Freedom of information

Last updated: 16 April 2024
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What is freedom of information?

The Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) provides a legislative framework for access to documents held by Victorian public sector organisations. It is underpinned by the principles of open and accountable government and that people have the right to access information that is held about them.

The right of access

The FOI Act gives you the right to request documents held by Victorian public sector organisations including Sustainability Victoria (SV).

The FOI Act gives you the right to:

  • access documents about the activities of SV
  • access documents about your personal affairs
  • request that incorrect or misleading information held by an agency about you be amended or removed.

What is a document?

Documents include emails, film and sound recordings, and graphic materials such as maps, drawings and photographs. Documents may be provided in either paper or electronic format.

However, the FOI Act only grants a right to documents. There is no right to obtain information generally, for example by asking questions which SV staff then answer in writing – the record must already exist before you make your application.

Documents exempt under the FOI Act

The FOI Act exempts some types of documents from access, including:

  • documents containing information of a kind which is already available for public access (for example, publications)
  • documents created prior to 5 July 1978 other than documents which relate to the personal affairs of the applicant
  • documents affecting the personal privacy of a third party
  • internal working documents, including those documents that are a part of the deliberative processes involved in the functions of an agency, a minister or Government
  • documents affecting legal proceedings
  • documents relating to trade secrets, or other matters of a business, commercial or financial nature
  • documents containing material obtained in confidence
  • documents where disclosure would be contrary to the public interest.

Who can make a request for information?

You can make a request for information under the FOI Act or you can authorise another person (for example a solicitor) to make a request on your behalf.

If you want someone to make a request on your behalf for your personal information, you must give them your written authorisation and this must be provided to us before your request can be assessed.

Making a freedom of information request at SV

Before you make a request for documents under the FOI Act, you should consider whether the documents are available in other ways, including on our website.

If you still want to access documents under the FOI Act you must:

  • make a request in writing, clearly describing the documents you are requesting access to
  • put the application fee of $31.90 (unless you wish to request SV to waive or reduce the fee, see below).

You can make a freedom of information (FOI) request to SV by writing to:

Freedom of Information Officer
Sustainability Victoria
Level 12, 321 Exhibition Street
Melbourne, Victoria 3000

Or you can send an email to foi@sustainability.vic.gov.au

The application fee should be paid into the following bank account:

Bank name: Westpac Bank
Account name: Sustainability Victoria
BSB: 033-222
Account number: 012710

Please include FOI and your surname or organisation name in the reference for the payment.

Alternatively, if you wish to request SV to waive or reduce the fee, you should provide evidence that payment would cause you financial hardship - for example, a photocopy of your current health care card.

Processing your request cannot begin if any of the required information is not supplied. If you are unsure about what to include with the request, contact the FOI Officer.

Timelines for requests

SV has 30 days from the time that it receives your request to notify you of its decision.

Sometimes, particularly where requests are complex or necessitate us to contacting a third party, delays can occur. SV will make its best efforts to contact you and inform you of the progress of your request if there are delays.

If you believe you have been unfairly denied access to documents, you can apply for internal review of the decision by the Information Commissioner within 28 days of being notified of the decision.

For more information see the Victorian Government FOI website.

Protecting access to personal information

In line with SV's commitment to protecting personal information under the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014, you must provide evidence of your identity when you request access to documents containing personal information about you.

Evidence of your identity is best provided through the provision of a photocopy of current photo identification (ID). If you are unsure about what ID to provide, contact the FOI Officer.

Charges

There are 2 costs associated with making an FOI request:

  • the application fee
  • the access charges.

Access charges relate to the costs incurred in granting access to the documents that you have requested. These costs may or may not apply depending on the nature of your request.

All fees and charges are exempt from GST.

Application fee

  • Application fee – $31.90 (non-refundable unless fee is waived)

Access charges

  • Search – $22.50 per hour or part of an hour
  • Supervision – $5 per quarter hour
  • Photocopying – 20c per black and white A4 page
  • Access in a form other than photocopying – the reasonable costs incurred by SV in providing the copy
  • Listening to or viewing a tape – the reasonable costs incurred by SV in making arrangements to listen to or view (supervision charges also apply)
  • Making a written transcript out of a tape – the reasonable costs incurred by SV in providing the written transcript

These charges are set by Government regulations.