Access to Information Act - CRTC Annual Report - 2018-2019

Introduction

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) is pleased to present its Annual Report to Parliament, in accordance with section 72^{Footnote 1} of the Access to Information Act (the Act). The report describes the activities that support compliance with the Act for the fiscal year commencing April 1, 2018 and ending March 31, 2019.

The Purpose of the Access to Information Act

Section 2 of the Act provides Canadians with a right of access to federal government records under the control of a government institution. The Act further states that it is intended to complement and not replace existing procedures for access to government information, and is not intended to limit in any way access to the type of government information that is normally available to the general public.

CRTC Mandate and Responsibilities

The CRTC is an administrative tribunal within the Government of Canada that is responsible for regulating and supervising Canada’s communication system in the public interest.

The CRTC operates under a number of legislative authorities and Acts of Parliament. These include the following: the CRTC Act, the Bell Canada Act, the Broadcasting Act, the Telecommunications Act, Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) and the Canada Elections Act, which includes provisions that established the Voter Contact Registry (VCR).

At the heart of our mandate is the duty to serve the public interest by putting Canadians at the centre of the communication system. To this end, our role encompasses consulting Canadians on communication issues of importance to them, dealing with the many applications we receive by making decisions and rules, responding to enquiries and complaints, as well as reporting to Canadians on the progress and outcomes of our work. The CRTC promotes and enforces compliance with its regulatory policies and decisions. It encourages and facilitates industry co-regulation and self-regulation through consultations, committees and working groups with various industry stakeholders. The CRTC also plays a key role in resolving industry disputes. Finally, in the current dynamic and evolving communication environment, the CRTC collaborates with various domestic and international stakeholders to leverage capacity and intelligence on a host of interrelated policy issues and questions.

The CRTC delivers its mandate from offices in the National Capital Region and regional offices throughout Canada.

Administration

The CRTC’s Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Office is located within the Information Management section of the Information Management and Information Technologies Directorate. When fully staffed, the CRTC ATIP Office has five indeterminate employees.

The activities of the ATIP Office include:

• receiving and processing requests in accordance with the Act;
• promoting awareness of the Actwithin the Commission;
• preparing the annual reports to Parliament, the annual statistical report and maintaining the Department’s Info Source chapter;
• monitoring Commission compliance with the Act; and
• providing professional advice and guidance to senior management and all Commission staff on the Act.

The ATIP Office uses the AccessPro Case Management system and an imaging and electronic redaction software solution, AccessPro Redaction. The Office works closely with 14 departmental ATIP liaison officers who are appointed by the sectors. The liaison officers are responsible for ensuring that requests tasked to their groups are handled promptly and that relevant records are forwarded to the ATIP Office on time.

Delegation Order

Decision-making responsibility for the application of the various provisions of the Access to Information Act has been formally established and is outlined in the Delegation Order approved by the Chairperson and CEO of the CRTC on September 6, 2017. A copy of the Delegation Order is in Appendix A of this Report.

2018-2019 Statistical Report: Interpretation

Part 1: Requests under the Access to Information Act

1.1 Number of requests

The CRTC ATIP Office carried forward 12 requests from 2017-2018 and received 31 new requests in fiscal year 2018-2019 for a total of 43 requests. The numbers are comparable to the previous reporting year where six requests had been carried forward from 2016-2017 and 36 new requests were received in fiscal year 2017-2018, for a total of 42 requests. The 43 requests processed in the last fiscal year represents an increase from the previous fiscal year of 2.4%. A total of 39 requests were closed and four requests were carried forward to the new fiscal year.

1.2 Source of requests

The three most significant categories of requesters by number of requests received were public with 20; media with five; and academia with four. There was an increase of 25% in the number of requests from the public compared to the previous fiscal year.

1.3 Informal requests

The number of informal requests decreased from the previous fiscal year, with a total of seven informal requests processed in 2018-2019. Informal requests are made on the basis of the posted summaries of the completed requests, which are available on the CRTC website.

Part 2: Requests Closed During the Reporting Period

2.1 Disposition and completion time

Of the 39 requests completed in the reporting period, 13 were closed within 30 days, compared to the previous reporting year when 16 were closed within 30 days. 64% of all requests were closed within the first 60 days, while the percentage last fiscal year was 67%. The 15% of requests that were closed in 181 days or more is indicative of the high volume of records and complexity of files processed by the CRTC during the reporting period, which is explained further in section 2.5 of this report.

With respect to disposition, 31 of the CRTC’s releases were fully disclosed or disclosed in part (79% of the total requests closed). No records existed in response to four requests (10% of the total requests closed), and three requests (8% of the total requests closed) were abandoned. All records were exempted or excluded in response to one request (3%).

2.2 Exemptions

Sections 13 through 24 of the Actset out the specific and limited exemptions that may be applied to protect information pertaining to a particular public or private interest. Section 26 of the Actis an administrative exemption relating to the publication of information.

The CRTC makes every effort to disclose as much information as possible and uphold both the spirit of the Actand the severability provision of section 25. The majority of the exemptions invoked by the CRTC fell under three sections of the Act: subsection 19(1) (mandatory exemption), which protects personal information, was used in 26 different files, paragraph 21(1)(b) (discretionary exemption), which is related to the operations of government, was used in 26 different files and paragraph 20(1)(b) (mandatory exemption), which protects a third party’s information, was used in 22 different files.

2.3 Exclusions

Paragraph 68(a) specifies that the Act does not apply to published material or material available for purchase by the public. Paragraph 68(a) of the Act was invoked in 4 instances in this fiscal year. This number does not include files for which the ATIP Office provided web links to enable the requester to find publically available information related to their request.

Section 68.1 of the Act, removes information relating to journalistic, creative and programming activities held by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) from the coverage of the Act. It protects information about journalistic sources, as well as the creative and programming independence of the CBC. Section 68.1 was invoked in one instance in this fiscal year.

2.4 Format of information released

Of the 39 files completed in 2018-2019, 19 were released in electronic format, and 12 were released in paper format. For eight requests, no records were provided as the requests were either abandoned, generated no results or all records were exempted or excluded.

2.5 Complexity

2.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed

In 2018-2019, the CRTC’s ATIP Office processed 77,365 pages compared to 46,259 pages in the previous reporting period, representing a 67% increase. This increase is significant when taking into consideration the 2.4% increase in the number of processed requests. In 2018-2019, the CRTC disclosed 30% of the processed pages compared to 2017-2018, where 51% of the processed pages were disclosed in the closed files.

The ATIP Office noticed an increasing number of duplicates being provided, which required the analysts to review more pages than necessary and resulted in an increase in time to process the requests. The number of duplicate pages across all closed files was 18,303 which is an increase of 101% compare to the previous year were 9,122 pages were deemed to be duplicates.

In addition, of all the pages received, 29,416 were deemed to be not relevant which represents a 12% increase over the previouus fiscal year where 26,214 pages were determined to be not relevant to the request for which they were received. This is in addition to the 77,365 pages mentioned above.

2.5.2 Relevant pages processed and disclosed by size of requests

Of the 39 requests completed during the reporting period, records were disclosed to the requester in 32 files. Thirteen of the responses contained less than 100 pages. The average page count for the closed requests with disclosure was 2,418 pages with an average disclosure of 731 pages per request. In 2017-2018, the average page count for the closed requests with disclosure was 1,927, highlighting an increase of 26% of pages per file with disclosure.

2.5.3 Other complexities

For the purposes of the report, CRTC’s ATIP Office used the “Other” designation to track the number of requests where a notice of complaint was filed with the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada; a legal opinion was sought; an assessment of fees was undertaken; or a notice pursuant to subsection 28(1)^{Footnote 2} was sent to a third party.

Analysing the table above, we can see an increase in other complexities among the requests. In 2017-2018, 15 files presented other complexities compared to 17 this fiscal year, a 13% increase.

2.6 Deemed refusals

2.6.1 Reasons for not meeting statutory deadline

During the reporting period, three requests were closed past the statutory deadline due to heavy workload. However, 92% of requests were closed on time. This demonstrates the CRTC’s commitment to ensuring timely access to records.

2.6.2 Number of days past deadline

For the three files completed past the legislated timeframe, extensions had been taken. One file took two additional days, another required five additional days, and the third one took 168-days in addition to the extension.

2.7 Requests for translation

There were no requests for translation made during the reporting period.

Part 3: Extensions

3.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

Subsection 9(1) of the Access to Information Act allows the head of a government institution to extend the initial period under the following three circumstances:

• 9(1)(a): large number of records or requires a search through a large number of records and meeting the original time limit would interfere unreasonably with the institution's operations;
• 9(1)(b): consultation is necessary and it cannot be completed within the 30-day statutory deadline;
• 9(1)(c): notice is given to a third party under subsection 27(1) of the Access to Information Act.

3.2 Length of extensions

A total of 43 extensions were taken on requests closed during the reporting period.

On one request, an extension pursuant to 9(1)(b) was necessary as consultations with other government institutions were completed, however no extension was requested. This is contrary to another file, where extensions pursuant to 9(1)(b) and 9(1)(c) were requested, however ended up being unnecessary and the file was processed within the time allowed pursuant to the 9(1)(a) extension.

When requesting an extension beyond 30 days, the ATIP Office notifies the requester as well as the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada (OIC).

Part 4: Fees

The Service Fees Act requires a responsible authority to report annually to Parliament on the fees collected by the institution. With respect to 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.

For the requests received or closed during the reporting period, application fees were collected for 29 requests. During the reporting period fees for 21 requests were directly processed by the CRTC, eight were collected through the TBS online service, including two which were transferred to the CRTC from another department.

In accordance with the Interim Directive on the Administration of the Access to Information Act, issued on May 5, 2016, the CRTC waives all fees prescribed by the Act and Regulations, other than the $5 application fee set out in paragraph 7(1)(a) of the Regulations. The CRTC did not waive any application fees during the reporting period.

The total cost of administering the Act was $223 209.00, as detailed in Part 9 below.

Part 5: Consultations Received from Other Institutions and Organizations

5.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and organizations

The CRTC received 30 new consultations within the reporting period. A total of 521 pages were received and reviewed. No consultation requests were carried over to the next reporting period. This represents a decrease of 19% in the number of requests and a 79% decrease in the number of pages reviewed compared to the previous reporting period.

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

For the majority of consultations, the ATIP Office was able to provide a response within 15 days; the remaining responses were provided within 60 days.

5.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations

No consultations were received from other organizations.

Part 6: Completion Time of Consultations on Cabinet Confidences

No consultations on Cabinet Confidences were necessary during the reporting period.

Part 7: Complaints and Investigations

During the reporting period, six new complaints were received from the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada (OIC) and four complaints from previous years were carried forward. During the reporting period, two complaints were closed and at the end of the reporting period, eight complaints remained open. The CRTC ATIP Office is committed to resolving these complaints.

Part 8: Court Action

The CRTC was not involved in Federal Court cases regarding ATIP during this reporting period.

Part 9: Resources Related to the Access to Information Act

When at full strength, the CRTC ATIP Office is resourced with five indeterminate employees in addition to one part-time employee, two of whom are devoted full-time and three part-time to the administration of the Act. This equates to 4.25 FTEs devoted to activities related to the Act. However, due to unforeseen circumstances and staff turnover, the positions were staffed to an equivalent of 3.3 FTEs for the 2018-2019 fiscal year.

During 2018-2019, the ATIP Office incurred an estimated $223,059 in salary costs for the processing of requests received pursuant to the Act. The ATIP Office also incurred an additional $150 in administrative costs. These costs do not include the resources expended by the program areas of the CRTC to meet the requirements of the Act.

Training

Over the course of the 2018–2019 fiscal year, several training sessions were offered to CRTC employees and management. The ATIP Office held six sessions, three in French and three in English. Approximately 100 of the 450 CRTC employees attended the sessions, which represents 22% of staff. The ATIP Office continues to promote the roles and responsibilities of all CRTC staff relating to the Actand is continuously meeting with individuals to provide one-on-one support.

The CRTC intranet, which is accessible to all employees, includes a section that describes the ATIP Office’s roles and responsibilities and provides information on the Actand related Commission policies and procedures. The ATIP Office is constantly looking for new methods to increase awareness throughout the Commission and is working on an initiative to include items in a weekly news format to all employees.

The ATIP office has also prepared an administrative manual to ensure consistency among the team and to be able to provide to new ATIP analysts.

Policies, Guidelines and Procedures and Initiatives

Info Source is a series of publications containing information on the Government of Canada and on the government’s data collection activities. Info Source is intended to help the public access government information and to exercise their rights under the Privacy Act and Access to Information Act.

Each year, the ATIP Office prepares updates on the CRTC’s activities and information holdings for publication in Info Source, which is published on the Commission’s website. During 2018-2019, the Commission continued to revise its Info Source chapter based on the Strategic Outcomes and Program Alignment Architecture.

The CRTC’s new comprehensive website provides information on the Commission’s policies, its organizational structure and the means to contact Commission officials. In accordance with the federal government’s policy on proactive disclosure, the CRTC’s website also provides access to travel and hospitality expenses, contracts and grants and contributions.

Summary of Key Issues and Actions Taken on Complaints or Audits

Four complaints were carried forward from 2017-2018. One was filed in 2016-2017 and the three others were filed in 2017-2018. In the course of the 2018-2019 reporting period, six additional complaints were received and are waiting for the OIC findings.

The OIC filed two results of findings during the reporting year, both complaints were found to be well-founded. However no actions were required.

Monitoring Compliance

The CRTC is committed to responding to every ATI request completely and in a timely matter. Therefore, the ATIP Office meets as a group weekly to review priorities and any potential issues. In addition, the ATIP Coordinator meets weekly with each of the analysts to review on-time performance and with the Office of the Secretary General to provide a briefing on the status of the open files. In turn, the Office of the Secretary General raises any files of concern at the Direct Reports meeting. This committee includes the Deputy Head and all of the sector heads that report directly to him.

Appendix A: Delegation Order

Access to Information Act Delegation Order

I, the undersigned, Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), pursuant to section 73 of the Access to Information Act*, hereby designate the person or persons holding the position or positions set out in the schedule hereto to exercise and perform the powers, duties and functions of the Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer, as the head of the government institution, under the sections of the Act set out in the attached schedule for each position.

This Delegation Order supersedes all previous Delegation Orders with respect to the CRTC, or any portion thereof.

*R.S.C. 1985, Ch. A-1

Appendix B: Statistical Report

Appendix C: New Exemptions table

New Exemptions Tables