2012-13 Annual Report to Parliament — Access to Information Act

Federal Economic Development Agency For Southern Ontario

April 1, 2012 to March 31, 2013

This publication is available upon request in accessible formats.

Contact:
Access to Information and Privacy Coordinator
Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario
155 Queen Street, 14th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0H5
Telephone: 613-954-2880
Fax: 613-952-9026
Email: Josee.Riopel@FedDevOntario.gc.ca

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• About the Organization
  • Raison d'être
  • Responsibilities
  • Scope of Operations
• Structure of the Access to Information and Privacy Office
• Delegation of Authority
• Statistics
  • Sources of Request
  • Disposition and Completion Time
  • Exemptions and Exclusions
  • Additional Information
  • Operational Costs to Administer the Access to Information Act
• Education and Training
• Institutional Policies and Procedures
• Complaints and Investigations

• Annex A — Structure of Access to Information and Privacy Office
• Annex B — Delegation Order
• Annex C — Statistical Report

Introduction

The Access to Information Act (the Act) gives Canadian citizens as well as people and corporations present in Canada the right to have access to federal government records that are not of a personal nature. The Act complements but does not replace other procedures for obtaining government information. It is not intended to limit in any way the access to government information that is normally available to the public upon request.

Section 72 of the Act requires that the head of every government institution prepare, for submission to Parliament, an annual report on the administration of the Act within the institution during each financial year. For the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), the President has been designated as the head of the institution by order in council.

This annual report describes how FedDev Ontario, in its fourth year of operation, administered its responsibilities under the Act.

About the Organization

Raison d'être

As Canada's most populous region—home to more than 12 million residents living in 288 communities—southern Ontario is a key contributor to the Canadian economy. The Government of Canada created FedDev Ontario in 2009 to help the region mitigate and overcome regional and global economic challenges. To fulfill its mandate, FedDev Ontario supports technological innovation, business development, and community economic development in southern Ontario by connecting and supporting partners and stakeholders across the region, and responding to emerging opportunities and challenges. The Agency directs resources toward activities with the greatest impact to address community and business needs, and as a means of propelling the southern Ontario economy forward to a position of strength and prosperity, both in Canada and on the global stage.

Responsibilities

FedDev Ontario is responsible for positioning southern Ontario as a key factor in building a stronger Canadian economy.

Scope of Operations

FedDev Ontario is headquartered in Kitchener and has offices throughout southern Ontario to support program delivery. Its mandate covers southern Ontario which includes 37 Statistics Canada census divisions. According to Statistics Canada's annual population estimates for 2011, this area has a population of over 12 million, representing 93.5 percent of Ontario's total population and 35.9 percent of the total population of Canada.

FedDev Ontario is part of the Industry portfolio. Its President oversees Agency operations and resources, and reports to the Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State (Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario).

Structure of the Access to Information and Privacy Office

Responsibility for processing requests received under the Act rests with the Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Coordinator who reports to the Corporate Secretary of the Agency. The ATIP Coordinator oversees the implementation of the Act within FedDev Ontario, and ensures compliance with the legislation. One officer is also part of the ATIP office. The organizational chart of the ATIP office is found in Annex A.

The ATIP Coordinator is responsible for the development, coordination and implementation of effective policies, guidelines and procedures necessary to manage the Agency's compliance with the Act and the Privacy Act. The administration of the legislation at FedDev Ontario is also facilitated at the branch and regional office levels. Each organizational branch has a liaison officer (reporting to a vice-president or director general) who coordinates activities on the administrative processes and procedures of the Acts. The ATIP office, which is located in Ottawa's regional office, responds to all formal requests submitted under the applicable Act.

Delegation of Authority

The current ATIP Delegation Order was approved by the President in June 2010, and provides full delegated authority to the Corporate Secretary and the ATIP Coordinator. The designation of the Corporate Secretary position is for the purpose of providing strategic support and advice to the executive management of the Agency concerning ATIP issues, if and when required. For all daily ATIP activities and operations, the ATIP Coordinator exercises full responsibility. A copy of the ATIP Delegation Order is attached in Annex B.

Statistics

FedDev Ontario received 26 requests from April 1, 2012 to March 31, 2013, and carried forward two requests from the previous period. Of the 28 active requests, 22 were completed during the 2012–13 reporting period and six requests were carried forward to the next reporting period. A detailed statistical report on access to information requests is attached in Annex C.

Sources of Requests

The breakdown of the 26 new requests received by type of user is as follows:

Disposition and Completion Time

The 22 completed requests were disposed of as follows: six requesters were provided full access to the relevant records, nine requesters were granted partial disclosure, for three requests there were no existing records, one request was transferred, and three requests were abandoned by the requester.

Of the 22 completed requests, the Agency responded to 10 requests within the legislated 30 days. In 12 cases, an extension was required under the Act to allow for 13 consultations with other government institutions, 16 consultations with third parties, and in three instances extensions were taken in order to avoid unreasonable interference with the operation of our institution. These consultations resulted in the Agency responding to five requests within the 31 to 60 days completion time range, four requests within the 61 to 120 days completion time range, and three requests within the 121 to 180 days completion time range.

Exemptions and Exclusions

As noted in Annex C, exemptions under sections 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 and 23, and exclusions pursuant to section 68 of the Act were invoked by FedDev Ontario.

Additional Information

In addition to the 26 requests received and accounted for in the ATIP statistics (Annex C), the Agency received nine consultation requests from five other government departments and agencies.

Overall, the Agency completed a total of 30 requests (22 access requests and eight consultation requests). This represents an increase of three percent compared to the previous period.

Operational Costs to Administer the Access to Information Act

Annex C reflects the cost for the ATIP office only. Non-salary costs are estimated at $33,079, salary-related costs are estimated at $184,174, overtime-related costs are estimated at $33,525, and full-time employees utilized are estimated at 3.19.

Including both the ATIP office and Agency officials for this period, the total salary costs associated with the Act activities are estimated at $269,277, and the associated human resources are estimated at 3.91 full time employees.

Education and Training

Access to Information training was delivered in 10 sessions to 102 Agency staff at headquarters and regional offices. The number of Agency staff reached with these awareness sessions represented approximately 46 percent of Agency employees at the time of training. Also, targeted training sessions were delivered to 10 upper-management employees.

Additionally, the ATIP Coordinator spent two days with branch employees giving specialized hands on training.

Procedural information is also posted on the Agency's wiki.

Institutional Policies and Procedures

An Internet ATIP page is available on the FedDev Ontario website. The site contains general information for the public, points of contact, and links to other key departments and agencies.

Since January 2012, the Agency has been posting summaries of completed requests on its website.

FedDev Ontario's internal procedures are reviewed periodically to maintain compliance with Treasury Board Secretariat's policies and guidelines.

Complaints and Investigations

There were no complaints received concerning the administration of the Act.

There were no applications submitted to the Federal Court by third parties regarding the Agency's administration of the Act.

Annex A — Structure of Access to Information and Privacy Office

Annex B — Delegation Order

Access to Information Act and Privacy Act Delegation Order

The President of the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, pursuant to section 73 to the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act, hereby designates the persons holding the positions set out in the schedule hereto, or the persons occupying on an acting basis those positions, to exercise the powers and functions of the President as the head of a government institution, under the section of the Acts set out in the schedule opposite each position. This Delegation Order supersedes all previous Delegation Orders.

Dated, at the City of Kitchener
This 22nd day of June, 2010

Original signed by B.A. (Bruce) Archibald, Ph. D., President
Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario

Annex C — Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act

Part 1 — Requests under the Access to Information Act

1.1 Number of Requests

Number of Requests

	Number of Requests
Received during reporting period	26
Outstanding from previous reporting period	2
Total	28
Closed during reporting period	22
Carried over to next reporting period	6

1.2 Sources of requests

Sources of requests

Source	Number of Requests
Media	17
Academia	0
Business (Private Sector)	6
Organization	0
Public	3
Total	26

Part 2 — Requests closed during the reporting period

2.1 Disposition and completion time

Disposition and completion time

Disposition of requests	Completion Time
	1 to 15 days	16 to 30 days	31 to 60 days	61 to 120 days	121 to 180 days	181 to 365 days	More than 365 days	Total
All disclosed	0	3	3	0	0	0	0	6
Disclosed in part	0	0	2	4	3	0	0	9
All exempted	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
All excluded	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
No records exist	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	3
Request transferred	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Request abandoned	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	3
Treated informally	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	6	4	5	4	3	0	0	22

2.2 Exemptions

Exemptions

Section	Number of requests	Section	Number of requests	Section	Number of requests	Section	Number of requests
13(1)(a)	0	16(2)(a)	0	18(a)	1	20.1	0
13(1)(b)	0	16(2)(b)	0	18(b)	0	20.2	0
13(1)(c)	0	16(2)(c)	0	18(c)	0	20.4	0
13(1)(d)	0	16(3)	0	18(d)	0	21(1)(a)	5
13(1)(e)	0	16.1(1)(a)	0	18.1(1)(a)	0	21(1)(b)	5
14(a)	0	16.1(1)(b)	0	18.1(1)(b)	0	21(1)(c)	5
14(b)	0	16.1(1)(c)	0	18.1(1)(c)	0	21(1)(d)	1
15(1)–I.A.Footnote a	0	16.1(1)(d)	0	18.1(1)(d)	0	22	2
15(1)–Def.Footnote b	0	16.2(1)	0	19(1)	5	22.1(1)	0
15(1)–S.A.Footnote c	0	16.3	0	20(1)(a)	2	23	3
16(1)(a)(i)	0	16.4(1)(a)	0	20(1)(b)	7	24(1)	0
16(1)(a)(ii)	0	16.4(1)(b)	0	20(1)(b.1)	0	26	0
16(1)(a)(iii)	0	16.5	0	20(1)(c)	7
16(1)(b)	0	17	0	20(1)(d)	5
16(1)(c)	0
16(1)(d)	0
Footnotes Footnote a I.A.: International Affairs Return to footnote a referrer Footnote b Def.: Defence of Canada Return to footnote b referrer Footnote c S.A.: Subversive Activities Return to footnote c referrer

2.3 Exclusions

Exclusions

Section	Number of requests	Section	Number of requests	Section	Number of requests
68(a)	2	69(1)(a)	0	69(1)(g) re (a)	0
68(b)	0	69(1)(b)	0	69(1)(g) re (b)	0
68(c)	0	69(1)(c)	0	69(1)(g) re (c)	0
68.1	0	69(1)(d)	0	69(1)(g) re (d)	0
68.2(a)	0	69(1)(e)	0	69(1)(g) re (e)	0
68.2(b)	0	69(1)(f)	0	69(1)(g) re (f)	0
				69.1(1)	0

2.4 Format of information released

Format of information released

Disposition	Paper	Electronic	Other formats
All disclosed	4	1	0
Disclosed in part	3	7	0
Total	7	8	0

2.5 Complexity

2.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed

Relevant pages processed and disclosed

Disposition of requests	Number of pages processed	Number of pages disclosed	Number of requests
All disclosed	249	249	6
Disclosed in part	23,960	7,471	9
All exempted	0	0	0
All excluded	0	0	0
Request abandoned	0	0	3

2.5.2 Relevant pages processed and disclosed by size of requests

Relevant pages processed and disclosed by size of requests

Disposition	Less than 100 pages processed		101–500 pages processed		501–1000 pages processed		1001–5000 pages processed		More than 5000 pages processed
	Number of requests	Pages disclo- sed	Number of requests	Pages disclo- sed	Number of requests	Pages disclo- sed	Number of requests	Pages disclo- sed	Number of requests	Pages disclo- sed
All disclosed	5	99	1	150	0	0	0	0	0	0
Disclosed in part	1	79	2	513	2	1,128	2	1,696	2	4,055
All exempted	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
All excluded	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Abandoned	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	9	178	3	663	2	1,128	2	1,696	2	4,055

2.5.3 Other complexities

Other complexities

Disposition	Consultation required	Assessment of fees	Legal advice sought	Other	Total
All disclosed	1	0	0	0	1
Disclosed in part	10	0	0	0	10
All exempted	0	0	0	0	0
All excluded	0	0	0	0	0
Abandoned	0	0	0	0	0
Total	11	0	0	0	11

2.6 Deemed refusals

2.6.1 Reasons for not meeting statutory deadline

Reasons for not meeting statutory deadline

Number of requests closed past the statutory deadline	Principal Reason
	Workload	External consultation	Internal consultation	Other
0	0	0	0	0

2.6.2 Number of days past deadline

Number of days past deadline

Number of days past deadline	Number of requests past deadline where no extension was taken	Number of requests past deadline where an extension was taken	Total
1 to 15 days	0	0	0
16 to 30 days	0	0	0
31 to 60 days	0	0	0
61 to 120 days	0	0	0
121 to 180 days	0	0	0
181 to 365 days	0	0	0
More than 365 days	0	0	0
Total	0	0	0

2.7 Requests for translation

Requests for translation

Translation Requests	Accepted	Refused	Total
English to French	0	0	0
French to English	0	0	0
Total	0	0	0

Part 3 — Extensions

3.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

Disposition of requests where an extension was taken	9(1)(a) Interference with operations	9(1)(b) Consultation		9(1)(c) Third party notice
		Section 69	Other
All disclosed	0	0	1	0
Disclosed in part	3	0	4	6
All exempted	0	0	0	0
All excluded	0	0	0	0
No records exist	0	0	0	0
Request abandoned	0	0	0	0
Total	3	0	5	6

3.2 Length of extensions

Length of extensions

Length of extensions	9(1)(a) Interference with operations	9(1)(b) Consultation		9(1)(c) Third party notice
		Section 69	Other
30 days or less	0	0	2	0
31 to 60 days	1	0	2	6
61 to 120 days	0	0	0	0
121 to 180 days	0	0	0	0
181 to 365 days	2	0	1	0
365 days or more	0	0	0	0
Total	3	0	5	6

Part 4 — Fees

Fees

Fee Type	Fee Collected		Fee Waived or Refunded
	Number of requests	Amount	Number of requests	Amount
Application	21	$100	0	$0
Search	0	$0	0	$0
Production	0	$0	0	$0
Programming	0	$0	0	$0
Preparation	0	$0	0	$0
Alternative format	0	$0	0	$0
Reproduction	0	$0	0	$0
Total	21	$100	0	$0

Part 5 — Consultations received from other institutions and organizations

5.1 Consultations received from other government institutions and organizations

Consultations received from other government institutions and organizations

Consultations	Other government institutions	Number of pages to review	Other organizations	Number of pages to review
Received during reporting period	9	221	0	0
Outstanding from the previous reporting period	0	0	0	0
Total	9	221	0	0
Closed during the reporting period	8	80	0	0
Pending at the end of the reporting period	1	141	0	0

5.2 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other government institutions

Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other government institutions

Recommendation	Number of days required to complete consultation requests
	1 to 15 days	16 to 30 days	31 to 60 days	61 to 120 days	121 to 180 days	181 to 365 days	More than 365 days	Total
Disclose entirely	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	6
Disclose in part	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Exempt entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Exclude entirely	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1
Consult other institution	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Other	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	7	1	0	0	0	0	0	8

5.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations

Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations

Recommendation	Number of days required to complete consultation requests
	1 to 15 days	16 to 30 days	31 to 60 days	61 to 120 days	121 to 180 days	181 to 365 days	More than 365 days	Total
Disclose entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Disclose in part	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Exempt entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Exclude entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Consult other institution	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Other	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Part 6 — Completion time of consultations on Cabinet confidences

Completion time of consultations on Cabinet confidences

Number of days	Number of responses received	Number of responses received past deadline
1 to 15 days	0	0
16 to 30 days	0	0
31 to 60 days	0	0
61 to 120 days	0	0
121 to 180 days	0	0
181 to 365 days	0	0
More than 365 days	0	0
Total	0	0

Part 7 — Resources related to the Access to Information Act

7.1 Costs

Costs

Expenditures		Amount
Salaries		$184,174
Overtime		$33,525
Goods and Services		$33,079
• Professional services contracts	$8,024
• Other	$25,055
Total		$250,778

7.2 Human Resources

Human Resources

Resources	Dedicated full-time to ATI activities	Dedicated part-time to ATI activities	Total
Full-time employees	0.00	1.91	1.91
Part-time and casual employees	0.00	0.92	0.92
Regional staff	0.00	0.00	0.00
Consultants and agency personnel	0.00	0.36	0.36
Students	0.00	0.00	0.00
Total	0.00	3.19	3.19