Annual report to Parliament: Access to Information Act 2019 to 2020

Introduction

The Access to Information Act (R.S.C. 1985, c. A-1) came into force on July 1, 1983. The Act grants Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and persons residing in Canada the right to access information in records held by the federal government, except for types of information falling under the exemptions or exclusions. Section 94 of the Act requires every head of a federal government institution to submit a report to Parliament on the administration of the Act within their institution during the fiscal year.

This report is submitted in accordance with section 94 of the Access to Information Act and section 20 of the Service Fees Act. It presents an overview of Access to Information Act activities carried out within Environment and Climate Change Canada during the reporting period of April 1, 2019 to March 31, 2020. Further, since the Canada Emission Reduction Incentives Agency was not operational during this reporting period, an Agency report will not be prepared for this period.

The Department of the Environment was established by the Government Reorganization Act (1970-71-72, c. 42) on June 10, 1971. A number of acts and regulations provide the Department with its mandate and allow it to carry out its programs. Under the Department of the Environment Act, the powers, duties and functions of the Minister of the Environment extend to and include matters relating to:

• the preservation and enhancement of the quality of the natural environment, including water, air and soil quality;
• renewable resources, including migratory birds and other non-domestic flora and fauna;
• water;
• meteorology;
• the enforcement of any rules or regulations made by the International Joint Commission relating to boundary waters; and
• the coordination of the policies and programs of the Government of Canada respecting the preservation and enhancement of the quality of the natural environment.

Organizational structure

As Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Access to Information and Privacy Coordinator, the Director of the Access to Information and Privacy Division has delegated authority on all matters concerning Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP). The ATIP Division is part of the Corporate Secretariat, which is found within the Public and Indigenous Affairs and Ministerial Services Branch of the Department. The ATIP Division is the central coordinating body for all requests received by Environment and Climate Change Canada under the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act.

The ATIP Division directs all activities within Environment and Climate Change Canada relating to the administration, application and promotion of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act. It provides advice to senior management on the implementation of the statutes and prepares reports to Parliament, the Treasury Board Secretariat and senior management. The ATIP Division represents the Department in complaints and investigations conducted by the Information Commissioner and Privacy Commissioner of Canada, and in any Federal Court applications arising from ATIP matters.

As of March 31, 2020, the ATIP Division was comprised of 13 officers. The Division is organized in two teams each led by a manager who reports to the ATIP Director. The ATIP Division team consists of two team leaders, a senior advisor, four advisors, two intake officers and a clerical assistant. In order to help meet the increase in volume and complexity of requests, the Division also engaged the support of two consultants during the reporting period.

Capacity development

Environment and Climate Change Canada remains committed to recruiting, training and maintaining a workforce that possesses specialized skills and that will continue to provide the best possible service to both internal and external clients.

During the reporting period, Environment and Climate Change Canada completed several staffing actions. This included the appointment of a new Manager of ATIP Policy and Governance at the PM-06 level. A selection process to fill PM-04 senior advisor positions was still ongoing at the end of the reporting period.

Environment and Climate Change Canada continues to focus on developing capacity through its ATIP Professional Development Program. The program aims to train employees over a period of three to five years through a combination of competency-based training, professional development training and work assignments. Candidates enter the program at the PM-01 or PM-02 level and graduate as Senior ATIP Advisors at the PM-04 level. The program enables the ATIP Division to better manage increasing workloads while facilitating succession planning through the transfer of corporate memory and encourages staff to remain with the Department for a longer period of time. During the reporting period, three participants in the ATIP Professional Development Program were promoted to the next level and one new participant joined the program. 

Delegation of authority

Decision-making responsibility for the application of the various provisions of the Access to Information Act has been formally established and is outlined in the departmental Delegation of Authority Instrument. The current Designation Order was approved by the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, in January 2017. A copy of the designation order pertaining to the Access to Information Act can be found in Appendix B of this report.

This delegation order instrument provides full delegated authority under the Acts to the Deputy Minister, the Associate Deputy Minister, the Director General of the Corporate Secretariat, and the Director of the ATIP Division.

Interpretation of the statisical report

Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Statistical Report on the Access to Information Actis included in Appendix A of this report.

Between April 1, 2019 and March 31, 2020, Environment and Climate Change Canada received 1,874 requests under the Access to Information Act. There were 524 requests carried forward from the 2018–2019 reporting period, for a total of 2,398 active requests in the 2019–2020 reporting period. In 2019–2020, a total of 1,652 requests were completed, and 746 were carried forward to the next reporting period.

Figure 1 is a percentage breakdown of the sources of access to information requests received in 2019–2020:

Figure 1 – Sources of Access to Information requests 2019 to 2020

During the 2019–2020 reporting period, 70 requests were abandoned by applicants for various reasons.

There were 1,310 requests for information for which there was no record. Environment and Climate Change Canada receives a number of requests each year for documents pertaining to the environmental compliance of properties. Most of these no record requests consisted of environmental compliance requests where no records were located concerning the properties in question.

In 2019–2020, Environment and Climate Change Canada received 1,874 requests under the Access to Information Act. This represents a 5% increase in comparison to the previous reporting period.

Figure 2 displays the number of access to information requests that were received by the ATIP Division from 2015–2016 to 2019–2020.

Figure 2 – Access requests received - Access to Information Act 2015 to 2020

Environment and Climate Change Canada completed 1,652 requests under the Access to Information Act in 2019-2020. Overall, 1,481 were completed within the legislative timeline, which represents 89.6% of all access requests closed during the reporting period.

The number of access to information requests that were closed by the ATIP Division from 2015–2016 to 2019–2020 is found in Figure 3.

Figure 3 – Access requests closed - Access to Information Act 2015 to 2020

In the 2019–2020 reporting period, 483,637 pages of records were processed in response to access to information requests, which represents an increase of 402% in comparison to the 2018–2019 fiscal year. This increase can be attributed in large part to the completion of one request for scientific data.

The number of pages processed by the ATIP Division in response to requests under the Access to Information Act from 2015–2016 to 2019–2020 is found in Figure 4.

Figure 4 – Pages processed for access requests - Access to Information Act 2015 to 2020

Exemptions and exclusions

The Access to Information Act prescribes a number of exemptions and exclusions that allow or require the Department to refuse to disclose certain types of information. The two most common exemptions invoked by Environment and Climate Change Canada in 2019–2020 were for personal information (section 19) and government operations (section 21).

Time limitations

During the 2019–2020 reporting period, 1,156 (70%) of the completed requests were processed within the initial 30-day period. This included 128 requests completed in the first 15 days, and 1028 requests completed between 16 and 30 days.

Figure 5 is a breakdown of completion times for requests closed during the 2019–2020 reporting period.

Figure 5 – Completion time for access requests 2019 to 2020

A total of 171 requests were completed beyond the legislated deadline. Of the 171 late requests, 47 requests were late as a result of the need to conduct internal or external consultations.

Extension of time limits

Section 9 of the Access to Information Act allows government institutions to extend the deadline for responding to a request if the request requires the institution to search a large number of records, to consult with other government institutions, or to communicate with third parties.

In 2019–2020, 170 requests required extensions of 30 days or less, 160 required an extension of between 31 and 60 days, 72 required an extension of between 61 to 120 days, 2 required an extension of between 121 to 180 days, and 3 requests required an extension between 181-365 days. In total, 407 requests required an extension past the original deadline of 30 days. Most extensions were required in order to conduct extensive searches or as a result of the volume of records involved in completing requests.

Complexity of files

A number of files were considered complex for various reasons. Of the requests closed during the 2019–2020 reporting period, 162 were considered to be complex. There were 123 requests that were complex due to the need to conduct consultations, 5 requests were considered complex due to the assessment of fees, 19 requests required legal advice, and 15 requests were classified in the “other” category. The “other” category consists of files containing high-profile subject matter, records held in a regional office or another country, or records that are in a language other than French or English.

Of the requests closed by Environment and Climate Change Canada in 2019-2020, 10 required consultations with Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Legal Services to confirm Cabinet confidence exclusions.

Consultations

As an integral part of departmental processing procedures, other government institutions are consulted if access requests contain issues of interest to them. Although formal consultations are undertaken in writing, additional discussions between ATIP offices are initiated as required in order to facilitate the completion of each case. Consultations are also regularly undertaken with third parties and other levels of government.

As the environment is a shared jurisdiction, Environment and Climate Change Canada regularly receives access to information consultation requests from other federal and provincial departments that are processing files with records originating from or concerning the Department’s programs or services.

In 2019–2020, Environment and Climate Change Canada received 261 access to information consultations from other federal government institutions and 39 consultations from other organizations for a total of 300 consultations received. This constitutes a 15% increase relative to the previous reporting period. There were 53 access consultations outstanding from the previous reporting period. In total, during the 2019–2020 reporting period, 287 consultations were completed. Sixty-six (66) access consultations were carried forward to the 2020-2021 reporting period.

Figure 6 provides the number of access to information consultations that were received by the ATIP Division from 2015–2016 to 2019–2020.

Figure 6 – Access consultations received - Access to Information Act 2015 to 2020

The number of access to information consultations that were closed by the ATIP Division from 2015–2016 to 2019–2020 is found in Figure 7.

Figure 7 – Access consultations closed - Access to Information Act 2015 to 2020

The number of pages processed in response to access to information consultations during the 2019–2020 reporting period increased in comparison to the 2018–2019 reporting period: 12,805 pages were processed for consultations compared to 8,478 pages during the previous period. This is an increase of 51%.

Figure 8 displays the number of pages processed by the ATIP Division in response to access to information consultations received from 2015–2016 to 2019–2020.

Figure 8 – Pages processed for access consultations - Access to Information Act 2015 to 2020

During the 2019–2020 reporting period, 122 (41%) of the completed access consultations were processed within the initial 30-day period. This included 56 completed in the first 15 days and 66 completed between 16 and 30 days.

Proactive disclosure and informal requests

Amendments to the Access to Information Act, which received Royal Assent on June 21, 2019 created a series of new proactive disclosure categories.  The ATIP Division worked collaboratively with departmental officials to ensure the smooth implementation of the new requirements.  During the 2019-2020,  the ATIP Division partnered with program leads to review and publish briefing note titles, QP notes and both Deputy Minister and Ministerial transition materials.

A summary list of completed access to information requests is published on the Open Government website on a monthly basis. Between April 1, 2019 and March 31, 2020, Environment and Climate Change Canada received 299 informal access to information requests for previously released access to information packages. Environment and Climate Change Canada completed a total of 279 informal requests during the 2019–2020 reporting period. 22 requests were carried forward to 2020-2021.

Furthermore, throughout the year, the ATIP Division provides advice to departmental staff with respect to informal requests, parliamentary questions and the review of draft audit, evaluation, security and harassment reports.

In 2019-2020, the ATIP Division processed 5 parliamentary questions. In addition, the ATIP Division provides advice to programs responding to other parliamentary questions.

The ATIP Division also assists other branches of the department in reviewing various documents such as investigation reports and harassment complaint files in order to ensure that mandatory exemptions such as personal information and Cabinet confidence-related information are properly identified, where appropriate.

Fees

In the 2019–2020 reporting period, total fees of $8,050 were collected for the processing of 1610 requests.  Fees were waived or refunded in a total of 40 requests.   

Costs

The total costs involved in administering the Access to Information Act during the 2019-2020 reporting period were $1,428,695. This includes $984,793 for salaries, and $443,902 for goods and services ($425,984 for professional services contracts and $17,918 for other costs).

Training activities

The ATIP Division provides daily advice to departmental officials on the processing of ATIP requests as well as the interpretation of the Acts to ensure the efficient and consistent processing of all requests received by the Department.

The ATIP Division continued its formal training and development activities in the 2019–2020 reporting period. Thirty-nine (39) information and training sessions were held, attended by over 435 Environment and Climate Change Canada employees. The sessions included an overview of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act as well as a description of internal procedures and associated deadlines for responding to requests. Many of the sessions also included information regarding the implementation of amendments to the Access to Information Act, including new proactive disclosure requirements.

Impact of COVID-19 measures

The exceptional measures put in place to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and protect the health and safety of Canadians necessitated significant changes to the operations of Environment and Climate Change Canada’s ATIP Division.  On March 13, 2020, the Department activated its departmental Business Continuity Management Pandemic Response Plan.

ATIP personnel began teleworking with limited network access on March 16, 2020. As a result of these measures, the ATIP Division was limited to processing requests with documents classified Protected B or lower and that were in digital format. The functional program areas within ECCC also had limited capacity to search and retrieve records, undertake a review and submit large volumes of records to the ATIP Division. As a result, the Deparment’s ability to meet the legislated timelines under the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act was impacted.

Policies, guidelines, procedures and reporting

Policy framework

Environment and Climate Change Canada’s access to information policy framework was approved in November 2012. No changes were brought to the access to information policy framework in 2019-2020.

Reporting

The ATIP Division regularly monitors the timeliness and trends associated with the processing of requests through ongoing communication with branch and directorate liaison contacts. This includes providing performance reports on the status of branch retrievals to branch head offices on a regular basis. In addition, weekly reports on the number of requests received are provided to the Deputy Minister’s Office and to the Communications Branch. ATIP updates are also provided to Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Executive Management Committee.

Publicly accessible information and inquiry points

Info Source is a series of publications containing information on the Government of Canada and on the Government’s data collection activities. Info Source is intended to help the public access government information and to exercise their rights under the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act.

The ATIP Division is responsible for providing updates on Environment and Climate Change Canada’s activities and information holdings for publication in Info Source, which is published on the Department’s website. In 2019-2020, Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Info Source Chapter was updated and aligned to the Departmental Result Framework

Environment and Climate Change Canada’s comprehensive website provides information on the Department’s policies, its organizational structure and the means to contact departmental officials. In accordance with the federal government’s policy of proactive disclosure, the Department’s website also allows access to internal evaluations and audits, as well as information on hospitality expenses, contracts and grants.

Environment and Climate Change Canada’s website also has an access to information and privacy webpage that provides background information on both the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act. It also contains a Frequently Asked Questions section and links to access to information request forms, personal information request forms and summaries of completed access to information requests.

In order to facilitate public access to information and to comply with the Act, the Environment and Climate Change Canada Library has been designated a public reading room. The library is located on the 1^st floor of the Place Vincent Massey Annex, 351 St. Joseph Boulevard, Gatineau, Quebec.

Online request service

Environment and Climate Change Canada has participated in the Treasury Board Secretariat Online Request Service Pilot Project since April 2014. This initiative makes the process of requesting government records simpler and more convenient by enabling Canadians to submit their ATIP requests and application fees online.  In June 2019, the Department successfully migrated to the new Treasury Board Secretariat Online Request Service.

Environment and Climate Change Canada received received 1,240 access to information requests online during the 2019–2020 reporting period. This represents 66% of the total number of access requests received by the Department.

Complaints, audits, investigations and appeals

Applicants have the right to register a complaint with the Information Commissioner of Canada regarding any matter relating to the processing of a request. 

As noted in Table 1, during the 2019–2020 reporting period, 37 complaints were filed with the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada against Environment and Climate Change Canada. Environment and Climate Change Canada provided representations to the Office of the Information Commissioner in 46 complaints and received a report of findings or recommendations in 9 of these complaints.

Nine (9) complaints received in 2019-2020, as well as 10 complaints from previous reporting periods were completed in 2019-2020, for a total of 19 complaints closed. 

Twenty-eight (28) complaints received in this reporting period and 27 complaints from previous years remain outstanding.

Table 2 provides a breakdown of the reasons for and results of the complaints that were completed in 2019–2020. 

Explanation of the results of investigations

Well founded – Following an investigation, the Information Commissioner found that the government institution had failed to respect one or more of its obligations under the Access to Information Act

Not well founded – Following an investigation, the Commissioner found no or insufficient evidence to conclude that the government institution had failed to respect one or more of its obligations under the Access to Information Act.

Resolved – The complainant is satisfied with the resolution achieved through the Office of the Information Commissioner's intervention, or the matter central to the complaint is no longer at issue before the complaint has been fully investigated. For example, a delay complaint is resolved when the complainant receives a response to their request before the allegation of delay has been fully investigated. Likewise, a complaint about refusal of access is resolved when the complainant receives the withheld information at issue in the complaint before the allegation of proper application of exemptions has been fully investigated.

Discontinued – The complaint was withdrawn or abandoned before all the allegations were fully investigated. A complaint may be discontinued for various reasons. For example, the complainant may no longer be interested in pursuing the matter, or cannot be located to provide additional information critical to reaching a conclusion.

The Department reviews the outcomes of all of the Office of the Information Commissioner investigations and where appropriate, incorporates lessons learned into business processes.

There were no recommendations raised by other Agents of Parliament during the reporting period.

Applications/appeals to the Federal Court or Federal Courts of Appeal

There were no applications or appeals filed to the Federal Court or Federal Court of Appeal during the 2019-2020 reporting period.

Appendix A: Statistical report on the Access to Information Act

Name of institution: Environment and Climate Change Canada

Reporting period: 2019-04-01 to 2020-03-31

Section 1: Requests Under the Access to Information Act

Note: All requests previously recorded as “treated informally” will now be accounted for in this section only.

Section 2: Decline to act on vexatious, made in bad faith or abuse of right requests

Section 3: Requests closed during the reporting period

3.5 Complexity

3.6 Closed requests

3.7 Deemed refusals

Section 4: Extensions

Section 5: Fees

Section 6: Consultations received from other institutions and organizations

Section 7: Completion time of consultations on cabinet confidences

Section 8: Complaints and investigations

Section 9: Court action

Section 10: Resources related to the Access to Information Act

Note: Enter values to two decimal places.

Supplemental Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act

The following table reports the total number of formal requests received during two periods; 2019-04-01 to 2020-03-13 and 2020-03-14 to 2020-03-31.

¹Total for Row 3 should equal the total in the ATI Statistical Report section 1.1 Row 1

The following table reports the total number of requests closed within the legislated timelines and the number of closed requests that were deemed refusals during two periods 2019-04-01 to 2020-03-13 and 2020-03-14 to 2020-03-31.

²Total for Row 3 Col. 1 should equal the total in the ATI Statistical Report section 3.6.1 Row 1 – Total for Row 3 Col. 2 should equal the total in the ATI Statistical Report section 3.7.1. Col. 1 Row 1

The following table reports the total number of requests carried over during two periods; 2019-04-01 to 2020-03-13 and 2020-03-14 to 2020-03-31.

³Total for Row 3 should equal the total in the ATI Statistical Report section 1.1 Row 5

Appendix B: Designation order instrument

Access to Information and Privacy Delegation Order

The Minister of the Environment, pursuant to section 73 of the Access to Information Act and section 73 of the Privacy Act, hereby designates the persons holding the positions set out in the schedule hereto, or the persons occupying on an acting basis those positions, to exercise the powers, duties and functions of the Minister of the Environment as the head of Environment and Climate Change Canada, under the provisions of the Act and related regulations set out in the schedule opposite each position. This designation replaces all previous delegation orders.

Dated, at the City of Gatineau, Quebec, this 11^th day of January 2017

(signed)

Catherine McKenna
Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Canada