Department of Communities and Justice | Legal 
Locked Bag 4028, Ashfield NSW 2131 
Tel 02 9716 2662 l E xxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xxx.xx 
www.facs.nsw.gov.au 
 
22 October 2019 
 
 
 
Mr George Ha 
 
BY EMAIL: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx 
 
 
Our Ref: GIPA19/1134 
 
 
Dear Mr Ha 
 
Informal Request for Information  
 
I refer to your Informal Request for Information that you lodged under section 8 of the 
Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009  (the  GIPA  Act),  where  you 
requested a copy of: 
 
1.  How many advocates/investigators are employed by the Tenant Fraud              
Unit? 
2. What was the budget of the Tenant Fraud Unit for the latest financial year? 
3. How many investigations are currently being carried out? 
4. How many investigations have been running over 12 months? 
5. What was the total value of reassessments due to findings of fraud or non-
disclosure for the latest financial year? 
 
Your  application  was  received  by  the  Department  of  Communities  and  Justice 
(formerly  the  Department  of  Family  and  Community  Services/Justice  and  hereafter 
referred to as the department) on 10 October 2019. 
 
Please be advised that I have decided to decline your informal request for information 
as it would take in excess of 2 hours to process, which is outlined in the department’s 
Right to Information policy.  Attached is a copy of our Right to Information policy on the 
informal release of information. 
 
Further, in accordance with section 8(3) of the GIPA Act, the department has no legal 
obligation  to  consider  your  informal  request  for  the  release  of  information,  and  this 
decision is not reviewable under Part 5 of the GIPA Act. 
 
However, in accordance with section 9(1) of the GIPA Act, I would advise you to lodge 
a formal access application with the department where you have a legally enforceable 

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right  to  obtain  information,  unless  there  is  an  overriding  public  interest  against 
disclosure of the subject information. 
 
For  your  convenience,  I  have  attached  a  Formal  Access  Application  form  for  your 
completion,  if  you  wish  to  proceed.  Alternatively,  you  can  apply  online  at 
www.facs.nsw.gov.au. 
 
If you have any questions or concerns in relation to this matter, please contact me on 
telephone (02) 8753 8146. 
 
 
Yours sincerely 
 
Juliet Butterworth 
 
Juliet Butterworth 
Right to Information Officer 
Open Government, Information and Privacy 
Department of Communities and Justice 
 
 

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