Office of the Auditor General of CanadaAnnual Report on the Access to Information Act—2021–22

Introduction

The Access to Information Act gives Canadian citizens and permanent residents, and any person and corporation present in Canada, the right to access information contained in government records, subject to certain specific and limited exceptions.

Section 94(1) of the act requires the head of each government institution to prepare an annual report on the administration of the act within the institution and to submit the report to Parliament. Additionally, section 20 of the Service Fees Act requires institutions to report on any legislative fees processed during the reporting period.

This annual report on the Access to Information Act at the Office of the Auditor General of Canada (OAG) describes how we administered our responsibilities under the act during the 2021–22 fiscal year.

Who we are

The OAG audits federal government operations and provides Parliament with independent information, advice, and assurance regarding the federal government’s stewardship of public funds.

We are in the business of legislative auditing. We conduct

• performance audits of federal departments and agencies
• annual financial audits of the government’s financial statements
• special examinations and annual financial audits of Crown corporations
• audits of the governments of Nunavut, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories

Since 1995, the OAG has also had a specific environmental and sustainable development mandate, which is carried out by the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development on behalf of the Auditor General of Canada. The Commissioner has additional responsibilities under the Federal Sustainable Development Act and the Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act to review and monitor the Government of Canada’s sustainable development strategies and its implementation of measures aimed at mitigating climate change.

Access to Information and Privacy team

The Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Coordinator is a member of the Legal Services, ATIP, and Policy team headed by the OAG’s General Counsel. The full-time ATIP Coordinator is supported by a junior analyst, counsel, and administrative staff as required. The main activities of the ATIP Coordinator included

• monitoring compliance with ATIP legislation and relevant procedures and policies
• processing requests under both the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act
• developing and maintaining policies, procedures, and guidelines to ensure that the OAG respected the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act
• promoting awareness of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act within the OAG to ensure that employees were aware of their responsibilities
• preparing annual reports to Parliament and other statutory reports, as well as other material that might be required by central agencies
• representing the OAG in dealings with the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, the information and privacy commissioners, and other government departments and agencies in matters pertaining to the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act
• helping the OAG meet its commitments to ensure openness and transparency, through proactive and informal disclosure of information

Performance

During the reporting period, from 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022, the OAG received 17 formal requests, 10 of which were closed during the reporting period and 7 of which were carried over to the next reporting period. No requests were carried over from the previous reporting period.

Extensions and completion time of closed requests

During the reporting period, the OAG invoked extensions in processing 5 requests: 3 extensions of less than 30 days, 1 extension of 31 to 60 days, and 1 extension of 121 to 180 days, which included a mandatory extension to consult with third parties.

Of the requests received during the reporting period,

• 1 request, or 6% of the requests received, was disclosed in its entirety
• 4 requests, or 24% of the requests received, were disclosed in part
• 2 requests, or 12% of the requests received, were withheld in their entirety
• 3 requests, or 18% of the requests received, resulted in no records

No formal Access to Information Act requests exceeded their legislative deadlines during the reporting period.

Multi-year trends

The OAG continues to receive a low overall number of Access to Information Act requests:

• In the 3 most recent reporting periods, including the period of this report, the OAG received a total of 35 requests.
• During the 2019–20 fiscal year, the OAG received and completed 10 requests.
• During the 2020–21 fiscal year, the OAG received and completed 8 requests.

Most of these requests were complex or voluminous, and the OAG continues to receive multiple requests for personal information using the Access to Information Act. During the current reporting period, multiple requests pertained to the subject of coronavirus disease (COVID‑19) vaccination and vaccines.

Consultations

Consultations received from other government departments are commonly related to ongoing audits, and while the OAG is required to withhold audit information pursuant to sub-paragraph 16.1(1)(a) of the Access to Information Act, consulting departments cannot invoke the same exemption. Therefore, the OAG cannot recommend doing so. If the records refer to an ongoing audit, the OAG typically recommends an exemption pursuant to section 22 of the act if disclosure of the records could prejudice the outcome of the audit. The OAG responded to 17 consultations during the reporting period and recommended exemptions in 2 cases.

Summary of key issues and actions taken on complaints or audits

The OAG received 4 complaints during the reporting period, all of which were carried over to the 2022–23 reporting period:

• One complaint alleged that the OAG unlawfully destroyed or concealed records related to the complainant’s request.
• Related to the same request, 1 complaint alleged the improper application of section 16.5 of the Access to Information Act, which requires the exemption of any records related to disclosures under the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act.
• Two complaints, related to 2 requests from 1 individual, alleged the improper application of section 16.1(1)(a) of the Access to Information Act, which requires the exemption of any records created or obtained during the course of audits. As the requests were exclusively for audit records, the OAG was required to withhold all of the records. Although these 2 complaints were carried over to the next reporting period, they have since been discontinued. A summary of these complaints will be included in the next annual report to Parliament.

One additional complaint regarding a request from the 2019–20 reporting period was carried over to the 2022–23 reporting period; however, at the time of tabling this report, the investigation of the complaint has been completed. A summary of this complaint will be included in the next annual report to Parliament.

The OAG did not conduct any internal audits during the reporting period.

Institution-specific policies, guidelines, and procedures

The OAG did not revise policies, guidelines, or procedures related to the Access to Information Act—or implement new ones—during the reporting period.

Monitoring compliance

The OAG uses a case management system that tracks both active and closed requests. The system is designed to track legislative deadlines.

The ATIP team holds biweekly meetings to discuss request-related activities, determine timelines, and help ensure that all team members are informed of the status of files. Regular meetings are also held with the General Counsel as the executive member responsible for ATIP matters.

Senior officials, up to and including the Auditor General, are advised about compliance with legislative, policy, and regulatory obligations, as requested or required.

As reflected in part 11.2 of the Appendix and described in the introduction of this report, the OAG dedicated 0.520 person-years to ATIP-related activities during the reporting period.

Training and awareness

The OAG requires that all employees complete mandatory ATIP training, offered by the Canada School of Public Service as an online, self-paced course.

All new OAG employees are required to complete the training within 3 months of the start date of their employment.

During the reporting period, 150 employees completed this training.

The ATIP Coordinator regularly provides OAG employees with guidance and briefings on the processing of ATIP requests. Furthermore, information and tools to help employees process ATIP requests are available on the OAG’s external and internal websites.

Impact of COVID-19 measures

During the reporting period, the OAG was not affected by measures related to the COVID‑19 pandemic.

Administration of the Access to Information Act

Requests under the Access to Information Act

Sources of requests received

During the reporting period, 14 requests were submitted by members of the public, 2 requests were submitted by businesses, and 1 request came from a media source.

Disposition of completed requests

Of the requests completed during the reporting period,

• 1 request was disclosed in its entirety
• 4 requests were disclosed in part
• 2 requests were withheld in their entirety because of exemptions
• 3 requests could not be processed because no relevant records existed

Exemptions invoked

Of the 4 requests in which exemptions were invoked,

• section 15(1) was invoked in 1 request
• section 16.1(1)(a) was invoked in 4 requests
• section 16(2)(c) was invoked in 1 request
• section 16.5 was invoked in 1 request
• section 19(1) was invoked in 2 requests
• section 20(1)(a) was invoked in 1 request
• section 20(1)(b) was invoked in 1 request
• section 20(1)(c) was invoked in 1 request
• section 20(1)(d) was invoked in 1 request
• section 21(1)(a) was invoked in 2 requests
• section 21(1)(b) was invoked in 2 requests
• section 21(1)(c) was invoked in 2 requests
• section 23 was invoked in 1 request

Exclusions cited

The OAG did not invoke any exclusions during the reporting period.

Completion time

Of the requests completed during the reporting period,

• 5 were completed within 30 days
• 2 were completed within 31 to 60 days
• 2 were completed within 61 to 120 days
• 1 was completed within 121 to 180 days

Extension of time limits

Section 9 of the act provides for the extension of the statutory time limits if consultations are necessary, or if a large number of records have been requested and processing the request within the original time limit would unreasonably interfere with OAG operations. Of the requests completed during the reporting period,

• 3 were extended for 30 days or less pursuant to section 9(1)(a)
• 1 was extended for 31 to 60 days pursuant to section 9(1)(a)
• 1 was extended for 121 to 180 days pursuant to section 9(1)(a)
• 1 was extended for 60 days pursuant to section 9(1)(c)

Method of access

Electronic copies of records were provided for all 7 requests resulting in disclosure, in their entirety or in part.

Access to Information Act fees for the purposes of the Service Fees Act

The Service Fees Act requires a responsible authority to report annually to Parliament on the fees collected by the institution.

With respect to fees collected under the Access to Information Act during the reporting period, the information below is reported in accordance with the requirements of section 20 of the Service Fees Act:

• Enabling authority: Access to Information Act
• Fee payable: $5 application fee^{Footnote *}
• Total revenue: $0
• Fees waived: $85

Operational costs

The costs directly associated with the administration of the Access to Information Act for the reporting period are estimated to be $192,984 for salaries and $2,182 for goods and services, for a total of $195,166. This salary amount includes time spent by the ATIP Coordinator, part-time members of the ATIP team, and all other OAG employees and contractors on activities related to the act. The OAG is able to estimate salary costs for time spent on all ATIP-related activities because of the OAG’s timekeeping software and practices, which require all employees to charge time spent on ATIP matters.

Appendix—Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act

Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act

Name of institution: Office of the Auditor General of Canada

Reporting period: 2021-04-01 to 2022-03-31

Section 1: Requests Under the Access to Information Act

1.1 Number of requests received

1.2 Sources of request

1.3 Channels of requests

Section 2: Informal Requests

2.1 Number of informal requests

2.2 Channels of informal requests

2.3 Completion time of informal requests

2.4 Pages released informally

2.5 Pages re-released informally

Section 3: Applications to the Information Commissioner on Declining to Act on Requests

Section 4: Requests Closed During the Reporting Period

4.1 Disposition and completion time

4.2 Exemptions

4.3 Exclusions

4.4 Format of information released

4.5 Complexity

4.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed for paper and e‑record formats

4.5.2 Relevant pages processed per request disposition for paper and e‑record formats by size of requests

4.5.3 Relevant minutes processed and disclosed for audio formats

4.5.4 Relevant minutes processed per request disposition for audio formats by size of requests

4.5.5 Relevant minutes processed and disclosed for video formats

4.5.6 Relevant minutes processed per request disposition for video formats by size of requests

4.5.7 Other complexities

4.6 Closed requests

4.6.1 Number of requests closed within legislated timelines

4.7 Deemed refusals

4.7.1 Reasons for not meeting legislated timelines

4.7.2 Requests closed beyond legislated timelines (including any extension taken)

4.8 Requests for translation

Section 5: Extensions

5.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

5.2 Length of extensions

Section 6: Fees

Section 7: Consultations Received From Other Institutions and Organizations

7.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and organizations

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

7.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations outside the Government of Canada

Section 8: Completion Time of Consultations on Cabinet Confidences

8.1 Requests with Legal Services

8.2 Requests with Privy Council Office

Section 9: Investigations and Reports of Finding

9.1 Investigations

9.2 Investigations and reports of finding

Section 10: Court Action

10.1 Court actions on complaints

10.2 Court actions on third party notifications under paragraph 28(1)(b)

Section 11: Resources related to the Access to Information Act

11.1 Allocated costs

11.2 Human resources