Our Ref: FOI-2025/0929163115
2 October 2025
By email: Bing Crosby <
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx >
Dear Bing Crosby
Request for documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth)
1. I refer to your email to the Australian Human Rights Commission
(Commission) dated 26 September 2025 making a request under the
Freedom
of Information Act 1982 (Cth) (FOI Act). You requested:
Please release the number of complaints under the australian human rights
commission act refused lodgement from 1 january 2025 to 30 june 2025 and
the total number of complaints for race discrimination, sex discrimination,
and age and disability
2. I confirm that I am an officer authorised under s 23(1) of the FOI Act to make
decisions in relation to Freedom of Information requests.
Searches and outcomes
3. The information you have requested is not contained in pre-existing
Commission documents, but rather requires us to search the Commission’s
electronic complaints database and produce a document containing the
information therefore I am treating your request as a request under s 17 of
the FOI Act which provides:
Requests involving use of computers etc.
(1) Where:
(a) [a valid FOI request is made];
(b) it appears from the request that the desire of the applicant is
for information that is not available in discrete form in written
documents of the agency; and
(ba) it does not appear from the request that the applicant wishes to
be provided with a computer tape or computer disk on which
the information is recorded; and
Australian Human Rights
GPO Box 5218
General enquiries
1300 369 711
Commission
Sydney NSW 2001
National Info Service
1300 656 419
ABN 47 996 232 602
www.humanrights.gov.au
TTY
1800 620 241
Australian Human Rights Commission
(c) the agency could produce a written document containing the
information in discrete form by:
(i) the use of a computer or other equipment that is ordinarily
available to the agency for retrieving or col ating stored
information; or
(ii) the making of a transcript from a sound recording held in
the agency;
the agency shall deal with the request as if it were a request for access to
a written document so produced and containing that information and,
for that purpose, this Act applies as if the agency had such a document in
its possession.
4. I asked the Investigation and Conciliation Section, who manage complaints,
to search the electronic complaints database for this information and
provide me with the numbers.
Decision
5. The information you have requested is as follows:
• 3 unlawful discrimination complaints refused between 1 January 2025 to
30 June 2025
• 1417 unlawful discrimination complaints accepted between 1 January
2025 to 30 June 2025
Avenues of review of my decision
6. If you are dissatisfied with my decision or the searches conducted to locate
information and documents related to your request, you may apply for:
• internal review, or
• Information Commissioner (IC) review,
of my decision. We encourage you to seek internal review as a first step as it
may provide a more rapid resolution of your concerns.
A.
Internal review
a. Under s 54 of the FOI Act, you may apply for an internal review of
my decision by writing to the Commission within 30 days of the date
of this letter stating the reasons why you believe a review of the
decision is necessary.
2
Australian Human Rights Commission
b. The internal review wil be carried out by another FOI officer within
30 days.
B.
Information Commissioner Review
a. Under s 54L of the FOI Act, you may apply to the Information
Commissioner to review my decision.
b. An application for review by the Information Commissioner must be
made in writing within 60 days of the date of this letter.
c. You may lodge an application for review by the Information
Commission in one of the fol owing ways:
Online:
Information Commissioner Review Application Form
Email:
xxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx
Post:
GPO Box 5288, Sydney NSW 2001
d. You may visit the Office of the Australian Commissioner website for
more information about a review by the Information Commissioner.
Yours sincerely,
Lara Renton
Acting General Counsel
T +61 2 9284 9865
E xxxx.xxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
3
