Annual Report 2007-2008: Appendix 3 - Freedom of Information
Appendix 3
Freedom of Information
The Freedom of Information Act gives the general public legal access to
government documents.
Freedom of Information statistics
During 2007-08, HREOC received six initial requests for access to documents
under the Freedom of Information Act. HREOC was also asked to conduct an
internal review of one of those decisions.
Of the six initial requests for information, five were brought by individuals
seeking access to documents relating to themselves.
A total of six applications and one internal review were processed in this
financial year.
Categories of documents
Documents held by HREOC relate to:
- administration matters, including personnel, recruitment, accounts,
purchasing, registers, registry, library records and indices; - complaint handling matters, including the investigation,
clarification and resolution of complaints; - legal matters, including legal documents, opinion, advice and
representations; - research matters, including research papers in relation to
complaints, existing or proposed legislative practices, public education,
national inquiries and other relevant issues; - policy matters, including minutes of Commission meetings,
administrative and operational guidelines; - operational matters, including files on formal inquiries; and
- reference materials, including press clippings, survey and research
materials, documents relating to conferences, seminars and those contained in
the library.
Freedom of Information procedures
Initial enquiries about access to HREOC documents should be directed to the
Freedom of Information Officer by either telephoning (02) 9284 9600 or by
writing to:
Freedom of Information OfficerHuman Rights and Equal Opportunity
CommissionGPO Box 5218Sydney, NSW 2001
Procedures for dealing with Freedom of Information requests are detailed in
section 15 of the Freedom of Information Act. A valid request must:
- be in writing,
- be accompanied by a payment of $30 application fee,
- include the name and address of the person requesting the
information, and - specify the documents to be accessed.