Annual Report to Parliament on the Administration of the Access to Information Act – 2018-19

Introduction

Shared Services Canada (SSC) is pleased to submit to Parliament its 8th annual report on the administration of the Access to Information Act. The report describes how SSC administered the Access to Information Act for the fiscal year commencing April 1, 2018 and ending March 31, 2019.

Access to Information Act

The Access to Information Act came into effect on July 1, 1983, giving the public a right of access to information contained in government records, subject to specific and limited exceptions.

Section 72 of the Access to Information Act requires that the head of every government institution submit an annual report to Parliament on the administration of the Act within the institution for the past fiscal year. It is under this provision that the present annual report is tabled in Parliament.

Institutional Mandate

SSC was created in 2011, to transform how the government manages and secures its information technology (IT) infrastructure.

SSC plays a key role in the government’s ability to deliver digital programs and services that improve the lives of Canadians, their families and communities.

SSC works in partnership with key public-sector and private-sector stakeholders to implement enterprise-wide approaches for managing IT infrastructure services and employ effective and efficient business management processes. Maintaining strong customer relationships and service management is essential to the successful delivery of SSC’s mandate.

Delegated Authority

SSC’s President is responsible for handling requests submitted under the Access to Information Act. Pursuant to Section 73 of the Act, the President has delegated full powers, duties and functions to members of the department’s senior management, including the Director and Deputy Directors of the Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Protection Division, hereafter referred to as the ATIP Division (Refer to Annex A).

ATIP Division Structure

The ATIP Division is part of the Corporate Secretariat, which is overseen by the Director General, Corporate Secretariat and Chief Privacy Officer, situated in the Corporate Services Branch at SSC.

The Division is led by a Director who is also the ATIP Coordinator for the Department, and is supported by two Deputy Directors, each leading either Operations or Policy and Governance. While an average of 21 person years were dedicated to the ATIP program, 15 person years were dedicated to the administration of the Access to Information Act. These person years include full-time and casual employees, students and consultants.

The Operations Unit within the ATIP Division is responsible for processing requests under the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act. This includes liaising with subject-matter experts within SSC, performing a line-by-line review of records requested and conducting external consultations as required to balance the public’s right of access and the government’s need to safeguard certain information in limited and specific cases. The Operations team also provides briefings to senior management as required on matters relating to requests and institutional performance. This team is also the main point of contact with the Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) and the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) with respect to the resolution of complaints related to requests under both Acts.

The Policy and Governance Unit within the ATIP Division provides policy advice and guidance to SSC’s senior management team on access to information and the protection of personal information. This team also develops ATIP policy instruments and tools. The Unit is responsible for assisting program officials when they conduct privacy impact assessments (PIA) and draft personal information-sharing agreements to ensure that privacy legislation and policy requirements are respected. It also liaises with employees and prepares and delivers training and awareness sessions throughout SSC. In addition, the team coordinates SSC’s annual reporting requirements and publishes SSC’s Info Source chapter. Lastly, the Unit is the main point of contact with the OIC and OPC with respect to various audits, reviews, systemic investigations and privacy breaches.

The Division’s administration of the Acts is facilitated at the branch and directorate level of SSC. There are nine Liaison Officers who coordinate the collection of requested records and information, and provide guidance to branch and directorate managers on the application of the Acts.

Highlights of the 2018-19 Statistical Report

The Statistical Report (Annex B and C) on the administration of the Access to Information Act provides a summary of the access to information requests and consultations processed during the 2018-19 reporting period.

Requests Received

The Department processed 332 access to information requests representing a rise of 40% from the previous fiscal year. In turn, the ATIP Division experienced a 68% growth in the number of pages processed at 183,203 pages for the 2018-19 fiscal year. Similarly, the pages disclosed increased significantly from the previous fiscal at 39,958 to 68,603 for the 2018-19 reporting period. With the exception of one access to information request that was completed beyond the legislated timeframe, SSC maintained a 99% compliance rate.

SSC received 312 formal requests submitted under the Access to Information Act between April 1, 2018 and March 31, 2019. This represents an increase of over 21% from the previous reporting period. Forty-two requests were carried forward from 2017-18 for a grand total of 354 requests for the reporting period. The number of requests received by the Department over the last five years has grown by 58%.

The ATIP Division continues to ensure that it monitors its turnaround times in processing requests on a weekly basis as well as tracks the timeliness of their completion.

Access to information requests – Text version

Date	Received	Processed
2018-2019	312	332
2017-2018	257	285
2016-2017	278	285
2015-2016	222	232
2014-2015	189	172
2013-2014	198	219

Informal Requests

SSC posts summaries of completed access to information requests pertaining to corporate records on the Open Government Portal. During the reporting period, the Department received and processed 148 informal requests for previously released documents.

Source of Requests

The media is the largest source of Access to Information requests, accounting for 45% of all requests. The general public represented 23% of the requests received, whereas those from the private sector and sources that declined to identify themselves accounted for 17% and 12.5% of the requests received respectively. Requests from organizations and academic sources comprised 2.5%.

Source of requests – Text version

Source of requests	Received
Media	139
Academia	3
Private Sector	53
Organization	5
Public	73
Decline to Identify	39

Disposition of Requests Completed

During the reporting period, SSC released records in full in 49 cases (15%).

For 189 requests (57%), the Department invoked exemptions. Requests for which the responsive records were entirely exempted or excluded occurred in 22 instances (6%). Of the remaining 72 requests (22%), either no records existed, the request was abandoned by the requester or the request was transferred.

Extensions

Section 9 of the Access to Information Act allows the statutory time limits to be extended if consultations are required or if the request is for a large volume of records, and processing it within the original timeframe would unreasonably interfere with the operations of the Department.

Extensions were necessary in 79 cases (61%) when SSC consulted with its Departmental Legal Services Unit and other government departments prior to responding to the requester. In addition, extensions were taken in 27 instances (21%) to reduce the risk of interference with daily operations owing to a large volume of records. The Department also invoked 23 extensions (18%) to conduct third-party notifications.

Completion Time

The Access to Information Act sets timelines for responding to access to information requests. It also allows for extensions in cases where responding to the request requires the review of a large volume of information or extensive consultations with other government institutions or other third parties.

SSC responded to 210 requests (63%) within 30 days or fewer and a further 46 requests (14%) within 31 to 60 days. The Department completed 61 requests (19%) within 61 to 120 days, seven requests (2%) within 121 to 180 days, and eight requests (2%) were processed within 181 days or over.

Exemptions

Whenever SSC invoked exempting provisions, the principle of severing, as described in section 25 of the Act, was applied in order to release as much information as possible. There were only four requests that needed to be exempted in their entirety.

The most frequently invoked exemptions at SSC fell under four subsections of the Access to Information Act. They are as follows:

• subsection 19(1) - protects personal information (122 instances or 27%)
• subsection 16(2)(c) - concerns law enforcement and investigations (77 instances or 17%)
• subsection 20(1)(c) - protects Information that could lead to financial loss or gain of a third party (74 or 16% instances); and
• subsection 21(1)(b) - consultations or deliberations that involve federal public servants (43 instances or 9%)

Subsection 19(1) as well as paragraph 20(1)(c) are mandatory exemptions, whereas paragraph 16(2)(c) and 21(10)(b) are discretionary exemptions.

Exclusions

The Access to Information Act does not apply to information that is already publicly available, such as government publications and material in libraries and museums (section 68). It also excludes material such as Cabinet Confidences (Section 69). During 2018-19, SSC excluded records based on section 68 on three occasions, and section 69 was used in 87 cases.

Consultations

This reporting period, SSC received 126 consultations from other government institutions and carried over six consultations from 2017-18. The Department completed 130 consultations during the 2018-19 fiscal year, with two pending at the end of the reporting period.

Complaints, Audits and Investigations

During the 2018-19 fiscal year, SSC was notified of two new access complaints received by the OIC. This represents less than one percent of all requests received during the reporting period.

For the fiscal year, complaint investigations affected nine files under the Access to Information Act.

No audits involving SSC were completed by the OIC under the Act.

Key Issues and Action Taken on Complaints

The ATIP Division continues to work diligently in resolving complaints. The Department has taken diverse actions with the goal of keeping the number of complaints received at a minimum. For instance, the Division revises its procedures on a regular basis to improve performance as well as to reduce the response time for requests with the goal of decreasing complaints. Ongoing training is provided to ATIP analysts on the complaints process and the handling of complaints received from the OIC. The Division established a streamlined process for handling complaints where the Deputy Director, Operations Unit, is responsible for providing representations to the OIC.

Monitoring Compliance

The Division has implemented various internal procedures to ensure that access to information requests are processed in a timely and efficient manner. For example, meetings are held between ATIP management and analysts on a regular basis to monitor workloads and progress on access to information requests. These meetings provide greater accountability and clarity for the team.

The ATIP Division provides reports to and meets with Communications and the President’s Office on a weekly basis to discuss upcoming files and consultations. ATIP has a five business day service standard for records retrieval and tracks branch performance. Each month, ATIP produces a performance report for Assistant Deputy Ministers and the President’s Office, which allows senior management to address issues across the Department in this key area of the ATIP process. Furthermore, on a monthly basis, the Division holds a meeting with branch Liaison Officers to identify any common issues and concerns to help speed up retrieval and produce strong recommendations.

Fees

The Service Fees Act requires SSC to report annually to Parliament on the fees collected under the Access to Information Act. The information below is reported in accordance with the requirements of section 20 of the Service Fees Act.

In 2018-19, SSC collected $940 and waived or refunded $620 in application fees. In accordance with the Interim Directive on the Administration of the Access to Information Act, issued on May 5, 2016, SSC waived all fees prescribed by the Act and Regulations, other than the five dollar application fee set out in paragraph 7(1)(a) of the Regulations.

Costs

For this reporting period, the ATIP Division spent a total of $1,200,098 for the administration of the Access to Information Act, of which $1,006,257 was spent on salaries, and $193,841 was spent on goods and services, including professional services contracts.

Training and Awareness Activities

The ATIP Division is dedicated to fostering a culture of ATIP excellence across SSC. As a result, the Division continues to develop and deliver training and awareness activities aimed at more openness and transparency across the Department.

Mandatory Training

In order to ensure that all SSC employees, regardless of their position or level, are made aware of their responsibilities related to ATIP and that they gain an in-depth understanding of the related best practices and principles, SSC launched, in collaboration with the Canada School of Public Service (CSPS), the online Access to Information and Privacy Fundamentals course (I015) on July 14, 2016. While this course is optional for all federal public service employees through the CSPS website, its completion has been made mandatory for all SSC employees. For this reporting period, approximately 773 SSC employees successfully completed the course. This represents an 11% increase from last fiscal year.

The ATIP Division successfully delivered 25 internal training and awareness sessions to approximately 217 participants, which included SSC executives, managers and employees at all levels. The number of training provided this fiscal year increased by 79%. In the previous fiscal year, 14 training sessions were provided to SSC employees.

ATIP 101 Training

The Division delivered numerous ATIP 101 training sessions over the course of 2018-19. A total of 103 employees completed this course.

Training for the ATIP Liaison Officer Network

As the primary point of contact for a branch or directorate, an ATIP Liaison Officer must have an in-depth understanding of the ATIP process and a heightened understanding of the legislation. During this reporting period, the ATIP Division delivered nine training sessions specifically tailored to our ATIP Liaison Officers and their delegates, to a total of approximately 83 participants. In comparison to the 2017-18 fiscal period, two training sessions were delivered to 17 ATIP Liaison Officers.

ATIP Awareness for SSC Executives

During this reporting period, six awareness sessions were delivered to 31 executives. These sessions provide an overview of key ATIP principles and practices, and provide a greater understanding of the roles and responsibilities of managers and employees.

Open House

This fiscal year, the Division held an open house for the Corporate Secretariat in celebration of Right to Know Week. Employees had the opportunity to ask questions, obtain informative ATIP handouts and learning tools as well as receive information on ATIP processes.

Initiatives

To maintain a high standard of excellence and to continuously improve client services under the Access to Information Act, the Department undertook the following initiatives:

• SSC was onboarded to TBS’ new ATIP Online Request System. This platform makes it easier and simpler for Canadians to submit ATIP requests through a centralized website.
• The ATIP Division met with departmental Liaison Officers on a monthly basis in order to foster a better line of communication as well as to address emerging issues.
• The Operations Unit updated the actions, template emails and letters in the AccessPro Case Management system, the Division’s case tracking and reporting software, to streamline the administration of ATIP requests.
• The Policy and Governance Unit developed a Training Strategy Plan for the delivery of training on the application of the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act to continue to educate all SSC employees on their roles and responsibilities related to ATIP. The new strategy placed heavy emphasis on privacy breaches, PIAs as well as training for the Offices of Primary Interest and Liaison Officers.
• ATIP took the preliminary steps to implement epost Connect, which allows for the electronic delivery of responsive records to requesters.
• The Division engaged key internal stakeholders and the ATIP community on the anticipated legislative and policy changes resulting from Access to Information Act and Privacy Act reform (Bill C-58). A working group was created consisting of key internal partners to modify and update SSC processes to ensure a speedy implementation upon the legislation receiving Royal Assent.
• SSC continued to proactively publish on a monthly basis the list of completed briefing notes to the President and the Minister. The Division implemented this initiative in the spirit of open government.

Policies, Guidelines and Procedures

• The ATIP Division provides monthly and quarterly reports to SSC branches aimed at helping to increase response times for responsive records.
• ATIP launched a pilot project to expedite high risk files to the attention of the Office of the Assistant Deputy Minister for immediate action.

Next Steps for the Year Ahead

The ATIP Division is committed to remaining innovative in its administration of the Access to Information Act. Additionally, the Division will continue to be actively engaged in the Department’s internal services transformation initiatives as well as continue to participate in federal ATIP Community meetings. ATIP will continue to support the departmental priority of fostering a culture of service excellence.

The Division has made significant inroads in moving completely to a paperless environment with the adoption and implementation of epost Connect. In pursuing such digital initiatives, ATIP is one step closer to its goal of eliminating the use of paper, and will continue to pursue other opportunities in the future to achieve the end result of a paperless office.

Annex A—Designation Order

The President of Shared Services Canada, pursuant to section 73 of the Access to Information Act hereby designates the persons holding the positions set out in the schedule hereto, or the persons acting in those positions, to exercise the powers and perform the duties and functions of the President of Shared Services Canada as the head of a government institution under all sections of the Access to Information Act. This designation is effective immediately upon being signed.

This designation order supersedes any previous delegation of the powers, duties and functions set out herein.

Dated at Ottawa,
this 8th day of May 2019

Schedule

1. Executive Vice President
2. Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Corporate Services
3. Corporate Secretary and Chief Privacy Officer
4. Director, Access to Information and Privacy Protection Division
5. Deputy Directors, Operations and Policy and Governance, Access to Information and Privacy Protection Division

Paul Glover
President of Shared Services Canada

Annex B—Statistical Report

Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act

Name of institution: Shared Services Canada

Reporting period: 2018-04-01 to 2019-03-31

Part 1: Requests under the Access to Information Act

1.1 Number of requests

	Number of requests
Received during reporting period	312
Outstanding from previous reporting period	42
Total	354
Closed during reporting period	332
Carried over to next reporting period	22

1.2 Sources of requests

Sources	Number of requests
Media	139
Academia	3
Business (private sector)	53
Organization	5
Public	73
Decline to identify	39
Total	312

1.3 Informal requests

Completion Time

1 to 15 Days	16 to 30 Days	31 to 60 Days	61 to 120 Days	121 to 180 Days	181 to 365 Days	More Than 365 Days	Total
147	1	0	0	0	0	0	148

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

Part 2: Requests closed during the reporting period

2.1 Disposition and completion time

Disposition of requests	Completion time
	1 to 15 Days	16 to 30 Days	31 to 60 Days	61 to 120 Days	121 to 180 Days	181 to 365 Days	More Than 365 Days	Total
All disclosed	8	35	6	0	0	0	0	49
Disclosed in part	28	68	29	49	7	3	5	189
All exempted	0	0	1	3	0	0	0	4
All excluded	0	2	8	8	0	0	0	18
No records exist	28	3	2	0	0	0	0	33
Request transferred	17	0	0	0	0	0	0	17
Request abandoned	20	1	0	1	0	0	0	22
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	101	109	46	61	7	3	5	332

2.2 Exemptions

Section	Number of requests
13(1)(a)	0
13(1)(b)	0
13(1)(c)	0
13(1)(d)	0
13(1)(e)	0
14	0
14(a)	0
14(b)	0
15(1)	0
15(1) - I.A.*	1
15(1) - Def.*	2
15(1) - S.A.*	12
16(1)(a)(i)	0
16(1)(a)(ii)	0
16(1)(a)(iii)	0
16(1)(b)	0
16(1)(c)	3
16(1)(d)	1
16(2)	0
16(2)(a)	0
16(2)(b)	0
16(2)(c)	77
16(3)	0
16.1(1)(a)	1
16.1(1)(b)	0
16.1(1)(c)	1
16.1(1)(d)	1
16.2(1)	0
16.3	0
16.4(1)(a)	0
16.4(1)(b)	0
16.5	0
17	3
18(a)	0
18(b)	0
18(c)	0
18(d)	0
18.1(1)(a)	0
18.1(1)(b)	0
18.1(1)(c)	0
18.1(1)(d)	0
19(1)	122
20(1)(a)	2
20(1)(b)	32
20(1)(b.1)	0
20(1)(c)	74
20(1)(d)	5
20.1	0
20.2	0
20.4	0
21(1)(a)	23
21(1)(b)	43
21(1)(c)	34
21(1)(d)	11
22	5
22.1(1)	2
23	10
24(1)	0
26	3

* I.A.: International Affairs Def.: Defence of Canada S.A.: Subversive Activities

2.3 Exclusions

Section	Number of requests
68(a)	3
68(b)	0
68(c)	0
68.1	0
68.2(a)	0
68.2(b)	0
69(1)	15
69(1)(a)	0
69(1)(b)	0
69(1)(c)	0
69(1)(d)	1
69(1)(e)	6
69(1)(f)	0
69(1)(g) re (a)	40
69(1)(g) re (b)	0
69(1)(g) re (c)	15
69(1)(g) re (d)	0
69(1)(g) re (e)	8
69(1)(g) re (f)	2
69.1(1)	0

2.4 Format of information released

Disposition	Paper	Electronic	Other formats
All disclosed	3	46	0
Disclosed in part	13	176	0
Total	16	222	0

2.5 Complexity

2.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed

Disposition of requests	Number of pages processed	Number of pages disclosed	Number of requests
All disclosed	1,716	1,137	49
Disclosed in part	179,875	67,466	189
All exempted	83	0	4
All excluded	1,498	0	18
Request abandoned	31	9	22
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0

2.5.2 Relevant pages processed and disclosed by size of requests

2.5.3 Other complexities

Disposition	Consultation required	Assessment of fees	Legal advice sought	Other	Total
All disclosed	22	0	0	0	22
Disclosed in part	108	2	21	0	131
All exempted	4	0	2	0	6
All excluded	16	0	15	0	31
Request abandoned	2	0	1	0	3
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0	0	0
Total	152	2	39	0	193

2.6 Deemed refusals

2.6.1 Reasons for not meeting statutory deadline

Number of requests closed past the statutory deadline	Principal reason
	Workload	External consultation	Internal consultation	Other
1	0	0	0	1

2.6.2 Number of days past deadline

Number of days past deadline	Number of requests past deadline where no extension was taken	Number of requests past deadline where an extension was taken	Total
1 to 15 days	1	0	1
16 to 30 days	0	0	0
31 to 60 days	0	0	0
61 to 120 days	0	0	0
121 to 180 days	0	0	0
181 to 365 days	0	0	0
More than 365 days	0	0	0
Total	1	0	1

2.7 Requests for translation

Translation requests	Accepted	Refused	Total
English to French	0	0	0
French to English	0	0	0
Total	0	0	0

Part 3: Extensions

3.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

Disposition of requests where an extension was taken	9(1)(a) Interference with operations	9(1)(b) Consultation		9(1)(c) Third-party notice
		Section 69	Other
All disclosed	0	2	3	0
Disclosed in part	27	1	54	21
All exempted	0	0	2	2
All excluded	0	1	15	0
No records exist	0	0	0	0
Request abandoned	0	0	1	0
Total	27	4	75	23

3.2 Length of extensions

Disposition of requests where an extension was taken	9(1)(a) Interference with operations	9(1)(b) Consultation		9(1)(c) Third-party notice
		Section 69	Other
30 days or less	9	3	7	2
31 to 60 days	6	0	20	19
61 to 120 days	4	1	39	2
121 to 180 days	2	0	3	0
181 to 365 days	5	0	6	0
365 days or more	1	0	0	0
Total	27	4	75	23

Part 4: Fees

Fee type	Fee collected		Fee waived or refunded
	Number of requests	Amount	Number of requests	Amount
Application	188	$940	124	$620
Search	0	$0	0	$0
Production	0	$0	0	$0
Programming	0	$0	0	$0
Preparation	0	$0	0	$0
Alternative format	0	$0	0	$0
Reproduction	0	$0	0	$0
Total	188	$940	124	$620

Part 5: Consultations received from other institutions and organizations

5.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and organizations

Consultations	Other Government of Canada institutions	Number of pages to review	Other organizations	Number of pages to review
Received during reporting period	126	4,329	0	0
Outstanding from the previous reporting period	6	666	0	0
Total	132	4,995	0	0
Closed during the reporting period	130	4,863	0	0
Pending at the end of the reporting period	2	132	0	0

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

Recommendation	Number of days required to complete consultation requests
	1 to 15 days	16 to 30 days	31 to 60 days	61 to 120 days	121 to 180 days	181 to 365 days	More than 365 days	Total
Disclose entirely	57	16	3	0	0	0	0	76
Disclose in part	10	33	7	0	0	0	0	50
Exempt entirely	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Exclude entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Consult other institution	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Other	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Total	71	49	10	0	0	0	0	130

5.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations

Recommendation	Number of Days Required to Complete Consultation Requests
	1 to 15 Days	16 to 30 Days	31 to 60 Days	61 to 120 Days	121 to 180 Days	181 to 365 Days	More Than 365 Days	Total
Disclose entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Disclose in part	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Exempt entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Exclude entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Consult other institution	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Other	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Part 6: Completion time for consultations on Cabinet confidences

6.1 Requests with Legal Services

6.2 Requests with Privy Council Office

Part 7: Complaints and investigations

Section 32	Section 35	Section 37	Total
2	0	9	11

Part 8: Court action

Section 41	Section 42	Section 44	Total
0	0	0	0

Part 9: Resources related to the Access to Information Act

9.1 Costs

Expenditure		Amount
Salaries		$1,006,257
Overtime		$0
Goods and services		$193,841
Professional services contracts	$117,660	-
Other	$76,181	-
Total		$1,200,098

9.2 Human Resources

Resources	Person years dedicated to Access to Information activities
Full-time employees	10.75
Part-time and casual employees	1.50
Regional staff	0.00
Consultants and agency personnel	1.00
Students	1.50
Total	14.75

Annex C—New Exemptions under the Access to Information Act

SSC is pleased to report on three new exemptions (Sections 16.31, 16.6 and 23.1) under the Access to Information Act. In respect to the sections outlined below, the Department has not applied these exemptions during the 2018-19 fiscal year.

Access to Information Act

Section	Number of requests
16.31 Investigation under the Elections Act	0
16.6 National Security and Intelligence Committee	0
23.1 Patent or Trademark privilege	0