ATI Complaint Checker

ATIPPA, 2015 defines a public body. The following is a list of public bodies:

1. a department of the provincial government;
2. a branch of the executive government of the province;
3. a Crown corporation;
4. a corporation, commission or body, the majority of the members of which, or the majority of members of the board of directors of which are appointed by an Act, the Lieutenant-Governor in Council or a minister;
5. Memorial University;
6. College of the North Atlantic;
7. the Newfoundland English School District;
8. Conseil scolaire francophone provincial de Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador;
9. Central Health Authority;
10. Eastern Health Authority;
11. Western Health Authority;
12. Labrador-Grenfell Health Authority;
13. Mental Health Review Board;
14. Newfoundland and Labrador Centre for Health Information;
15. the City of Corner Brook;
16. the City of Mount Pearl;
17. the City of St. John’s;
18. a municipality;
19. a body designated as a local government body in the Regulations;
20. the House of Assembly;
21. statutory offices, as defined in the House of Assembly Accountability, Integrity and Administration Act, including OIPC, the Chief Electoral Officer, the Commissioner for Legislative Standards, the Child and Youth Advocate, the Citizens' Representative, and the Seniors' Advocate;
22. a corporation or other entity owned by or created by or for a municipality or a group of municipalities, which has as its primary purpose the management of a municipal asset or the discharge of a municipal responsibility; and
23. any other body designated as a public body in the

A public body does not include:

1. the constituency office of a member of the House of Assembly;
2. the Court of Appeal, the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador, or the Provincial Court of Newfoundland and Labrador;
3. the Commission of Inquiry Respecting the Muskrat Falls Project; or
4. a body listed in Schedule B of ATIPPA, 2015.

ATIPPA, 2015 defines a third party as a person or group of persons other than the requestor (or applicant) or a public body. Where a public body receives an access to information request and it has reason to believe the response contains information that sections 39 or 40 of ATIPPA, 2015 might except from disclosure, the head is required to notify the third party in writing in accordance with section 19 of ATIPPA, 2015.

It is likely that the Commissioner is able to investigate your complaint. If you would like to make a complaint please go to our Access Complaint form.

Requests for information that you make under ATIPPA, 2015 are limited to information that a record captures. Unrecorded information is not subject to ATIPPA, 2015 and there is no obligation on a public body to create a record in response to an access to information request. Section 2(y) of ATIPPA, 2015 defines a record as:

a record of information in any form, and includes a dataset, information that is machine readable, written, photographed, recorded or stored in any manner, but does not include a computer program or a mechanism that produced records on any storage medium.

OIPC is only able to investigate after you receive a final response to your access to information request or after the expiration of the time limit for responding. Public bodies are required to provide a final response to a request in writing within 20 business days of receiving a request unless they have obtained a time extension from this Office. The following days are not included in the calculation of business days:

1. Saturdays;
2. Sundays;
3. New Year’s Day;
4. Good Friday;
5. Victoria Day;
6. Canada Day;
7. Regatta Day/Civic Holidays
8. Labour Day;
9. Thanksgiving Day
10. Remembrance Day;
11. Christmas Day; and
12. Boxing Day.

A public body may provide its response outside of the 20 business day time period if it obtained approval for an extension from this Office. If this occurs, the public body is required to provide you with the revised response date in writing. Please be mindful that if you chose to mail your request to the public body, there may be a delay between the date on which you submit your request and its receipt by the public body. Public bodies should respond to requests as soon as possible. Consequently, you may also receive a response sooner than 20 business days.

Public bodies are required to provide a final response to a request in writing within 20 business days of receiving a request unless they have obtained a time extension from this Office. You may use our Estimated Response Time Calculator to determine when you can anticipate a response to your access to information request. The following days are not included in the calculation of business days:

1. Saturdays;
2. Sundays;
3. New Years Day;
4. Good Friday;
5. Victoria Day;
6. Canada Day;
7. Regatta Day/Civic Holidays
8. Labour Day;
9. Thanksgiving Day
10. Remembrance Day;
11. Christmas Day; and
12. Boxing Day.

A public body may provide its response outside of the 20 business day time period if it obtained approval for an extension from this Office. If this occurs, the public body is required to provide you with the revised response date in writing. Please be mindful that if you chose to mail your request to the public body, there may be a delay between the date on which you submit your request and its receipt by the public body. Public bodies should respond to requests as soon as possible. Consequently, you may also receive a response sooner than 20 business days.

On application from a public body, OIPC may grant a public body an extension of time for responding to an access to information request where the Commissioner considers that it is necessary and reasonable to do so. Where OIPC grants an extension, the public body will notify you of the reason for the extension, that OIPC has authorized the extension, and when you may expect a response. You may not make a complaint regarding the time extension once it has been approved by the OIPC.

On application from a public body, the OIPC may grant a public body approval to disregard an access to information request where the request would unreasonably interfere with the operations of the public body; the request is for information already provided to the applicant; or the request would amount to an abuse of the right to make a request because it is:

1. trivial, frivolous or vexatious,
2. unduly repetitive or systematic,
3. excessively broad or incomprehensible, or
4. otherwise made in bad faith.

Where your access request has been disregarded with approval from the Commissioner you will be notified that the request is refused, of the reasons for the refusal; that the commissioner has approved the disregard; and of your right to appeal the decision of the public body to the Trial Division under subsection 52 (1).

It is likely that the Commissioner is able to investigate your complaint. If you would like to make a complaint please go to our Access Complaint form.

If you would like to discuss whether your on-going complaint resolution process impacts your ability to file a complaint with the Commissioner, please contact us

The Commissioner may investigate a complaint in relation to the severing of information in the response to an access to information request. Please note, the ATIPPA, 2015 does permit access to be refused for certain information, including through the severing of information within a record, in accordance with the exceptions to access provisions. In certain instances, public bodies may be required to withhold certain information. Any investigation by the OIPC will seek to determine whether the severing has been carried out in accordance with the ATIPPA, 2015.

It is likely that the Commissioner is able to investigate your complaint. If you would like to make a complaint please go to our Access Complaint form.

The Commissioner may investigate whether a reasonable search for records responsive to your access to information request was conducted. The Commissioner may require you to present evidence establishing a reasonable basis for why you believe records exist which are responsive to your access to information request.

It is likely that the Commissioner is able to investigate your complaint. If you would like to make a complaint please go to our Access Complaint form.

The Commissioner may investigate whether a reasonable search for records responsive to your access to information request was conducted. The Commissioner may require you to present evidence establishing a reasonable basis for why you believe records exist which are responsive to your access to information request.

It is likely that the Commissioner is able to investigate your complaint. If you would like to make a complaint please go to our Access Complaint form.