Annual report to Parliament 2021-2022: Access to Information Act

I. Introduction

The purpose of the Access to Information Act (ATIA) is to provide Canadians with access to records under the control of federal institutions, except for records subject to limited and specific exemptions and exclusions.

This report reflects activities of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC), with respect to the stated legislation, for the period of April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022.

The annual report is tabled in Parliament pursuant to section 94 of the ATIA and in accordance to section 20 of the Service Fees Act. The report describes the activities of CIRNAC that support compliance with access to information legislation. In addition, it provides details on the activities and accomplishments of the Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Directorate, including highlights such as:

• Limiting the break in service during Covid-19;
• Continued training initiatives to increase departmental ATIA capacity and awareness; and
• Further development of ATIP in a shared service.

II. Organization

III. Delegation Order

Under section 95 of the ATIA, the Minister's authority may be delegated to departmental officials in order to administer the Act within CIRNAC.

During the reporting period, the delegation order signed by the Honorable Carolyn Bennett, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, on January 28, 2021, was in effect (Appendix A). The order delegates full authority and responsibility for the ATIA to the following positions:

• Deputy Minister
• Associate Deputy Minister
• Corporate Secretary
• ATIP Coordinator
• ATIP Deputy Directors

IV. Interpretation of the Statistical Report

CIRNAC's Statistical Report and Supplemental Report were submitted to the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) on August 2, 2022 (Appendix B). The Report details various aspects of the requests CIRNAC received and processed during the period of April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022.

1. Requests under the Access to Information Act

1.1 Number of requests

In 2021-2022, CIRNAC received 303 requests, representing an increase of approximately 55% compared to the 196 received in 2020-2021 (Table 1.1). With the addition of the 215 requests that were carried over from the previous year, this reflected a total of 518 requests to be processed in course of the reporting period. The Department completed 305 requests and carried 213 requests into the next reporting period 2022-2023.

The listing of CIRNAC's completed access to information requests can be found on the Open Canada's website.

Table 1.1a Number of requests received and outstanding from 2018-2022

Number of Requests	2018-2019	2019-2020	2020-2021	2021-2022
Received during reporting period	389	333	196	303
Outstanding from previous reporting period	111	156	265	215
Total	500	489	461	518

Table 1.1b Number of requests closed and carried over from 2018-2022

Number of Requests	2018-2019	2019-2020	2020-2021	2021-2022
Closed during reporting period	344	244	236	305
Carried over to next reporting period	156	265	225	213

1.2 Sources of requests

Of the 303 requests received during the reporting period, 85 (28%) were from Media, followed by 78 (26%) from the Public, and 61 (20%) from businesses (Table 1.2). This is an increase in requests from the media whereas in previous years the main source of requestors came from the public.

Description of Table 1.2 Sources of Requests 2018-2022

Table 1.2 Sources of Requests 2018-2022

	Public	Media	Business	Organization	Academia	Decline to Identify
2021-2022	78	85	61	13	26	40
2020-2021	56	33	70	10	12	15
2019-2020	141	62	61	8	21	40
2018-2019	132	77	65	24	68	23

1.3 Channels of requests

The channels of requests serve to identify the mechanism used by the Canadian public to request records from the Department: Open Government of Canada Portal, e-mail, mail, phone or fax. The Government of Canada Online Portal was the most used mechanism to request records from the Department.

Table 1.3 Channels of requests

Channel	Number of Requests
Online	286
E-mail	12
Mail	5
In person	0
Phone	0
Fax	0
Total	303

2. Informal Requests

An informal request is defined as a request for copies of previously processed and released access to information requests. The Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) policy requires institutions to publicly post monthly titles of summaries of previously released ATI requests. It is from this public source that Canadians can make informal requests for records already released by the Department. Government departments do not charge any fees for the informal requests and there are no legislative timelines for responding to these requests. In addition, the requesters have no statutory right of complaint to the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada (OIC).

2.1 Number of informal requests

During the 2021-2022 reporting period, CIRNAC received 157 informal requests, an increase of 41% compared to the 111 requests received in 2020-2021. With the addition of the 74 requests that were carried over from the previous year, this reflected a total of 231 informal requests to be processed. The ATIP Directorate completed 230 requests and carried one (1) request into the next reporting period 2022-2023.

Description of Table 2.1 Number of Informal Requests Received

Table 2.1 Number of Informal Requests Received

Year	Number of Requests
2021-2022	157
2020-2021	111
2019-2020	198
2018-2019	331

2.2 Channels of informal requests

The channels of requests serve to again identify the mechanism used and the total number of informal requests received during the current reporting period by source: Open Government of Canada Online Portal, e-mail, mail, in person, phone or fax. The channels of informal requests are a new reporting requirement set this reporting period. In the course the past reporting period, the majority of the informal requests were received through the Government of Canada Online Portal.

Table 2.2 Channels of requests

Channel	Number of Requests
Online	151
E-mail	6
Mail	0
In person	0
Phone	0
Fax	0
Total	157

2.3 Completion time of informal requests

The following table 2.3, reports on the number of requests and the completion time for informal requests closed during the 2021-2022 reporting period. The table explains the percentage of informal requests closed during the reporting period according to the number of days it took to process and close them.

Description of Table 2.3 Completion time of informal requests

Table 2.3 Completion time of informal requests

Days	Number of Requests
1 to 15 days	12%
16 to 30 days	6%
31 to 60 days	24%
61 to 120 days	26%
121 to 180 days	19%
181 to 365 days	6%
> than 365 days	7%

2.4 Pages released informally

This section provides information on the number of informal requests closed in relation to pages released. Table 2.4 provides information on the number of informal requests that were closed during the 2021-2022 reporting period that fall under each range of pages released.

Table 2.4 Pages released informally

Pages Released	Number of Requests	Pages Released
< 100	156	4,487
100-500	58	11,983
501-1,000	5	3,456
1,001-5,000	11	20,295
> 5,000	0	0
Total	230	40,221

2.5 Pages re-released informally

This new reporting requirement seeks to capture the number of informal requests for copies of the 157 informal requests received. No requests were received in 2021-2022 that sought copies of previously released informal requests.

4. Requests closed during the reporting period

4.1 Disposition and completion time

Of the 305 formal Access to Information requests closed during the reporting period, CIRNAC was able to fully or partially disclose records in 156 cases (51% of the requests) (Table 4.1.1).

Description of Table 4.1.1 Percentage of completed files relevant to each disclosures

Table 4.1.1 Percentage of completed files relevant to each disclosures

Dispositions	Percentage
All disclosed	13%
Disclosed in part	38%
All exempted	4%
No records exist	31%
Request transferred	2%
Request abandoned	12%

About 14% percent of requests were abandoned or transferred to the appropriate government institution. In only 4% of all requests (12 cases) were the relevant records fully withheld under the provisions of the Act. Finally, there were no records that existed in response to 31% of the requests (95 cases) (Table 4.1.2).

Table 4.1.2 Disposition and completion time

Disposition	Completion Time (days)
	1 to 15	16 to 30	31 to 60	61 to 120	121 to 180	181 to 365	> 365	Total
All disclosed	1	4	14	7	3	2	9	40
Disclosed in part	1	10	6	20	11	20	48	116
All exempted	0	3	0	1	1	0	6	11
All excluded	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1
No records exist	7	43	19	11	2	2	11	95
Request transferred	4	1	1	0	0	0	0	6
Request abandoned	15	4	2	2	0	1	12	36
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Decline to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	28	65	42	41	17	25	87	305

4.2 Exemptions

The most commonly invoked exemption during the reporting period was pursuant to section 21(1) of the Act (advise and deliberations), which was cited in 152 requests (Table 4.2). The next most commonly used exemption applied was under section 20(1) (third party information) which was applied in 93 instances, and finally section 19(1) (personal information) which was applied in 90 instances.

Table 4.2 Number of requests closed where exemption provisions were invoked

Section	Number of requests
13(1)(a)	0
13(1)(b)	0
13(1)(c)	3
13(1)(d)	1
13(1)(e)	2
14	5
14(a)	13
14(b)	5
15(1)	0
15(1) – I.A.*	0
15(1) – Def.*	0
15(1) – S.A.*	0
16(1)(a)(i)	0
16(1)(a)(ii)	0
16(1)(a)(iii)	0
16(1)(b)	0
16(1)(c)	1
16(1)(d)	0
16(2)	9
16(2)(a)	0
16(2)(b)	0
16(2)(c)	7
16(3)	0
16.1(1)(a)	1
16.1(1)(b)	0
16.1(1)(c)	0
16.1(1)(d)	0
16.2(1)	0
16.3	0
16.4(1)(a)	0
16.4(1)(b)	0
16.5	0
16.6	0
17	0
18(a)	2
18(b)	3
18(c)	0
18(d)	2
18.1(1)(a)	0
18.1(1)(b)	0
18.1(1)(c)	0
18.1(1)(d)	0
19(1)	90
20(1)(a)	1
20(1)(b)	45
20(1)(b.1)	0
20(1)(c)	31
20(1)(d)	16
20.1	0
20.2	0
20.4	0
21(1)(a)	59
21(1)(b)	62
21(1)(c)	27
21(1)(d)	4
22	0
22.1(1)	0
23	32
23.1	0
24(1)	0
26	0
* I.A.: International Affairs Def.: Defence of Canada S.A.: Subversive Activities

5. Extensions

6. Fees

In accordance with the changes to the ATIA that came into force on June 21, 2019, CIRNAC may only charge an application fee of $5, as set out in paragraph 7(1)(a) of the Regulations. Pursuant to section 11 of the ATIA, institutions can waive this application fee as deemed appropriate.

With respect to fees collected under the ATIA, the information below is reported in accordance with the requirements of section 20 of the Service Fees Act.

Under the authority of the ATIA, the Department collected a $5 application fee for 268 requests, a total of $1,340 was collected, over the course of the 2021-2022 reporting period (Table 5) and 35 requests waived the applicable fee for a total of $175 not collected. Fees were waived in support of openness and transparency and when requested by Indigenous partners.

Description of Table 6. Fees collected and waived

Table 6. Fees collected and waived

Fees Collected	Fees Waived	Fees Refunded
$1,340.00	$175.00	$0.00

7. Consultations Received from other Institutions and Organizations

The Access to Information and Privacy Directorate, communicates with other departments to inquire on their service standards in order to ensure legislative timelines are met.

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

In 2021-2022, of the 81 consultations completed, 62 consultations or 77% were recommended by the Department for full disclosure (Table 7.2). Seventy-two (72) consultations or 89%, were completed within 120 days of their receipt. There were nine (9) occurrences (11%) where the Department required longer than 120 days to provide a response to their request.

Description of Table 7.2 Consultation and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions

Table 7.2 Consultation and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions

	1 to 15	16 to 30	31 to 60	61 to 120	121 to 180	181 to 365	> 365
Disclose entirely	7	21	18	13	1	1	1
Disclose in part	0	1	2	4	1	1	1
Exempt entirely	0	0	1	1	0	0	0
Exclude entirely	0	0	1	0	0	0	1
Consult other institution	0	1	1	1	0	1	0
Other	0	0	0	0	0	0	1

7.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations outside the Government of Canada

In 2021-2022, the Department received seven (7) new consultation requests from other organizations and a total of six (6) consultations were closed in the course of the same period. Amongst the six (6) responses, two (2) were recommended for full disclosure and four (4) were recommended to be partially disclosed.

Description of Table 7.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations

Table 7.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations

	1 to 15	16 to 30	31 to 60	61 to 120	121 to 180	181 to 365	> 365
Disclose entirely	0	1	1	0	0	0	0
Disclose in part	0	1	0	3	0	0	0
Exempt entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Exclude entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Consult other institution	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Other	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

8. Completion time of Consultations on Cabinet Confidences

In this section, the information provides detailed information on the number of completed consultations during the current reporting period in regards to the application of Section 69 (cabinet confidences) of the Act. It some instances, a file may have required more than one consultation.

9. Complaints and Investigations

The Access to Information and Privacy Directorate has assigned a Team Leader (PM-05) as the Complaint Coordinator. The Complaint Coordinator oversees the processing of complaints with the Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) and briefs the Director and Deputy Director on the progress made on complaints in addition to any issues concerning specific files.

The Director, Deputy Director and the Complaint Coordinator, regularly meet with the OIC. During these meetings, they discuss the progress and status of complaint files and shifting priorities. These meetings have assisted CIRNAC to open the line of communication with the OIC and has also assisted with the closing of numerous complaints during the reporting period.

The annual statistical report requires institutions to identify sections of the Act under complaint (section 32, 30(5) 35 and 37).

• Section 32 captures a new formal complaint from the OIC;
• Section 30(5) captures when a complaint is discontinued or abandoned;
• Section 35 requires the institution to make representations against a complaint to the OIC; and
• Section 37 is the formal finding of the OIC and closure of the complaint.

9.1 Investigations

During the 2021-2022 reporting period, 13 new complaints were registered with the OIC (Table 9.1), 12 are complaints concerning delays in the processing of the files and one (1) is concerning exemptions or exclusions applied on the records. The Department has also received three (3) section 35 letters, where the OIC was seeking formal representations for files under complaint investigation. These sections are not cumulative.

During the reporting period 14 delay complaints were closed, where a total 1,807 pages were reviewed and 926 pages were released. In addition, four (4) complaints were closed concerning exemptions or exclusions applied on the records, 3,044 pages were re-reviewed in response to these complaints. Three complaints were closed, addressing an incomplete search. The ATIP office processed a total of 4,851 pages under complaint during this reporting period. Twenty-one complaints were closed more than the 13 received due to carry over of complaints from previous years.

Description of Table 9.1 Investigation

Table 9.1 Investigation

Section 35 Formal representations	Section 32 Notice of intention to investigate
3	13

10. Court Action

There was no federal court action during this reporting period.

11. Resources related to the Access to Information Act

11.1 Allocated Costs

In 2021-2022, CIRNAC spent a total of $1,161,442 on staffing and goods and services. A consultant was hired to address backlog files. These amounts reflect the level of effort in support of CIRNAC's responsibilities pursuant to the Act (Table 11.1).

Description of Table 11.1 Allocated Costs

Table 11.1 Allocated Costs

Expenditures	Amount
Salaries	$837,902
Overtime	$20,780
Goods and Services	$302,760

11.2 Human Resources

In 2021-2022, CIRNAC allocated a total 7.79 full time employees (FTE), including the services of one consultant, in the course of the reporting period (Table 11.2).

Description of Table 11.2 Human resources

Table 11.2 Human resources

Expenditures	Amount
Full-time employees	6.79
Consultants and agency personnel	1

V. 2021-2022 Points of Interest

The ATIP Directorate located under Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs (CIRNAC) administers the Access to Information Act (ATIA) on behalf of the Department and provides a shared service to Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Departments. This past fiscal year (2021-2022) was the fourth full year of reporting for CIRNAC under the ATIA.

The Department received 303 access to information requests for records and closed 305. It processed 78,694 pages of records under the legislation and carried over 213 files into the new year (2022-2023).

The largest source of access to information requests came from media at 28% followed by the public at 26%.

In addition, 87 requests for consultation were received from other institutions and organizations with a page count of 7,056 that were processed. A further, 230 informal requests were received and completed during this reporting period compared to 111 in 2020-2021.

The majority of exemptions applied pursuant to the ATIA were section 21 (advice and deliberations), followed by section 20(1) (third party information) and finally section 19 (personal information). The exclusion applied the most under the Act was section 69(1) (cabinet confidences) as they generally contained references to records related to funding via Treasury Board Submission or Memoranda to Cabinet.

Extensions requested beyond 30 days were for interference with operations under section 9(1)(a) of the Act due to the volume of requests and pages to be processed.

The Department had received 13 complaints from the Office of the Information Commissioner, but closed 21 and processed 4,851 pages under complaint.

During the fiscal year, the ATIP office also provided recommendations to the sectors concerning proactive disclosures. A total of 32 files were processed and 1,593 pages were reviewed.

A total of 245 CIRNAC employees were trained on their responsibilities under the ATIA and Privacy Act (PA) in 2021-2022.

The ATIP office continuously monitors progress on all ATIA files. Reports are prepared monthly to ensure compliance with legislative timelines. In addition, quarterly reports are also extracted on the Department's performance in meeting legislative time frames and are shared with the senior management table.

CIRNAC spent $1,161,442 and allocated 7.79 full time employees (FTE) on the administration of the ATIA.

In effort to better serve Canadians, ATIP has continued to provide responses to requesters electronically through E-Post Connect and email. The department continues to monitor for new internal procedures options to streamline processes and increase effectiveness. In addition, a consultant was hired to help in reducing backlog files.

Order of Delegation of the Access to Information Act dated January 28, 2021

I, the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, pursuant to section 95 of the Access to Information Act and section 73 of the Privacy Act, hereby delegate the persons holding the positions set out in the Delegation of Authority Schedule attached hereto, or the persons occupying on an acting basis those positions, to exercise the powers, duties and functions of the Minister as head of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, under the provisions of the Act and related regulations set out in the schedule opposite each position. This delegation supersedes all previous delegation orders.

Original document signed on January 28, 2021

The Honourable Carolyn Bennett
Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations

Designation Pursuant to Section 73 of the Access to Information Act

6

Advise requesters that we need additional information to proceed with their request

7(a)

Give written notice to requestor that we can proceed with the request

8(1)

Transfer request to another institution or accept transfer from another institution

9

Extend time limits

10

Refuse to acknowledge or deny the existence of records

11

Charge additional fees

12

Provide access in alternate format

13

Exempt information obtained in confidence

14

Exempt information pertaining to federal-provincial affairs

15

Exempt information pertaining to international affairs and/or defence

16

Exempt information pertaining to law enforcement and investigations

17

Exempt information pertaining to the safety of individuals

18

Exempt information pertaining to the economic interests of Canada

19

Exempt personal information

20

Exempt or disclose third party information

21

Exempt information pertaining to advice, decision-making processes of government plans and positions etc.

22

Exempt information pertaining to testing procedures or audits

23

Exempt information pertaining to solicitor-client privilege

24

Exempt information subject to statutory prohibitions or other Acts of Parliament

25

Sever information

26

Exempt information to be published within 90 days

27(1)(4)

Notify third parties of their rights to provide comments/representations regarding the disclosure of their records

28

Receive third party representations; make a decision as to whether to disclose the record or part thereof; and, notify third party of right to appeal to Federal Court

29(1)

Disclose information on Information Commissioner's recommendation

33

Advise the Information Commissioner of any third-party involvement

35(2)

Make representations to the Information Commissioner during an investigation

37(4)

Release information to complainant

43(1)

Issue a notice to a third party of an application for Court review

44(2)

Issue a notice to an applicant that a third party has applied for Court review

52

Request special rules for hearings

69

Exclude Cabinet Confidences

71

Inspect and exempt information in manuals

72(1)

Prepare Annual Report to Parliament

77

Carry out responsibilities conferred to the Head of the institution by the regulations made under section 77 which are not included in the above

Delegation of Authority Schedule

Please see Access to Information Act for more information on the Access to Information Act.

Designation Pursuant to Section 73 of the Privacy Act

Sections and Powers, Duties or Functions

8(2)

Disclose personal information without the consent of the individual to whom it relates

8(4)

Keep copies of requests made under 8(2)(e), keep records of information disclosed pursuant to such requests and to make those records available to Privacy Commissioner

8(5)

Notify the Privacy Commissioner in writing of disclosure under paragraph 8(2)(m)

9(1)

Retain a record of use of personal information

9(4)

Notify the Privacy Commissioner of consistent use of personal information and update index accordingly

10

Include personal information in personal information banks

11(a)

Publish annually an index of all personal information banks and their respective contents

11(b)

Publish annually an index of all personal information held by the institution which is not part of a bank

14

Respond to request for access, within statutory deadline; give access or give notice

15

Extend time limit and notify applicant

16

Where access is refused

17(2)(b)

Language of access or alternative format of access

17(3)(b)

Access to personal information in alternative format

18(2)

May refuse to disclose information contained in an exempt bank

19(1)

Shall refuse to disclose information obtained in confidence from another government

19(2)

May disclose any information referred to in 19(1) if the other government consents to the disclosure or makes the information pubic

20

May refuse to disclose information injurious to federal-provincial affairs

21

May refuse to disclose information injurious to international affairs and/or defence

22

May refuse to disclose information injurious to law enforcement and investigation

23

May refuse to disclose information injurious to security clearances

24

May refuse to disclose information collected by the Canadian Penitentiary Service, the National Parole Service or the National Parole Board

25

May refuse to disclose information injurious to which could threaten the safety of individuals

26

May refuse to disclose information about other individuals, and shall refuse to disclose such information where disclosure is prohibited under section 8

27

May refuse to disclose information subject to solicitor-client privilege

28

May refuse to disclose information relating to an individual's physical or mental health where disclosure is contrary to the best interests of the individual

31

Receive notice of investigation by the Privacy Commissioner

33(2)

Make representations to the Privacy Commissioner during an investigation

35(1)

Receive the Privacy Commissioner's report of findings of the investigation and give notice of action taken

35(4)

Give complainant access to information after 35(1)(b) notice

36(3)

Receive Privacy Commissioner's report of findings of investigation of exempt

37(3)

Receive report of Privacy Commissioner's findings after compliance investigation where the institution has not complied with sections 4 to 8

51(2)(b)

Request that matter be heard and determined in National Capital Region

51(3)

Request and be given right to make representations in section 51 hearing

72(1)

Prepare Annual Report to Parliament

77

Carry out responsibilities conferred on the Head of the institution by the regulations made under section 77 which are not included above

Delegation of Authority Schedule

Please see Privacy Act for more information on the Privacy Act

Statistical Report on the Access to Information Act

Name of institution: Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada

Reporting period: 4/1/2021 to 3/31/2022