2017–18 Annual Report to Parliament: Privacy Act

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Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario

April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018

This publication is available upon request in accessible formats.

Contact:
Access to Information and Privacy Coordinator
Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario
410 Laurier Avenue West, 3rd Floor
Ottawa, Ontario  K1A 0H5
Telephone: 613-941-7754
Fax: 613-952-9026
Email: fdo.atip-aiprp.fdo@canada.ca

Table of Contents

Introduction

The purpose of the Privacy Act (the Act) is to extend the present laws of Canada that protect the privacy of individuals with respect to personal information about themselves held by a government institution and that provide individuals with a right of access to that information.  The Act also protects an individual's privacy by preventing others from having access to that personal information and provides individuals with specific rights concerning the collection and use of their personal information.

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. Tabling of the report “shall be laid before each House of Parliament within three months after the financial year in respect of which it is made or, if that House Is not then sitting, on any of the first fifteen days next thereafter that it is sitting.”

This Annual Report describes how FedDev Ontario, in its ninth year of operation, administered its responsibilities under the Act.

About the Organization

Raison d'être

FedDev Ontario was created in 2009 to work with communities, businesses, not-for-profit organizations and other levels of government in southern Ontario, to actively promote the region, and to build a strong foundation of investment and partnerships to help secure the region's economic growth and long-term prosperity.

In 2018, FedDev Ontario's mandate was renewed for a five-year term, from 2019-2020 to 2023-2024.

Responsibilities

Through its suite of programs and activities, FedDev Ontario works to strengthen economic capacity for innovation, entrepreneurship and collaboration and to promote the development of a strong and diversified southern Ontario economy.

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 Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development.

Structure of the Access to Information and Privacy Office

Responsibility for processing requests received under the Privacy Act rests with the Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Coordinator. The ATIP Coordinator oversees the administration 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; this position became vacant in July 2017 and has not yet been filled indeterminately.

The ATIP Coordinator is responsible for all daily ATIP activities and operations, as well as 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 both Acts at FedDev Ontario is also facilitated at the branch and regional office levels. Each organizational branch has a liaison officer 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 (the head of the institution) on May 3, 2018. It provides full delegated authority to the ATIP Coordinator and to the Corporate Secretary.  A copy of the ATIP Delegation Order is attached in Annex B.

Statistics

FedDev Ontario received and completed five privacy requests from April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018. This represents an increase of 150% compared to the previous reporting period. The number is in line with five-year averages as shown in Graph 1, below. A detailed statistical report on privacy requests is attached in Annex C

Graph 1.  Privacy Requests Received & Closed by Year

Text version
Graph 1.  Privacy Requests Received & Closed by Year
Year Requests Received Requests Closed
2013-14 12 12
2014-15 5 5
2015-16 4 4
2016-17 2 2
2017-18 5 5

Disposition and Completion Time

Of the five requests completed, four were completed within the legislated 30 days or less and one request was completed within the 31-60 days timeline. In one instance, the requester was granted full disclosure; three were abandoned by the respective requesters and one had no responsive records.

For the one request where FedDev Ontario held responsive records, a total of 22 pages was processed and 22 pages were disclosed.

Exemptions and Exclusions

As noted in Annex C, no exemptions under the Act were invoked by FedDev Ontario. No exclusions were cited by the Agency.

No extensions beyond the 30-day statutory limit were taken.

Education and Training

All FedDev Ontario employees are required to take the Canada School of Public Service course on Access to Information and Privacy Fundamentals.  Between
April 1, 2017 and March 31, 2018, a total of 157 people completed the course.

During this reporting period, the ATIP Office conducted a more focused ATIP training for 18 participants.  This training included a review of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act, as well as discussion of the roles and responsibilities of the Liaison Officers, administrative staff and Offices of Primary Interest (OPIs). 

Throughout the reporting period, the ATIP Coordinator provided ongoing advice and coaching to employees on privacy related matters as required.

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

Complaints, Audits and Investigations

There were no complaints received and no audits or investigations concluded concerning the administration of the Act during this reporting period.

Processing Times

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

Material Privacy Breaches

No material privacy breach occurred during this reporting period.

Privacy Impact Assessment

During this reporting period, FedDev Ontario did not initiate any Privacy Impact Assessments and therefore, no assessments were forwarded to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner.

Disclosure Pursuant to Paragraph 8(2)(m)

There were no disclosures pursuant to paragraph 8(2)(m) for the period April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018.

Annex A – Structure of Access to Information and Privacy Office

Marian Tomlinson
Corporate Secretary
613-941-3502

Dawn Cobden
ATIP Coordinator
613-941-7754

 
 

Vacant
ATIP Analyst

 

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

Dated, at the City of Ottawa
This 3rd day of May, 2018

Original signed by James Medding, President
Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario

Annex C – Statistical Report

Statistical Report on the Privacy Act

Name of institution:
FedDev Ontario

Reporting period:
2017-04-01 to 2018-03-31

Part 1 — Requests under the Privacy Act

Requests under the Privacy Act
  Number of requests
Received during reporting period 5
Outstanding from previous reporting period 0
Total 5
Closed during reporting period 5
Carried over to next reporting period 0

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 0 1 0 0 0 0 1
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
No records exist 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Request abandoned 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 3
Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 5
 

2.2 Exemptions

Exemptions
Section Number of requests Section Number of requests Section Number of requests
18(2) 0 22(1)(a)(i) 0 23(a) 0
19(1)(a) 0 22(1)(a)(ii) 0 23(b) 0
19(1)(b) 0 22(1)(a)(iii) 0 24(a) 0
19(1)(c) 0 22(1)(b) 0 24(b) 0
19(1)(d) 0 22(1)(c) 0 25 0
19(1)(e) 0 22(2) 0 26 0
19(1)(f) 0 22.1 0 27 0
20 0 22.2 0 28 0
21 0 22.3 0  
 

2.3 Exclusions

Exclusions
Section Number of requests
69(1)(a) 0
69(1)(b) 0
69.1 0
70(1) 0
70(1)(a) 0
70(1)(b) 0
70(1)(c) 0
70(1)(d) 0
70(1)(e) 0
70(1)(f) 0
70.1 0

2.4 Format of information released

Format of information released
Disposition Paper Electronic Other formats
All disclosed 0 1 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0
Total 0 1 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 22 22 1
Disclosed in part 0 0 0
All exempted 0 0 0
All excluded 0 0 0
Request abandoned 0 0 3
Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0
Total 22 22 4
 
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 disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclsed Number of requests Pages disclosed
All disclosed 1 22 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 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 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 4 22 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2.5.3 Other complexities
Other complexities
Disposition Consultation
required
Legal advice
sought
Interwoven
Information
Other Total
All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0
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 0 0 0 0 0

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 — Disclosures under subsections 8(2) and 8(5)

Disclosures under subsection 8(2) and 8(5)
Paragraph 8(2)(e) Paragraph 8(2)(m) Subsection 8(5) Total
0 0 0 0

Part 4 — Requests for correction of personal information and notations

Requests for correction of personal information and notations
Disposition for correction requests received Number
Notations attached 0
Requests for correction accepted 0
Total 0
 

Part 5 — Extensions

5.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests
Disposition of requests where an extension was taken 15(a)(i)
Interference with operations
15(a)(ii)
Consultation
15(b)
Translation or conversion
Section 70 Other
All disclosed 0 0 0 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0
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 0 0 0 0

5.2 Length of extensions

Length of extensions
Length of extensions 15(a)(i)
Interference with operations
15(a)(ii)
Consultation
15(b)
Translation purposes
Section 70 Other
1 to 15 days 0 0 0 0
16 to 30 days 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0
 

Part 6 — Consultations Received From Other Institutions and Organizations

6.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and other organizations

Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and other organizations
Consultations Other Government of Canada institutions Number of pages to review Other organizations Number of pages to review
Received during the reporting period 0 0 0 0
Outstanding from the previous reporting period 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0
Closed during the reporting period 0 0 0 0
Pending at the end of the reporting period 0 0 0 0

6.2 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions

Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada 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
All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All excluded 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
 

6.3 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
All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
All excluded 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 7 — Completion time of consultations on Cabinet confidences

7.1 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

7.2 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 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
 

Part 8 — Complaints and Investigations Notices Received

Complaints and Investigations Notices Received
Section 31 Section 33 Section 35 Court action Total
0 0 0 0 0

Part 9 — Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs)

Number of PIA(s) completed: 0

Part 10 — Resources related to the Privacy Act

10.1 Costs

Costs
Expenditures Amount
Salaries $5,827
Overtime $0
Goods and Services $527
• Professional services contracts $99  
• Other $428
Total $6,354

10.2 Human Resources

Human Resources
Resources Person years dedicated to privacy activities
Full‑time employees 0.08
Part‑time and casual employees 1.00
Regional staff 0.00
Consultants and agency personnel 0.00
Students 0.01
Total 0.09

Note: Enter values to two decimal places.