2017–18 Annual Report to Parliament: Privacy Act

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
• About the Organization
  • Raison d'être
  • Responsibilities
  • Scope of Operations
• Structure of the Access to Information and Privacy Office
• Delegation of Authority
• Statistics
  • Disposition and Completion Time
  • Exemptions and Exclusions
• Education and Training
• Institutional Policies and Procedures
• Complaints, Audits and Investigations
• Processing Time
• Material Privacy Breaches
• Privacy Impact Assessment
• Disclosure Pursuant to Paragraph 8(2)(m)
• Annex A — Structure of Access to Information and Privacy Office
• Annex B — Delegation Order
• Annex C — Statistical Report

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

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

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

Part 2 — Requests closed during the reporting period

2.1 Disposition and completion time

2.2 Exemptions

2.3 Exclusions

2.4 Format of information released

2.5 Complexity

2.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed

2.5.2 Relevant pages processed and disclosed by size of requests

2.5.3 Other complexities

2.6 Deemed refusals

2.6.1 Reasons for not meeting statutory deadline

2.6.2 Number of days past deadline

2.7 Requests for translation

Part 3 — Disclosures under subsections 8(2) and 8(5)

Part 4 — Requests for correction of personal information and notations

Part 5 — Extensions

5.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

5.2 Length of extensions

Part 6 — Consultations Received From Other Institutions and Organizations

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

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

6.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations

Part 7 — Completion time of consultations on Cabinet confidences

7.1 Requests with Legal Services

7.2 Requests with Privy Council Office

Part 8 — Complaints and Investigations Notices Received

Part 9 — Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs)

Number of PIA(s) completed: 0

Part 10 — Resources related to the Privacy Act

10.1 Costs

10.2 Human Resources

Note: Enter values to two decimal places.