Freedom of Information

Rights to Access Documents

The Western Australian Freedom of Information Act 1992 (FOI Act 1992) gives applicants the right to apply for access to documents held by the Shire of Narrogin. An applicant’s right to seek access cannot be affected by their reason for wishing to obtain access, and there is no need to demonstrate a reason.

The Shire is required to:

  • assist in making an application
  • assist in obtaining access to documents at a reasonable cost and,
  • ensure that personal information captured in documents is accurate, complete, up-to-date and not misleading.

While the Act provides general right of access to documents, it also recognises some documents require a level of protection, specifically those documents that meet the exemption criteria in Schedule 1 of the FOI Act 1992, which includes (but is not limited to):

  • Personal information that identifies a third party
  • Information concerning trade secrets
  • Information of commercial value

Making an Application

  • Apply in writing to the Freedom of Information (FOI) Co-ordinator. 
  • Identify or describe the documents concerned, or if you apply for amendment of personal information about yourself you must provide details to show how or why the agency's records are inaccurate, incomplete, out of date or misleading; If you ask for "everything" on a particular subject, the FOI Co-ordinator may help you narrow the scope of your application to ensure that the work involved is reasonable. Otherwise an agency may refuse to deal with your application.
  • Give an address in Australia where notices can be sent. If possible, include your telephone number/fax number/email address as this will help the FOI Co-ordinator to contact you if necessary, to assist in your application being dealt with efficiently.
  • Lodge your written application with the Shire with any applicable fee payable.

Download a copy of the Shire of Narrogin's Freedom of Information Statement and application form.

FOI Applications can be lodged by mail or email to:

Freedom of Information Co-ordinator
Shire of Narrogin
PO Box 1145
NARROGIN WA 6312

Email:enquiries@narrogin.wa.gov.au

Time Limits

Once the Shire has received a valid application, it is required to provide a Notice of Decision within 45 calendar days. The Shire aims to respond as soon as practicable to any application and will negotiate with the applicant on an extension to the 45 day limit should the application be unusually large or require consultation with a significant number of third parties.

Should the applicant not be satisfied with the decision provided in the Notice of Decision, they have 30 days in which to lodge an Internal Review application. Once the Internal Review application has been received, the Shire has 15 days in which to respond.

Should the applicant still not be satisfied with the outcome of the Internal Review, there is a 60 day period in which to lodge an External Review application with the Freedom of Information Commissioner. The Commissioner will then undertake the review and forward a response within 30 days.

Charges

Applications for documents which are non-personal in nature require a $30 application fee to be paid when the application is lodged.  There may be other charges imposed to cover the administration costs associated with locating documents within the scope of your request.

You can ask the Shire for an estimate of charges when lodging an application.  If the charges are likely to exceed the application fee we must give you an estimate of charges and ask whether you want to proceed with the application.  You must notify the Shire (within 30 days) of your intention to proceed.  In some instances, the Shire may request an advance deposit.  The fees, charges, deposits, and possible reductions are set by the FOI Act and Regulations are listed in full in the FOI Statement.

For further information regarding Freedom of Information visit www.foi.wa.gov.au.