If not delivered return to PO Box 7820 Canberra BC ACT 2610
16 August 2017
Our reference: LEX 31257
Mr Jackson Gothe-Snape
By email only:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx Dear Mr Gothe-Snape
Your Freedom of Information request
I refer to your request dated 8 August 2017, and received by the Department of Human
Services (
department) on the same day, for access under the
Freedom of Information Act
1982 (
FOI Act).
I cannot identify the documents you want and I am asking you to give me specific details
about the information you are after. If you decide not to give this information, I will have to
refuse your FOI request as a 'practical refusal reason' exists. For a more detailed explanation
of what this means see
Attachment A.
How to send us a 'revised request'
Before I make a final decision on your request, you can submit a revised request.
Within the next 14 days (consultation period) you must do one of the following, in writing:
withdraw the request
make a revised request, or
tell us that you do not want to revise your request.
If you do not contact us during the consultation period, we will assume you do not want to
continue with your request. See
Attachment A for relevant sections of the FOI Act.
If you decide to make a revised request you should be specific about what documents you
are seeking. This could help the department find the documents.
We have 30 days to give you a decision about your request, however the time taken to
consult with you now is not included in this 30 day time period.
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Contact officer
I am the contact officer for your request. During the consultation period you are welcome to
ask for my help in revising your request and filling out the form. You can contact me:
in writing to the address at the top of this letter
via email t
o xxx.xxxxx.xxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Note: When you contact us please quote the reference number
FOI LEX 31257.
Your response will be expected within 14 days of this letter.
If no response is received, your
matter will be taken as withdrawn.
Department of Finance and the Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority
Please note that the Department of Finance regularly published reports on Parliamentarian’s
Expenditures. For example, you can access the Minister Tudge’s expenditure reporting for
the period of 1 July 2016 – 31 December 2016 here:
http://www.finance.gov.au/sites/default/files/P39_TUDGE_Alan.pdf.
Future reports will be published by the Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority
(
IPEA). The IPEA is the Commonwealth statutory authority, established on 1 July 2017, with
responsibility for reporting and auditing parliamentary travel and work expenses.
Accordingly, you may wish to withdraw your request on the basis of this publically available
information.
Further assistance
If you have any questions please email
xxx.xxxxx.xxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely
Bruce
Authorised FOI Decision Maker
Freedom of Information Team
FOI and Litigation Branch | Legal Services Division
Department of Human Services
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Department of Human Services
Attachment A
What I took into account
You requested access under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act) to the
following documents:
‘Can you please provide the travel expenses, invoices, receipts, credit card
statements and reimbursements for the most expensive trip taken by a Minister or
Assistant Minister in your Department's portfolio area in 2016-17.’
I am not able to reasonably identify what documents you want because it is not clear what
you mean when you refer to ‘trip’ or ‘most expensive’:
Trip could refer to a single journey with a single destination or it could refer to an
overall itinerary with multiple destinations. In addition, it is not clear whether you are
referring to trips undertaken in the Minister’s personal capacity, in his capacity as the
Federal Member for Aston, or in his capacity as the Minister for Human Services; and
Expense may have several different meanings in budget contexts. For example,
‘expense’ could relate to the cost in terms of distance travelled, man-hours, wages,
supplies, meals or office fees. In addition, it is not clear whether you are seeking the
expenses relating only to the Minister or whether you are including circumstances
where departmental staff members travelled with the Minister.
Furthermore, I also note that it is likely that your request would also be voluminous, even if
the meaning of ‘trip’ and ‘most expensive’ was clearly identified. For example, in order to
process the request, the department would be required to review every journey taken by the
Minister, identifying and calculating all relevant costs and then determining which of the trips
were in scope of your request.
Under sections 24AA(1)(b) and 24 of the Freedom of Information Act, I intend to refuse your
FOI request as a 'practical refusal reason' exists. Under the Act, the practical refusal reason
is that your request does not satisfy the requirements in paragraph 15(2)(b) (identification of
documents).
Relevant sections of the Freedom of Information Act 1982
Section 24AA(1)(b) of the FOI Act provides that a practical refusal reason exists in relation to
a request for a document if the request does not satisfy the requirement in section 15(2)(b) of
the FOI Act.
Section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act provides that a request must provide such information as is
reasonably necessary to enable the agency to identify the documents that are being
requested.
Section 24AB(7) of the FOI Act provides that the request is taken to have been withdrawn
under at the end of the consultation period if:
the applicant does not consult the contact person during the consultation period in
accordance with the notice, or
the applicant does not do one of the things mentioned in subsection (6) before the
end of the consultation period.
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Department of Human Services
Section 24AB(7) (subsection 6) says that the applicant must, before the end of the
consultation period, do one of the following, by written notice to the agency or Minister:
withdraw the request,
make a revised request, or
indicate that the applicant does not wish to revise the request.
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Department of Human Services
