Our reference: FOI 21/22-0246
GPO Box 700
Canberra ACT 2601
1800 800 110
ndis.gov.au
20 October 2021
L Wroblewski
By email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear L Wroblewski
Freedom of Information request — Notification of Decision
Thank you for your correspondence of 6 September 2021, in which you requested access
under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) to documents held by the National
Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).
The purpose of this letter is to provide you with a decision on your request.
Scope of your request
You have requested access to documents about the National Disability Insurance Scheme
(NDIS). Specifical y, you requested access to:
“…all emails, directives, documents and other notes from the CEO to all delegates
regarding supports in participants plans, since the operation of the Sustainability Action
Task force.”
On 5 October 2021, the FOI Team sent you correspondence seeking a 14 day extension of
time to process your request for information under section 15AA of the FOI Act. On 6 October
2021, you agreed to this extension of time request.
Decision on access to documents
I am authorised to make decisions under section 23(1) of the FOI Act. My decision on your
request and the reasons for my decision are set out below.
The CEO has not sent any emails, directives, documents or notes to all delegates regarding
participant plans. This means that I did not identify any documents that fall within the scope
of your request. However, I have decided to provide access to two documents that you may
find relevant, and are of a similar nature to those you have requested. These documents are
an email from the CEO to all staff about a new Instrument of Delegation, and the Instrument
of Delegation. The Instrument of Delegation is a document in which the CEO delegates
powers to specified officers in relation to various tasks, including approving supports in
participant plans.
These documents were identified during the course of searching for documents that may fall
within the scope of your request, by conducting searches of NDIA’s systems, using all
reasonable search terms that could return documents relevant to your request, and
consulting with relevant NDIA staff who could be expected to be able to identify documents
within the scope of the request.
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I have decided to grant access to these two documents in full.
In reaching my decision, I took into account the following materials:
• your correspondence outlining the scope of your request
• the nature and content of the documents relevant to the scope of your request
• the FOI Act
• the FOI Guidelines
• consultation with relevant NDIA staff
• the NDIA’s operating environment and functions.
Access to edited copies with exempt or irrelevant material deleted (section 22)
I have identified that the documents I am releasing contain material that is irrelevant to your
request. The irrelevant material relates to names and contact details of NDIA staff, and
information that is not in relation to supports in participant plans.
In accordance with section 22 of the FOI Act, I have considered whether it is possible to
delete the irrelevant material from the documents and have concluded that it is reasonably
practicable to do so. Accordingly, I have prepared an edited copy of the documents with the
irrelevant material redacted, and the irrelevant pages removed.
Release of documents
The documents for release, as referred to in the Schedule of Documents at
Attachment A,
are enclosed.
Rights of review
Your rights to seek a review of my decision, or lodge a complaint, are set out at
Attachment B.
Should you have any enquiries concerning this matter, please do not hesitate to contact me
by email at
xxx@xxxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely
Carolyn
Assistant Director FOI
Parliamentary, Ministerial & FOI Branch
Government Division
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Attachment A
Schedule of Documents for FOI 21/22-0246
Document
Page
Description
Access Decision
Comments
number
number
1
1-2
Instrument of Delegation 2 of 2021
FULL ACCESS
Irrelevant material and pages
removed under section 22 of
Dated: 23 June 2021
the FOI Act.
2
3-5
Email, CEO Update
FULL ACCESS
Irrelevant material and pages
removed under section 22 of
Dated: 25 June 2021
the FOI Act.
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Attachment B
Your review rights
Internal Review
The FOI Act gives you the right to apply for an internal review of this decision. The review
wil be conducted by a different person to the person who made the original decision.
If you wish to seek an internal review of the decision, you must apply for the review, in
writing, within 30 days of receipt of this letter.
No particular form is required for an application for internal review, but to assist the review
process, you should clearly outline your grounds for review (that is, the reasons why you
disagree with the decision). Applications for internal review can be lodged by email to
xxx@xxxx.xxx.xx or sent by post to:
Freedom of Information Section
Parliamentary, Ministerial & FOI Branch
Government Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
GPO Box 700
CANBERRA ACT 2601
Review by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
The FOI Act also gives you the right to apply to the Office of the Australian Information
Commissioner (OAIC) to seek a review of this decision.
If you wish to have the decision reviewed by the OAIC, you may apply for the review, in
writing, or by using the online merits review form available on the OAIC’s website at
www.oaic.gov.au, within 60 days of receipt of this letter.
Applications for review can be lodged with the OAIC in the following ways:
Online:
www.oaic.gov.au
Post:
GPO Box 5218, Sydney NSW 2001
Email:
xxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx
Phone:
1300 363 992 (local call charge)
Complaints to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner or the
Commonwealth Ombudsman
You may complain to either the Commonwealth Ombudsman or the OAIC about actions
taken by the NDIA in relation to your request. The Ombudsman wil consult with the OAIC
before investigating a complaint about the handling of an FOI request.
Your complaint to the OAIC can be directed to the contact details identified above. Your
complaint to the Ombudsman can be directed to:
Phone: 1300 362 072 (local call charge)
Email:
xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Your complaint should be in writing and should set out the grounds on which it is considered
that the actions taken in relation to the request should be investigated
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