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Freedom of information

The Freedom of Information Act 1982 gives people a right to obtain access to information held by Council relating to their personal affairs or to any information about the activities of Maroondah.

Before submitting a FOI request we recommend you contact the Risk and Integrity Officer on 1300 882 233 or foi@maroondah.vic.gov.au for further advice, such as whether there is another way to obtain the information.

What information is available?

Any person has a right to apply for access to documents covered by the FOI Act that are held by Maroondah City Council.

This includes documents:

created by Maroondah City Council
supplied to Maroondah City Council by external organisations or individuals.

You can apply for access to documents:

about your personal affairs, regardless of the age of the documents
other documents held by Maroondah Council, not older than 1 January 1989.

Note: Freedom of Information relates to an actual document which is already in existence.

Do I need to use Freedom of Information to access documents?

Many documents are available outside the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act. In these instances, the request will not be processed under FOI.

Information that you may obtain without an FOI application includes information that is:

released publicly by Council
on a public register
available for a fee.

Please note: If you require documents for a court hearing or litigation, speak to your legal adviser about other methods available to gain access in those circumstances.

What information is not available for release under FOI?

Not all information is automatically available in response to a request for it.

Part IV of the Freedom of Information Act relates to exemptions and describe documents or information that may be refused access. Documents include:

documentation created before 1 January 1989 (although individuals have the right to access their own personal information regardless of its age)
documents made publicly available free of charge or for a fee/other charges
personal affairs of another person
internal working documents
commercially confidential information
information supplied in confidence
documents affecting legal proceedings
documents relating to a closed meeting of Council.

In some cases, you may be refused access to the entire document. Or you may be given access to a partial document with the exempt information deleted.

Personal affairs includes the name, address or any information that is identifiable of somebody other than the applicant. For example, an applicant may wish to know the name and address of a neighbour regarding a complaint - this information would be considered exempt material under Section 33 of the Act and will not be released.

Your application may also be refused if it is considered ‘voluminous in nature’, in that it would interfere unreasonably with the operations or performance of Council.

Costs associated with making an FOI request

Fees associated with FOI requests

The application fee may be reduced or waived for applicants, at the discretion of the FOI officer, if they can provide evidence of financial hardship,

*The application fee is subject to change and is reviewed by the State Government every year. The fee is likely to increase on 1 July each year.

Access charges

Further charges may apply to a request in addition to the application fee. Where this is the case, the applicant will be advised of the estimated additional costs. The application is unable to proceed until the full amount or a deposit is paid. Access charges include:

searching for the documents is $23.90 per hour
supervision of document inspection is $23.90 per hour
photocopying charges - 20c per black and white A4 page (other charges will apply for documents larger than A4 or which are requested in colour)
providing access in a form other than photocopying (electronic)
charge for listening to or viewing a tape
charge for making a written transcript of a recording.