2015–16 Annual Report to Parliament — Access to Information Act

Federal Economic Development Agency For Southern Ontario

April 1, 2015 to March 31, 2016

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: 613-301-7142
Fax: 613-952-9026
Email: fdo.atip-aiprp.fdo@canada.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 Requests
  • Disposition and Completion Time
  • Additional Information
  • Operational Costs to Administer the Access to Information Act
• Education and Training
• Institutional Policies and Procedures
• Complaints, Audits and Investigations
• Processing Times
• 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 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 seventh year of operation, administered its responsibilities under the Act.

About the organization

Raison d'être

FedDev Ontario was established in 2009 to support economic growth in southern Ontario through the delivery of federal programs and services.

In 2013, FedDev Ontario's mandate was renewed for a second five-year term, from 2014-2015 to 2018-2019. Budget 2013 provided the Agency with $920 million in core funding for this five-year period, with a renewed commitment to strengthen the region's capacity for innovation, entrepreneurship and collaboration and to promote the development of a strong and diversified southern Ontario economy.

Responsibilities

Through its suite of programs and activities, FedDev Ontario works to support sustainable and long-term economic benefits for the region, contributing to a strong and prosperous Ontario, to ensure a strong and prosperous Canada.

Scope of Operations

FedDev Ontario is headquartered in Waterloo and has regional offices in Ottawa, Peterborough and Toronto. Its mandate covers southern Ontario, which includes 37 Statistics Canada census divisions.

FedDev Ontario is part of the Innovation, Science and Economic Development portfolio. Its President oversees Agency operations and resources, and reports to the Clerk of the Privy Council.

Structure of the Access to Information and Privacy Office

Responsibility for processing requests received under the Access to Information 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 Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act (the Acts) within FedDev Ontario, and ensures compliance with the legislation. The ATIP Office structure also includes one officer as per the organizational chart 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 Acts. The ATIP Office, which is located in Ottawa's regional office, responds to all formal requests submitted under the applicable Act.

The administration of the above Acts 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 these Acts.

Delegation of Authority

The current ATIP Delegation Order was approved by the President on January 27, 2016. This provides full delegated authority to the Vice-President of the Policy, Partnership and Performance Management Branch, to the Corporate Secretary and to 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 Access to Information and Privacy 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 31 access to information requests from April 1, 2015 to March 31, 2016, and carried forward five requests from the previous fiscal year. Of the 36 active requests, 22 were completed during the 2015-2016 reporting period and 14 requests were carried forward to fiscal year 2016-2017. A detailed statistical report on access to information requests is attached in Annex C.

Sources of Requests

The breakdown of the 31 new requests received by type of user is as follows:

Disposition and Completion Time

The 22 completed requests were disposed of as follows: four requesters were provided full access to the relevant records, seven requesters were granted partial disclosure, eight requests had no existing records, two requests were transferred and one request was abandoned by the requester.

Of the 22 requests for which FedDev Ontario held responsive records, a total of 31,487 pages were processed and 5,817 pages were disclosed.

Of the 22 completed requests, the Agency responded to 14 requests within the 30 days completion range, 3 requests within the 31-60 days completion time range, 1 within the 61-120 days completion time range, 3 within the 121-180 days completion time range and 1 request within the 181-365 days completion time range.

In seven cases, an extension was required under the Act to allow for consultations with other federal institutions, other government institutions and with third parties. In one instance an extension was taken in order to avoid unreasonable interference with the operation of our institution.

Exemptions and Exclusions

As noted in Annex C, exemptions under sections 15, 16, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 and 24, and one exclusion pursuant to section 69 of the Act were invoked by FedDev Ontario.

Additional Information

In addition to the 31 requests received and accounted for in the ATI statistics (Annex C), the Agency received 28 consultation requests from other government institutions.

Overall, the Agency completed a total of 50 requests (22 access requests and 28 consultation requests). This represents an increase of 39 percent overall, compared to the previous period.

Operational Costs to Administer the Access to Information Act

Annex C reflects the total cost of $190,941 associated with the administration of the Access to Information Act in the Agency for this fiscal year. This amount includes a salary cost of $183,966, which includes two full-time employees and one part-time employee in the ATIP office, and other FedDev employees who work to support this function on a part-time basis as required and a non-salary amount of $6,975.

Education and Training

The Agency did not deliver access to information training sessions to employees during the reporting period. The ATIP Coordinator and the ATIP Officer provided advice and coaching to employees on access to information related matters throughout the reporting period.

Guidelines and procedures are provided to staff when they are tasked to respond to an access to information request.

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

Institutional Policies and Procedures

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

FedDev Ontario has been posting summaries of completed requests on the Open Data Portal Website.

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

Complaints, Audits and Investigations

There were two complaints received concerning the administration of the Act. Both complaints are currently under investigation by the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada.

Processing Times

The ATIP Office monitors the time to process access to information requests on an ongoing basis using the ATIP requests management software in order to ensure compliance with established deadlines. The Corporate Secretary, Vice-Presidents, Directors General or the Office of the President are notified as appropriate.

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.

Schedule

Schedule

Position	Access to Information Act and Regulations	Privacy Act and Regulations
Corporate Secretary	Full authority	Full authority
Access to Information and Privacy Coordinator, Corporate Secretariat	Full authority	Full authority
Vice-President, Policy, Partnership & Performance Management	Full authority	Full authority

Dated, at the City of Ottawa
This 27th day of January, 2016

Original signed by Nancy Horsman, President
Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario

Annex C — Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act

Name of institution:
Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario

Reporting period:
01/04/2015 to 31/03/2016

Part 1 — Requests under the Access to Information Act

1.1 Number of Requests

Number of Requests

	Number of Requests
Received during reporting period	31
Outstanding from previous reporting period	5
Total	36
Closed during reporting period	22
Carried over to next reporting period	14

1.2 Sources of requests

Sources of requests

Source	Number of Requests
Media	5
Academia	3
Business (Private Sector)	20
Organization	0
Public	3
Decline to Identify	0
Total	31

1.3 Informal 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
0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Note: All requests previously recorded as "treated informally" will now be accounted for in this section only.

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	1	0	0	0	0	4
Disclosed in part	0	0	2	1	3	1	0	7
All exempted	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
All excluded	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
No records exist	8	0	0	0	0	0	0	8
Request transferred	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Request abandoned	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	11	3	3	1	3	1	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)	1	18(a)	0	20.1	0
13(1)(b)	0	16(2)(a)	0	18(b)	0	20.2	0
13(1)(c)	0	16(2)(b)	0	18(c)	0	20.4	0
13(1)(d)	0	16(2)(c)	0	18(d)	0	21(1)(a)	3
13(1)(e)	0	16(3)	0	18.1(1)(a)	0	21(1)(b)	3
14	0	16.1(1)(a)	0	18.1(1)(b)	0	21(1)(c)	2
14(a)	0	16.1(1)(b)	0	18.1(1)(c)	0	21(1)(d)	1
14(b)	0	16.1(1)(c)	0	18.1(1)(d)	0	22	1
15(1)	1	16.1(1)(d)	0	19(1)	7	22.1(1)	0
15(1)–I.A.Footnote a	0	16.2(1)	0	20(1)(a)	0	23	1
15(1)–Def.Footnote b	0	16.3	0	20(1)(b)	0	24(1)	1
15(1)–S.A.Footnote c	0	16.4(1)(a)	0	20(1)(b.1)	0	26	0
16(1)(a)(i)	0	16.4(1)(b)	0	20(1)(c)	5
16(1)(a)(ii)	0	16.5	0	20(1)(d)	3
16(1)(a)(iii)	1	17	0
16(1)(b)	0
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)	0	69(1)	0	69(1)(g) re (a)	1
68(b)	0	69(1)(a)	1	69(1)(g) re (b)	0
68(c)	0	69(1)(b)	0	69(1)(g) re (c)	0
68.1	0	69(1)(c)	0	69(1)(g) re (d)	0
68.2(a)	0	69(1)(d)	0	69(1)(g) re (e)	0
68.2(b)	0	69(1)(e)	1	69(1)(g) re (f)	0
		69(1)(f)	0	69.1(1)	0

2.4 Format of information released

Format of information released

Disposition	Paper	Electronic	Other formats
All disclosed	3	1	0
Disclosed in part	3	5	0
Total	6	6	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	32	32	4
Disclosed in part	8,517	5,785	7
All exempted	0	0	0
All excluded	0	0	0
Request abandoned	22,938	0	1
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0

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	4	32	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Disclosed in part	1	79	1	137	1	817	4	4,752	0	0
All exempted	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
All excluded	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Request abandoned	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	6	111	1	137	1	817	4	4,752	0	0

2.5.3 Other complexities

Other complexities

Disposition	Consultation required	Assessment of fees	Legal advice sought	Other	Total
All disclosed	0	0	0	0	0
Disclosed in part	35	0	0	0	35
All exempted	0	0	0	0	0
All excluded	0	0	0	0	0
Request abandoned	0	0	0	0	0
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0	0	0
Total	35	0	0	0	35

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
3	3	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	1	1
31 to 60 days	0	1	1
61 to 120 days	0	1	1
121 to 180 days	0	0	0
181 to 365 days	0	0	0
More than 365 days	0	0	0
Total	0	3	3

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	0	0
Disclosed in part	5	2	3	5
All exempted	0	0	0	0
All excluded	0	0	0	0
No records exist	0	0	0	0
Request abandoned	1	0	1	0
Total	6	2	4	5

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	0	0
31 to 60 days	4	2	3	4
61 to 120 days	1	0	0	1
121 to 180 days	1	0	0	0
181 to 365 days	0	0	1	0
365 days or more	0	0	0	0
Total	6	2	4	5

Part 4 — Fees

Fees

Fee Type	Fee Collected		Fee Waived or Refunded
	Number of requests	Amount	Number of requests	Amount
Application	24	$5	7	$5
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	24	$5	7	$5

Part 5 — Consultations received from other institutions and organizations

5.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and organizations

Consultations received from other government institutions and organizations

Consultations	Other Government of Canada institutions	Number of pages to review	Other organizations	Number of pages to review
Received during reporting period	28	257	0	0
Outstanding from the previous reporting period	0	0	0	0
Total	28	257	0	0
Closed during the reporting period	28	254	0	0
Pending at the end of the reporting period	0	3	0	0

5.2 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada 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	19	0	0	0	0	0	0	19
Disclose in part	7	0	0	0	0	0	0	7
Exempt entirely	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Exclude entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Consult other institution	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Other	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	28	0	0	0	0	0	0	28

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

6.1 Requests with Legal Services

Requests with Legal Services

Number of days	Fewer 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 Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed
1 to 15	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
16 to 30	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
31 to 60	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
61 to 120	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
121 to 180	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
181 to 365	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
More than 365	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

6.2 Requests with Privy Council Office

Requests with Privy Council Office

Number of days	Fewer 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 Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed
1 to 15	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
16 to 30	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
31 to 60	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1,156	0	0
61 to 120	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
121 to 180	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
181 to 365	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
More than 365	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1,156	0	0

Part 7 — Complaints and Investigations

Complaints and Investigations

Section 32	Section 35	Section 37	Total
2	2	0	4

Part 8 — Court Action

Court Action

Section 41	Section 42	Section 44	Total
0	0	0	0

Part 9 — Resources related to the Access to Information Act

9.1 Costs

Costs

Expenditures		Amount
Salaries		$128,830
Overtime		$2,154
Goods and Services		$59,957
• Professional services contracts	$11,892
• Other	$48,065
Total		$190,941

9.2 Human Resources

Human Resources

Resources	Access to Information
Full-time employees	2.00
Part-time and casual employees	1.00
Regional staff	0.00
Consultants and agency personnel	0.00
Students	0.00
Total	3.00