Ref: LEX 73038
Dan Monceaux
Via email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear Dan Monceaux
Your Freedom of Information request – Charges
I refer to your request, dated 27 February 2023 and received by the Department of Climate
Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (Department) on 27 February 2023 for access
under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth) (FOI Act) to a range of documents. Your FOI
request, as revised on 24 March 2023 is as follows:
‘In regards to your recommendation that I rescope my prior request to receive all
documentation and discussion regarding the addition of the Cuttlefish Coast Sanctuary
Zone to the National Heritage List, I wish to narrow the scope to focus exclusively on "all
correspondence to and from stakeholders from the site's nomination through to its
eventual listing.’
Preliminary assessment of the Charge
In accordance with section 29 of the FOI Act, I have decided that you are liable to pay a charge
for the processing of your request. My preliminary assessment of that charge is $364.47
calculated as follows:
Search and retrieval time: 10 hours at $15.00 per hour
$150.00
Decision-making time: $20.00 per hour
Examining pages, redacting and scheduling documents
$248.97
Writing statement of reasons
$65.50
Deduction of 5 hours decision-making time*
-$100.00
TOTAL
$364.4 7
*The FOI Act provides that the first five hours of decision-making time are free of charge and this is reflected in the
calculation.
I am advised that the Department has in its possession 66 documents with 284 pages relevant to
your request.
Required action
If you would like the Department to continue processing your request, you must notify the
Department in writing within 30 days of receiving this notice that you:
agree to pay the charge;
wish to contend that the charge has been wrongly assessed or should be reduced or not
imposed or both; or
T +61 2 6274 1111
John Gorton Building
GPO Box 3090
dcceew.gov.au
F +61 2 9094 2221
King Edward Terrace
Canberra ACT 2601
ABN 63 573 932 849
Parkes ACT 2600
withdraw your request.
If you do not provide a written response in accordance with one of the above options within 30
days of receiving this notification, your request will be taken to have been withdrawn under
section 29(2) of the FOI Act.
Alternatively, you may wish to revise the scope of your request. If you would like to discuss this,
please contact xxx@xxxxxx.xxx.xx for assistance.
Option – pay the charge
As the charge exceeds $100, you are required to pay a deposit of $91.12. You may, of course,
elect to pay the charge in full at this point.
Payment can be made by direct deposit to:
A/C Name:
DCCEEW Departmental Account
Branch:
London Circuit, Canberra
Bank:
Reserve Bank
BSB:
092 009
A/C No.
147762
ABN No:
63 573 932 849
Please include the FOI reference number (LEX-73038) in the subject field, and send an email
with notification of payment to xxx@xxxxxx.xxx.xx as soon as it has been made.
If you are not able to pay by direct deposit, please contact the Department for assistance.
Option – seek reduction or non-imposition of the charge
You may contend that the charge has been wrongly assessed, or should be reduced or not
imposed. Section 29(5) of the FOI Act provides that, in deciding whether to reduce or not to
impose a charge, the decision-maker must take into account any relevant reasons, including
whether payment of the charge, or part of it, would cause you financial hardship, and whether
the giving of access to the documents is in the general public interest or in the interest of a
substantial section of the public.
If you wish to contend that the charge has been wrongly assessed or should be reduced or not
imposed, please set out your reasons and the evidence in support of your reasons as clearly as
possible. If you believe that payment of the charge would cause you financial hardship, please
provide sufficient details of your financial circumstances to enable the decision-maker to make a
well-informed decision in this regard.
Option – withdraw your request
If you wish to withdraw your request you may do so in writing.
Time limits for processing your request
Section 31 of the FOI Act provides that where a notice is sent to an applicant regarding the
payment of a charge in respect of a request, the time limit for processing the request is
suspended from the date the notice is received until either:
the day following payment of the charge (in full or the required deposit); or
if applicable, the day following the notification to the applicant of a decision not to
impose the charge.
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Address for correspondence
Please send all correspondence regarding your FOI request to me at the following address:
FOI Coordinator
Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water
GPO Box 3090
Canberra ACT 2601
Or by email to xxx@xxxxxx.xxx.xx.
Further assistance
If you have any questions, please email xxx@xxxxxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely
Suzi Heaton
Acting Branch Head
Heritage Branch
Heritage, Reef & Ocean Division
30 March 2023
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