The
Access to Information and
Protection of Privacy Act (ATIPPA) was passed by the
Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly in March of 2002
and the access provisions were proclaimed into force on
January 17, 2005. The privacy provisions (Part IV) of the
Act are not yet in force. The
ATIPPA repeals and
replaces the Freedom of Information Act which came
into effect in 1981. The
ATIPPA governs access to
records in the custody of or under the control of a public
body and sets out requirements for the collection, use,
storage and disclosure of personal information contained in
the records they maintain.
A public body is defined in section 2 of the legislation and
includes provincial departments and agencies, school
districts, public post-secondary institutions, health boards
and municipalities.
The purpose of Newfoundland and Labrador’s
ATIPPA is to
make public bodies more open and accountable and to protect
individual privacy by:
- giving the public a
right of access to records;
- giving individuals a
right of access to their own personal information and a
right to request correction of that information;
- specifying limited
exceptions to the right of access;
- preventing the
unauthorized collection, use and disclosure of personal
information by public bodies;
- providing for
independent review by an Officer of the House of
Assembly of a decision, act or failure to act on the
part of a public body.
Individuals or organizations,
referred to as applicants, who wish to exercise their rights
under this legislation may do so by completing the
appropriate form and forwarding it to the public body having
custody or control of the information being sought. This
application form is available from any public body or from
the provincial Department of Justice ATIPP website at
www.gov.nl.ca/just/civil/atipp. This site also contains
other pertinent information including a list of all public
bodies and the name and contact information of their
respective access and privacy representatives.
A cornerstone of this legislation is the establishment of
this office as the independent review mechanism. As such,
the Information and Privacy Commissioner has been given
specific powers to investigate requests and complaints from
individuals and groups who feel that their access to
information rights or their privacy rights, as provided for
in the
ATIPPA, have been violated. While the Commissioner
does not have the power to make final and binding orders, he
does have the power to require a public body to produce any
document that he feels is relevant to an investigation. The
Commissioner may also enter an office of a public body and
examine, and if necessary make copies of, a record in the
custody of the public body. For more information on the role
and responsibilities of the Commissioner please
click here.
It is important to note the distinction between the
provincial Department of Justice and the Office of the
Information and Privacy Commissioner. The Department of
Justice is responsible for the overall administration and
coordination of the legislation, while the Commissioner, as
an Officer of the House of Assembly, acts as the independent
review mechanism under the legislation. Specific information
on the role of the Department of Justice can be found on
their website.
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