs
Ms Janis Tarchuk, MLA, Banff-Cochrane

This final report represents the recommendations of the all-party Legislative Assembly Committee based on substantial public input, including comments and feedback received in response to a preliminary report issued by the Committee on December 21, 1998.

Some of the recommendations in this report represent a balanced compromise of conflicting views received from the public, and a number of recommendations represent the majority view of the Committee, since unanimous agreement was not always achievable. It should also be pointed out that many of the comments received in this review were similar to those received when the original Act was designed in 1994, which resulted in upholding a status quo of some issues.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The Committee wishes to acknowledge the many Albertans who submitted written briefs and letters and/or appeared before the Committee, for their valuable input into this important process.

The Committee also wishes to acknowledge the valuable assistance of the Technical Support Staff:

The Original Technical Support Team:

Mr. Clark Dalton, Alberta Justice

Mr. John Ennis, Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner

Mr. Peter Gillis, Alberta Labour

Ms Sue Kessler, Alberta Labour

Ms Charlotte Moran, Alberta Labour

Additional Technical Support Staff:

Ms Donna Molzan, Alberta Justice

Ms Diana Salonen, Alberta Labour

Ms Lisa Wilde, Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner

Support Staff:

Ms Diane Shumyla, Legislative Assembly of Alberta

Hansard Staff, Legislative Assembly of Alberta