FOI Ref: 202324/14
Grace
e-mail: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear Grace,
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST: ESTIMATE OF CHARGES
I refer to your email of 28 November 2023
(Attachment A) in which you sought access to information
under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).
The
Freedom of Information (Charges) Regulations 2019 (the Regulations) prescribe that charges can
be levied in respect of a request for access to documents. These charges are set out by the Regulations
and are for search and retrieval of documents and decision making.
I am an authorised decision maker under section 23 of the FOI Act, and I have decided that you are
liable to pay a charge in respect of the processing of your request. My preliminary assessment of the
charge is $387.55.
Search and retrieval – $15 per hour
$136.25
• search of relevant ABS holdings
• conversion of documents into a releasable format
Estimated number of hours spent in search and retrieval of documents: 9.08 hours
Decision-making (
after deducting the first five hours which are free of charge) – $20 per $251.30
hour
• time spent by an agency preparing either a schedule of documents or a
recommendation for the authorised decision maker
• examination of relevant pages for decision making (includes exempted pages and
pages released with redactions)
• consultation with other parties
• redacting exempt material
Estimated number of hours required: 12.57 hours (after the first five hours)
TOTAL CHARGE
$387.55
The charges set out in the above table are determined by the Regulations and reflect the work involved
in processing this request.
The charges are not
indicative of the level of access that
may be granted to the documents sought
.
Some documents in scope of your request may be subject to exemptions under the FOI Act, which
may result in the ABS refusing you access to some of the documents.
Locked Bag 10, Belconnen ACT 2616
Telephone: 1300 135 070 | www.abs.gov.au
The Regulations prescribe that where a charge is imposed and the charge exceeds $100.00, a deposit
of up to 25 per cent of the estimated charges may be sought. Based on the preliminary estimate of
charges for your request, which is $387.55, you will be required to pay a deposit of $96.00 before
work on your request commences.
Within 30 days of receipt of this notice you are required to either:
• pay a deposit with the remainder to be paid prior to receipt of documentation.
• pay the charge.
• contend the charge; or
• withdraw your request.
If you fail to notify the ABS in a manner described above within 30 days of receipt of this notice, it
will be taken that you have withdrawn your request.
Options for payment are provided at
Attachment B.
You may contend that the charge has been wrongly assessed or should be reduced or not imposed
(see
Attachment C). In deciding whether to reduce or not to impose a charge, I have discretion to
consider reduction or remission of charges for any reason, including the following reasons:
• the payment of the fee or a part of the fee would cause financial hardship to the applicant or
person on whose behalf the application was made; or
• access is in the general public interest or in the interest of a substantial section of the public.
If you wish to contend the charges, you should give full reasons for doing so.
In accordance with section 31 of the FOI Act, the 30-day limit for processing your request is suspended
from the date of this notice. It resumes on either the day you pay the charge (in full or the required
deposit) or the day on which this agency decides not to impose a charge.
Consistent with the FOI Act, the ABS publishes all documents disclosed in response to FOI requests
(other than personal or business information that would be unreasonable to publish) on the ABS
website.
If you have any queries on this matter please contact the ABS FOI Contact Officer at
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely,
Michael Meagher
Program Manager
Legislative Compliance and Parliamentary Branch
Australian Bureau of Statistics
16/01/2024
ATTACHMENT A
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CAUTION: External email. Do not click links or open attachments unless
you recognise the sender
and know the content is safe
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Dear Australian Bureau of Statistics,
Could I request all documents related to the SA1 Victoria population
projections, created as part of the 2023 redistribution of electorates.
Thanks
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Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Is xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx the wrong address for Freedom of
Information requests to Australian Bureau of Statistics? If so, please contact
us using this form:
https://www.righttoknow.org.au/change_request/new?body=abs
This request has been made by an individual using Right to Know. This message
and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. More
information on how Right to Know works can be found at:
https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/officers
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will be
delayed.
If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web manager
to link to us from your organisation's FOI page.
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Policy & Legislation Section WDB
06/12/2023 01:07 PM
Sent by Angalea Turnbul
Policy & Legislation Section WDB
06/12/2023 01:07 PM
Sent by Angalea Turnbul
Dear Grace,
I refer to your application in which you seek access to documents under the Freedom of Information Act
1982 (FOI Act) (ABS reference FOI 202324/14) regarding:
"al documents related to the SA1 Victoria population projections, created as part of the 2023
redistribution of electorates"
Your request was received by the ABS on 28/11/2023 and the 30 day statutory period for processing
your request commenced from the day after that date.
Upon considering your request and consulting with the relevant area of the ABS that wil be conducting
a search for documents, the ABS is of the view that your request wil take longer than 30 days to
process. Pursuant to section 15AA of the Freedom of Information Act, we seek your approval for up to a
30 day extension of time. This wil enable us to col aborate further with the ABS line areas and ensure a
thorough search has been taken for al documents within the scope of your request. If you agree, the
new due date for your request wil be on or before 27 January 2024.
Before I commence processing your request can you please confirm the following via return e -mail:
1. Whether you agree to the names and contact details of non-Senior Executive public
servants, and the mobile phone numbers of Senior Executive public servants being excluded
from the scope of this request;
2. Where there are a number of drafts of a document, whether you are seeking access to
those drafts, or only the final version of documents (this includes the latest version where
no 'final' version was issued); and
3. Whether you agree to a 30 day extension of time to complete your request.
In order for us to consult with you more directly, it would be beneficial for us to have a mobile number
to contact you on. If agreeable, could you please share your number with your response to this email.
It is ABS policy to impose charges consistent with section 29 of the FOI Act. We we wil inform you of
our decision in this respect once we have conducted a search for documents.
Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns regarding this email.
Kind regards
Angalea Turnbull
Freedom of Information
Policy & Legislation Section | Legislative Compliance & Parliamentary
Australian Bureau of Statistics
(E) xxxxxxx.xxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx (W) www.abs.gov.au
Policy & Legislation Section WDB
11/12/2023 11:11 AM
Sent by Adam Horrigan
Good morning Grace,
We would like to kindly fol ow up on the below email.
Could you please respond to the three questions by COB Tuesday 12 December?
Kind regards,
Adam
Freedom of Information
Policy & Legislation Section | Legislative Compliance and Parliamentary Branch
Australian Bureau of Statistics
-----Original Message-----
From: Grace <xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx>
Sent: Thursday, December 14, 2023 4:52 PM
To: Adam Horrigan <xxxx.xxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx>
Subject: Re: Response due COB Tuesday 12 December: Freedom of Information
request - Victorian Small Area Population Projections [SEC=OFFICIAL]
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CAUTION: External email. Do not click links or open attachments unless
you recognise the sender
and know the content is safe
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Dear Adam Horrigan,
I am happy for all contact details to be expunged.
Final and draft documents would be beneficial, as I am seeking to understand
why the population projections are so bizarrely uniform and if a mistake was
made.
I am fine with a 30 day extension, though I would appreciate a timely response
given the on going redistribution!
Yours sincerely,
Grace
Policy & Legislation Section WDB
03/01/2024 12:30 PM
Sent by Angalea Turnbul
Good afternoon Grace,
The ABS have col ated a large number of documents that may relate to your request.
We note that in your latest correspondence you stated you are "seeking to understand why the
population projections are so bizarrely uniform and if a mistake was made". With the current
scope of your request including 'al documents,' we believe this would include documents that
would not be of assistance to you and cause delays in the ABS' ability to provide you with the
most timely decision. In order to assist us to provide you with the most relevant documents in a
timely manner, could you please clarify the types of documents you are seeking.
Some of the documents from the line areas initial searches include:
Administrative documents created as part of setting up the agreement between the ABS and
AEC
Statistical documentation with the methods and/or processes applied, this includes summary
documents
Data files (these data files are a series of numbers only)
Internal and external email correspondence related to the SA1 Victoria population
projections, created as part of the 2023 redistribution of electorates
As previously mentioned, the ABS may impose charges consistent with section 29 of the FOI
Act. We we wil inform you of our decision in this respect once we have a determined the
documents that remain in scope of your request.
Regards,
Angalea Turnbull
Freedom of Information
Policy & Legislation Section | Legislative Compliance & Parliamentary
Australian Bureau of Statistics
(E)angalea.turnbul @abs.gov.au (W) www.abs.gov.au
Good afternoon Grace,
If you could please provide a response to the request below by 12pm Thursday 11th January, it
would be much appreciated.
Regards,
Angalea Turnbull
Freedom of Information
Policy & Legislation Section | Legislative Compliance & Parliamentary
Australian Bureau of Statistics
(E)angalea.turnbul @abs.gov.au (W) www.abs.gov.au
ATTACHMENT B
Australian Bureau of Statistics Payment Options - FOi
Please complete the following information and return to the FOi Contact Officer:
By email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx
By post:
FOi Contact Officer
Policy and Legislation Section
Australian Bureau of Statistics
Locked Bag 10
Belconnen ACT 2617
Customer Name:
Customer Address:
Option 1: Bank Cheque or Australian Money Order - made out to "Collector of Public Monies"
Attached
7
OR Option 2: Please debit my credit card as follows:
AMEX
VISA
Mastercard
Card Number
I
$
Expiry Date
CCV Number
Total Amount
Name on Card
Signature of card holder
OR Option 3: EFT Payment:
Reserve Bank of Australia
BSB: 093 003
Account No. 317716
Account Name: ABS Official Receipts Account
Reference Code: FOI202324-14
Note: When paying by EFT please use the reference code FOI202324-14 and email a copy of your remittance
advice to: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx
Privacy Statement: Personal information contained on this form that is provided to the ABS will only be used to process the
payment in relation to your freedom of information request, and to provide confirmation and receipt of the payment. The
information will not be used for any other purpose, and will not be disclosed to any third party. You may access and update the
information provided on this form prior the payment being processed, by contacting the ABS Freedom of Information Contact
Officer on: (02) 6252 7203 or by email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx
For information on the ABS' information handling practices please see our privacy policy: www.abs.gov.au\privacy
ATTACHMENT C
ATTACHMENT C: RIGHTS OF REVIEW, WHERE CHARGES IMPOSED
INFORMATION ON RIGHTS OF REVIEW
1. APPLICATION FOR A REDUCTION OR WAIVER OF THE CHARGE
Section 29 of the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the Act) gives you the right to apply to the ABS
to have the charge reduced or waived entirely.
Application for a reduction or waiver of the charge must be made in writing within 30 days of
receiving this letter. You must set out your reasons for contending that the charge has been wrongly
assessed or should otherwise be reduced or waived.
Application for a reduction or waiver of the charge should be emailed to
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx or sent by post to:
ABS FOI Contact Officer
Policy, Legislation and Assurance Section
Australian Bureau of Statistics
Locked Bag 10
BELCONNEN ACT 2617
2. APPLICATION FOR INTERNAL REVIEW OF DECISION
Section 54 of the Act gives you the right to apply for an internal review of the decision to impose a
charge for documents in accordance with your request. The ABS will appoint a new officer to your
review. To the extent possible, the officer will not have been involved in the making of the original
decision. This is to ensure that the review is considered by a fresh, independent and impartial mind.
Application for a review of the decision must be made in writing within 30 days of receipt of this
letter. No particular form is required but it would assist the decision-maker if you could set out in
the application the grounds on which you consider that the decision should be reviewed.
Application for an internal review of the decision should be emailed to
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx or sent by post to:
ABS FOI Contact Officer
Policy, Legislation and Assurance Section
Australian Bureau of Statistics
Locked Bag 10
BELCONNEN ACT 2617
OR
3. APPLICATION TO AUSTRALIAN INFORMATION COMMISSIONER (INFORMATION
COMMISSIONER) FOR REVIEW OF DECISION
Section 54L of the Act gives you the right to seek a review of the decision from the Information
Commissioner. An application for review must be made within 60 days of receiving the decision.
Applications for review must be in writing and must:
• give details of how notices must be sent to you; and
• include a copy of the notice of decision.
You should email your application for review to
xxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx or sent by post to:
The Information Commissioner
Office of the Information Commissioner
GPO Box 5218
SYDNEY NSW 2001
AND/OR
4. COMPLAINTS TO THE INFORMATION COMMISSIONER
Section 70 of the Act provides that a person may complain to the Information Commissioner about
action taken by an agency in the exercise of powers or the performance of functions under the Act.
A complaint to the Information Commissioner must be in writing and identify the agency the
complaint is about. It should be directed to the following address:
The Information Commissioner
Office of the Information Commissioner
GPO Box 5218
SYDNEY NSW 2001
The Information Commissioner may decline to investigate the complaint in a number of
circumstances, including that you did not exercise your right to ask the agency, the Information
Commissioner, a court or tribunal to review the decision.
Document Outline
