Established under Law No. 14 of 2008 on Freedom of Public Information (“2008 Law”), the Information Commission issued its first legal instrument through Regulation No. 1 of 2010 on Standard Public Information Services. The regulation is designed to enable citizens to request access to information from a wide spectrum of ‘Public Institutions,’ but also sets out how information is to be exempted from public disclosure on the basis of certain conditions.
‘Public Institution’ is a term inherited by the aforementioned ‘umbrella regulation,’ Law No. 14 of 2008 on Freedom of Public Information (see ILB No. 814 4/4/2008). The term is widely defined to include:
•
The executive, legislative, and judicial bodies;
•
Any other bodies whose functions relate to the implementation of state-related matters, whose funding is partially or wholly derived from the State or Regional Budgets, or;
•
Any other non-governmental bodies whose funding is partly or wholly sourced from the State or Regional Budgets, public, and / or overseas.
The defined scope of ‘Public Institution’ in this implementing regulation is actually more expansive than the definition in the parent Law; political parties and state- or regionally-owned enterprises can now be included (along with anything else related to state funds). The regulation even provides illustrations and examples of which bodies can be included as a ‘Public Institution’ in Attachment I.
‘Standardized public information services,’ which all Public Institutions must offer, are to be based upon the principle that all individuals are entitled to obtain and scrutinize public information. At the very minimum, public information services consist of two responsibilities:
1.
Publicize Public Information
Information that must be publicized includes, among numerous other things, the Public Institutions’ profile, activities, regulations and decisions.
2.
Provide Public Information Upon Request
Information that must be provided upon request includes any type of information, apart from information ‘that cannot be disclosed,’ which the regulation elaborates.
Additionally, Article 30 of the regulation affords Public Institutions the right to make further arrangements for publicizing information, so long as they are consistent with all prevailing regulations. The minimum standards for a public information service are elaborated in Chapter V of the regulation.
Some types of information - listed in Article 17 of the 2008 Law - can be classified as confidential information, and may be withheld. According to the Law, a ‘test of consequence’ must be performed: the implementing regulations elaborates that if it is decided that providing information will violate Article 17 of the Law, the applicant must be provided with a clear explanation as to why their right to information has been denied. For example, if information is denied on the basis of another regulation prohibiting it (Article 17 (j) of the 2008 Law), the Public Institution must explain the regulation, and point out which part of the regulation prohibits disclosure of the requested information.
Article 18 of the regulation elaborates how requested information can be disclosed if it is partially confidential. The ‘Documentation and Information Management Officer’ in every Public Institution will blur or black-out the confidential information, but must provide explanation for doing so.
An example from the Elucidation of Article 18 (4) of the regulation:
“The information regarding one’s personal bank account XXX name YYY in Bank ZZZ is highlighted in black because of Article 17 (h) of the 2008 Law concerning personal profile.”
Both the 2008 Law and this regulation will take force on 30 April 2010.
Established under Law No. 14 of 2008 on Freedom of Public Information (“2008 Law”), the Information Commission issued its first legal instrument through Regulation No. 1 of 2010 on Standard Public Information Services. The regulation is designed to enable citizens to request access to information from a wide spectrum of ‘Public Institutions,’ but also sets out how information is to be exempted from public disclosure on the basis of certain conditions.
‘Public Institution’ is a term inherited by the aforementioned ‘umbrella regulation,’ Law No. 14 of 2008 on Freedom of Public Information (see ILB No. 814 4/4/2008). The term is widely defined to include:
•
The executive, legislative, and judicial bodies;
•
Any other bodies whose functions relate to the implementation of state-related matters, whose funding is partially or wholly derived from the State or Regional Budgets, or;
•
Any other non-governmental bodies whose funding is partly or wholly sourced from the State or Regional Budgets, public, and / or overseas.
The defined scope of ‘Public Institution’ in this implementing regulation is actually more expansive than the definition in the parent Law; political parties and state- or regionally-owned enterprises can now be included (along with anything else related to state funds). The regulation even provides illustrations and examples of which bodies can be included as a ‘Public Institution’ in Attachment I.
‘Standardized public information services,’ which all Public Institutions must offer, are to be based upon the principle that all individuals are entitled to obtain and scrutinize public information. At the very minimum, public information services consist of two responsibilities:
1.
Publicize Public Information
Information that must be publicized includes, among numerous other things, the Public Institutions’ profile, activities, regulations and decisions.
2.
Provide Public Information Upon Request
Information that must be provided upon request includes any type of information, apart from information ‘that cannot be disclosed,’ which the regulation elaborates.
Additionally, Article 30 of the regulation affords Public Institutions the right to make further arrangements for publicizing information, so long as they are consistent with all prevailing regulations. The minimum standards for a public information service are elaborated in Chapter V of the regulation.
Some types of information - listed in Article 17 of the 2008 Law - can be classified as confidential information, and may be withheld. According to the Law, a ‘test of consequence’ must be performed: the implementing regulations elaborates that if it is decided that providing information will violate Article 17 of the Law, the applicant must be provided with a clear explanation as to why their right to information has been denied. For example, if information is denied on the basis of another regulation prohibiting it (Article 17 (j) of the 2008 Law), the Public Institution must explain the regulation, and point out which part of the regulation prohibits disclosure of the requested information.
Article 18 of the regulation elaborates how requested information can be disclosed if it is partially confidential. The ‘Documentation and Information Management Officer’ in every Public Institution will blur or black-out the confidential information, but must provide explanation for doing so.
An example from the Elucidation of Article 18 (4) of the regulation:
“The information regarding one’s personal bank account XXX name YYY in Bank ZZZ is highlighted in black because of Article 17 (h) of the 2008 Law concerning personal profile.”
Both the 2008 Law and this regulation will take force on 30 April 2010.
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