Official information denied as government agencies illegally refuse OIA request transfers, document shows
Friday, 9 August 2019
Kiwis are being denied access to information, because government agencies are illegally refusing to accept the transfer of Official Information Act (OIA) requests, a Justice Ministry document suggests.
The document was one of 290 submissions about the OIA, which highlighted problems with delays, documents rendered meaningless by deletions, political interference and government agencies drowning under the sheer volume of information requests.
The Justice Ministry had asked Kiwis about problems with the OIA, to help Justice Minister Andrew Little decide whether to review the 37-year-old act. The submissions showed widespread support for a review, with both those who request information and the government agencies who process the requests saying the act was not working.
Many requesters also said long delays for ombudsman investigations and the lack of any real enforcement tools meant there was little incentive to comply with the law. The most common suggested remedy was to introduce penalties for breaking the law.
**READ MORE:
* Ministry to analyse public OIA submissions and report back to Justice Minister
* Does the OIA work? What the people say
* Decision on official information review stalled
* State Services Minister Chris Hipkins says OIA needs 'more teeth'
* Our official information problems and how to fix them
* How information the public should know about disappears from view**
Submissions from those who answer OIA requests acknowledged problems with political interference and delays. However, they also pointed out requests were ballooning in number and scope and that risked preventing them completing their normal jobs.
Earlier this year, Stuff launched Redacted exploring the abuses of the OIA.
In her submission, Justice Ministry acting director of operational improvement, Jenna Bottcher, raised the issue of 'transfers not being accepted by other agencies – where we don't have the information we then have to decline the request, even where we know the info exists elsewhere'.
When Stuff asked for examples, Bottcher could not recall who had refused the transfer requests and the ministry said its OIA logging system could not provide the information.
Government agencies can transfer official information requests to another department, if that department holds the information sought, or the request fits better with what they do.
The State Services Commission guidelines for transferring requests say 'There is nothing in the OIA that allows an agency to refuse a lawful transfer of a request.'
A State Services Commission spokesman said it was not aware of transfer refusals being an issue, and the law was clear that requests should be transferred to whoever held the information.
The Office of the Ombudsman said there could be 'robust discussions' about which agency should respond. 'But when a request is formally transferred, it cannot be 'refused'.' If agencies were getting pushback on necessary transfers they should raise it with senior management or get advice from the Ombudsman, a spokesman said.
Those using the OIA to get information overwhelmingly highlighted delays and the withholding or blacking out of information as the two biggest issues.
Justice Minister Andrew Little said he was unaware of agencies refusing to accept OIA transfers. Little said the Justice Ministry was analysing the submissions and would report back by September, so he could decide whether to review the act.
'It is important to carry out the OIA review process to understand all of the issues. This practice looks to me to be contrary to the legislation which suggests the issue is non-compliance with the law rather than there being a gap in the law.'