Clerks calling for changes to FOI law

Clearview Township clerk Pamela Fettes has joined forces with other municipalities in the region to advocate for changes to a piece of legislation that regulates public access to municipal records.
Fettes presented a lengthy motion to council Dec. 7, which passed unanimously, supporting a number of proposed changes to the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA). The motion was created by a committee of clerks who are lobbying the provincial government to take another look at the Act, saying it is time for a reboot.
The crux of the request for reform is that the Act, passed in 1990, is antiquated and does not take into account advances in technology. Fettes said changes could make the process of requesting information more consistent across the province and hold both the municipality and the requestor accountable.
Among concerns for municipal staff who process the requests, is time and money.
In some cases, when the release of personal information is denied, there may be an appeal, which can be quite costly, and there are only limited fees that can be charged by the municipality for the processing of the information.
For example, Fettes said Clearview has spent $25,000 resolving one appeal in a “highly litigated matter” that has been on the books since 2015. The municipality has only been able to charge $1,035 in processing fees.
The other issue is in regard to frivolous and/or vexatious requests, which are meant to monopolize staff time. Fettes said one person has filed 790 requests since 2011.
Legal advice on requests has caused spikes in costs averaging between $45,000 to $50,000 per year, but going as high as $100,000 one year and $750,000 another, said CAO Steve Sage, adding that doesn’t include the cost of staff time “which is significant but not tracked specifically for freedom of information (FOI) requests.
The committee is also asking that the threshold for what is considered vexatious and frivolous be lowered and take into account abusive language and the harassing nature of the request, and that the person filing can no longer remain anonymous because, they say, the person being asked to release personal information has a right to know who is asking.
Fettes said in some cases, lawyers are filing FOIs for records in order to determine if they will take the municipality to court, essentially putting the municipality at a legal disadvantage, or insurance companies are looking for information about claims.
Fettes said the concerns are shared among many municipalities who are having similar experiences and that is why the committee is taking its “time for change” campaign to the government, professional associations, and is circulating the motion to other councils.