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Document
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P-963
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File #
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P_9500019
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Institution/HIC
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Ministry of Community and Social Services
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Summary
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NATURE OF THE APPEAL: The Ministry of Community and Social Services (the Ministry) received a request under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (the Act ) for access to the contents of the eligibility review officer's (ERO) file, the parental support worker's file, the Ministry's corporate file and any other file pertaining to the requester. The Ministry granted partial access to the responsive records. The requester appealed the decision to deny access to the remaining records. The records requested were generated as part of an investigation conducted by the Ministry to determine whether the appellant was entitled to continue to receive social assistance as a single person under the Family Benefits Act (the FBA ). The records to which the Ministry denied access consist of the ERO report, handwritten notes, letters, facsimile sheets, blood test results, earnings statement and computer-generated printouts. The records are listed in Appendix "A" to this order and all have been withheld in their entirety with the exception of Record 4 which was withheld in part. The Ministry relies on the following exemptions to deny access to the records: law enforcement/discretion to refuse requester's own information - sections 14(1) and 49(a) invasion of privacy - section 49(b) During mediation, the appellant confirmed that the scope of the request was limited to the personal information of the appellant and the alleged co-resident. The alleged co-resident has provided written consent to this office regarding disclosure of his personal information to the appellant. A Notice of Inquiry was provided to the appellant and the Ministry. Representations were received from both parties. The Ministry has indicated that it is now prepared to disclose Records 22 and 23, and consequently, these records are no longer at issue. PRELIMINARY MATTER In its representations, the Ministry has raised the possible application of sections 14(1)(e), (g) and 14(2)(a) to some of the records. It has been determined in previous orders that the Commissioner has the power to control the process by which inquiry is undertaken (Orders P-345 and P-537). This includes the authority to set time limits for the receipt of representations and to limit the time during which an institution can raise discretionary exemptions not claimed in its decision letter. Upon receipt of the letter of appeal, the Ministry was notified, by way of a Confirmation of Appeal notice, that it had 35 days from the date of the notice to raise any additional discretionary exemptions not claimed in the decision letter. In Order P-658, Inquiry Officer Anita Fineberg concluded that in cases where a discretionary exemption is claimed late in the appeals process, a decision-maker has the authority to decline to consider the discretionary exemption. I agree with Inquiry Officer Fineberg's reasoning and adopt it for the purposes of this appeal. The Ministry has provided no explanation for the delay in raising the additional discretionary exemptions. In my view, a departure from the 35-day timeframe is not justified in the circumstances of this appeal. Therefore, I will not consider the application of sections 14(1)(e), (g) and 14(2)(a) in this order. DISCUSSION: PERSONAL INFORMATION Under section 2(1) of the Act , "personal information" is defined, in part, to mean recorded information about an identifiable individual, including any identifying number assigned to the individual and the individual's name where it appears with other personal information relating to the individual or where the disclosure of the name would reveal other personal information about the individual. I have carefully reviewed the information in all the records. I find that all of the records contain information which relates to the appellant and/or the alleged co-resident. I also find that some of the records contain information which relates to other identifiable individuals. The appellant indicates that she is only seeking access to the information which relates to herself and the alleged co-resident. I find that Records 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28 and 29 contain personal information of only the appellant and/or the alleged co-resident. I find that Records 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 14, 30 and 31 contain personal information which relates to the appellant, the alleged co-resident and other identifiable individuals. This personal information, in my view, is too intertwined to distinguish, given the issues and the nature of the information in the records. Records 16, 18, 24, 26, 27 and 28 are facsimile cover sheets or transmission confirmation sheets which contain references to certain individuals. In my view, these references appear by virtue of their employment functions or duties and do not constitute the personal information of these individuals. DISCRETION TO REFUSE REQUESTER'S OWN INFORMATION Under section 49(a) of the Act , the Ministry has the discretion to deny access to an individual's own personal information in instances where certain exemptions would otherwise apply to that information. The Ministry submits that section 14(1)(b) and (c) applies to Records 5-21 and 24-31 and that section 14(1)(a) also applies to Records 5 and 30. Sections 14(1)(a), (b) and (c) state: A head may refuse to disclose a record where the disclosure could reasonably be expected to, (a) interfere with a law enforcement matter; (b) interfere with an investigation undertaken with a view to a law enforcement proceeding or from which a law enforcement proceeding is likely to result; (c) reveal investigative techniques and procedures currently in use or likely to be used in law enforcement. In order for a record to qualify for exemption under these sections, the investigation which generated the records must first satisfy the definition of the term "law enforcement" as found in section 2(1) of the Act . This definition reads as follows: "law enforcement" means, (a) policing, (b) investigations or inspections that lead or could lead to proceedings in a court or tribunal if a penalty or sanction could be imposed in tho
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Legislation
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FIPPA
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14(1)(a)
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14(1)(b)
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49(a)
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49(b)
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Subject Index
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Signed by
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Mumtaz Jiwan
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Published
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Jul 25, 1995
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Type
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Order
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