Access to Information & Protection of Privacy
Smoky Lake County respects your privacy and is committed to protect the personal information that you share with us. Personal information that is in the custody or under the control of Smoky Lake County is protected by privacy provisions of the Access of Information Act (ATIA) and Protection of Privacy Act (POPA).
The Access to Information Act (ATIA) gives individuals a right to request access to any record that Smoky Lake County holds or controls, including requesting access to an individual’s own personal information. The ATIA allows Smoky Lake County to charge reasonable fees for responding to formal requests for information and the Act permits the County to withhold by severing or redacting certain types of information within the records.
The Protection of Privacy Act (POPA) places several responsibilities on Smoky Lake County to collect, use and disclose personal information of individuals responsibly and to reasonably protect any personal information held or controlled by the County. To protect personal information, POPA has established a Privacy Management Program consisting of policies, procedures and practices that is made available to individuals upon request. POPA also gives individuals a right to request correction of their own personal information if they believe the County has incorrect information about the individual.
These replace the former Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIP).
Privacy and Access Officer
Smoky Lake County has delegated a Privacy and Access Officer to oversee the Privacy and Access Program for the County, including administering the Privacy Management Program and responding to access to information requests.
The Privacy and Access Officer can be contacted at: privacyofficer@smokylakecounty.ab.ca
Routine Release and Corrections of Information
Generally, Smoky Lake County attempts to release information routinely upon request, if there are no reasons to withhold the information at issue. For example, Council agendas, meeting minutes, public reports, etc. The County will also routinely correct or update personal information, such as contact information, using reasonable verification methods. For example, viewing a government-issued ID, verifying a mailing address through utility bills, etc. These types of requests are not subject to formal processes under the ATIA or POPA.
Submitting a Formal Access to Information Request
- If someone is unsure whether they need to make a formal access to information request or the information is made routinely available, contact the Privacy and Access Officer at privacyofficer@smokylakecounty.ab.ca.
- Any individual or “applicant” can make a formal access to information request by completing the Request to Access Information form. The individual must provide enough detail for us to locate the record within a reasonable time and with reasonable effort. We may ask the applicant for clarification to ensure we have enough or the correct information to process the request.
- Generally, we must respond to a request within 30 business days, but we can extend the time for a number of reasons, including if there are more than 500 records to review in response to the request. If the applicant does not receive a response from us at all, the applicant is asked to please follow up with the Privacy and Access Officer or contact the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta about the County’s refusal to respond to the request. If we seek clarification with the applicant to be able to process the request, the timeline does not start until the clarification is received and the clarification must be received within 30 business days.
- There is a $25 fee for general information requests or $50 for continuing requests. There is no initial fee when an individual makes a request for their own personal information. We may also charge the applicant reasonable fees in accordance with the fee schedule set out in the ATIA. The fees are generally for finding the records, making copies of the records and/or making the records available to the applicant. For example, the maximum amount the County can charge for searching for, locating and retrieving a record is $6.75 for every 15 minutes.
- Upon locating records, a fee estimate is prepared only if processing the records would exceed $150 when following the fee schedule. The applicant is given 30 business days to either accept the fee estimate or narrow their request to reduce the fees charged. The applicant has a right to request a fee waiver in certain circumstances, such as if the applicant believes the release of information is in the public interest and can demonstrate intending to use the information for contributing to public debate or if the applicant can demonstrate an inability to pay the fee.
- The applicant can pay a 50% deposit to begin processing the request and pay the remainder in order to receive the records.
- Smoky Lake County reviews all records on a line-by-line basis to determine whether some information should be or must be withheld under the ATIA, such as when disclosing personal information of another individual would an unreasonable invasion of their privacy, when information is subject to solicitor-client privilege or when information relates to third party business information.
- A response package is prepared with a copy of the records and any redactions applied, if there was information that was withheld by the County in response.
- If the applicant disagrees with the response, such as believing more records exist or fewer redactions in the records should have occurred, then the applicant can submit a request for review to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta. Information regarding requests for review are included in the letter provided to applicants in a response package.
Disregarding Repetitive, Abusive, Incomprehensible Requests
Smoky Lake County has the power under the ATIA to disregard certain types of access to information requests. For example, if the County believes a request is abusive, threatening, frivolous or vexatious or is overly broad or incomprehensible, we may decide to disregard the request. Additionally, if a request has been made repeatedly or systematically and we believe it amounts to an abuse of the right to make the request, it could be disregarded by the County, among other authorized reasons under the Act.
If the County disregards an individual’s request, we will provide the individual with the reasons for the decision and notify them of their right to request a review of our decision by the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta.
Right to Request Reviews
If an individual is disappointed with an action by the County, such as withholding information, or an inaction under the ATIA, such as not responding to an access to information request within time limits, the individual has a right to request a review of that action or failure to act to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta (OIPC).
If an individual believes that the County has collected, used or disclosed their personal information in contravention of POPA, the individual has a right to make a complaint to the County, and the County has 30 business days to provide a response to the complaint. If the individual remains disappointed with the County’s response, they can submit the complaint and the County’s response to the OIPC for review.