Principal Registry
Our ref:
2020/0144; 2020/0145;
2020/0146; and 2020/0147
Your ref:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx;
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx;
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx;
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
8 January 2021
Mr John Smith
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx;
Dear Mr Smith
Re: Notice of combining requests
Notice that you are liable to pay a charge and preliminary charge estimate
I refer to my letter of 24 December 2020.
I am an officer authorised under section 23(1) of the
Freedom of Information Act 1982
(FOI Act) to make decisions in relation to FOI requests.
As foreshadowed in that letter, I write to advise you that the AAT considers the request
numbers 2020/0144; 2020/0145; 2020/0146; and 2020/0147 all lodged 14 December
2020 to be about the same subject matter and has decided to combine them into a
single request under section 24(2) of the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).
The purpose of this letter is to notify you that you are liable to pay a processing charge
for the combined requests 2020/0144; 2020/0145; 2020/0146; and 2020/0147 and to
advise you of the estimate of that charge.
Preliminary estimate of charge
In accordance with section 29 of the FOI Act and the
Freedom of Information Charges
Regulations 1982, my preliminary assessment of the charge you are liable to pay is
$5,421.
Level 6, 83 Clarence St
T: 1800 228 333 or 02 9276 5000
National Relay Service
SYDNEY NSW 2000
F: 02 9267 5538
www.relayservice.gov.au
GPO Box 9955 Sydney NSW 2001
E: xxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx
ABN 90 680 970 626
www.aat.gov.au
Basis for preliminary estimate
As these requests are identical to the requests that were previously combined into
request number 2020/0016, except that they do not include specific Launch recruitment
contracts and policies, assuming you narrow the requests in the same way, it is likely
that the amount of time involved in processing the combined requests will be similar to
that estimated and notified to you in the AAT’s letter of 19 March 2020. Consequently, I
have based this charge estimate on the calculations in that letter.
A copy of the AAT’s letter to you dated 19 March 2019 is attached and it explains how
an estimate of $6,218 was arrived at.
I note that following comment by you, the AAT informed you of a final charge decision
on 18 May 2020. The final amount of the charge was $6,023.
To take into account the fact that you do not seek copies of specific Launch recruitment
contracts and policies in this request, I have reduced the charge estimate previously
notified to you by 10%. This is because I estimate ten percent of the documents would
have been policies. While you no longer request specific Launch recruitment contracts,
these documents still fall within the scope of request 2020/0145 and so will need to be
part of the processing of this request in any event.
The result is that the preliminary charge estimate for the combined requests 2020/0144;
2020/0145; 2020/0146; and 2020/0147 is $6,023 less $602 , that is
$5,421.
Your right to contend the charge
Under the FOI Act, you have the right to contend that the charge:
• has been wrongly assessed, or
• should be reduced, or
• should not be imposed.
In deciding whether a charge should be reduced or not imposed, the decision maker in
our agency must consider:
• whether payment of the charge, or part of it, would cause you financial hardship
• whether giving access to the documents is in the general public interest or in the
interest of a substantial section of the public
• any other relevant matter.
Payment of a deposit
As the charge exceeds $100, a 25% deposit of
$1,355 wil be sought if the charge is
imposed.
PAGE 2 OF 3
The deposit is not refundable except in some limited circumstances for example, if the
AAT fails to make a decision on your request within the statutory time limit or may be
refundable in part if the final charge is less than the deposit paid.
Should you decide to pay the charge, please contact us regarding the method of
payment.
The time you have to respond and what you need to do
You have 30 days to respond in writing to this notice. We therefore expect a response
from you by
8 February 2021. By that date, you must do one of the following things in
writing:
•
agree to pay the charge (this wil mean that you wil not be entitled to access
the requested documents until the full charge is paid)
•
contend that the charge has been wrongly assessed, or should be reduced
or not imposed and explain your reasons
•
withdraw your request.
Please send your response to xxx@xxx.xxx.xx
If you do not provide us with a writ en response by
8 February 2021 your request wil be
taken to have been withdrawn.
Questions about this notice
If you have any questions or wish to discuss this notice with us, please contact me by
return email.
Please note that the matters raised in the AAT’s letter of 24 December 2020 remain
under consideration.
Yours sincerely,
Sandra Koller
Director - Legal and Policy
PAGE 3 OF 3
