Access to information held by the NSW Threatened Species Scientific Committee

If there is no requirement to consult with other people and there is no overriding public interest against disclosure then other information, documents and correspondence relating to the operation of the committee and to the assessment of nominations may be accessed without the need to lodge a formal application.

An informal request may be refused if a large volume of documents is requested.

There are no review or appeal rights to the outcomes of informal requests.

For informal requests, the time will depend on the number and length of documents requested.

The Committee Executive Officer will discuss the estimated time to process the request with the applicant.

First, contact the NSW Threatened Species Scientific Committee Executive Officer on 02 9585 6940 to determine whether the Committee holds the information you are looking for.

Complete the GIPA application form (DOCX 71KB).

Valid applications must be writing and comply with the following requirements:

• include the $30 application fee by cheque or money order (not cash) made out to the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water
• state that it is an access application made under the GIPA Act
• provide an Australian postal address
• provide as much information as possible to help identify the information (the committee's executive officer can help you with this if necessary).

Post your application, including a $30 cheque or money order, to:

Secretariat
NSW Threatened Species Scientific Committee
Locked Bag 5022
Parramatta NSW 1481

The NSW Threatened Species Scientific Committee will review the requested information and consult with other people if necessary. The Committee will determine whether the information can be released.

The Committee must generally disclose information in response to a valid formal access application, but can refuse a request for information:

• if there is an overriding public interest against disclosure, or
• if searching for the requested information would require an unreasonable and substantial diversion of the Committee's resources.

The Committee can take into account any evidence or information that you provide when determining if there is an overriding public interest against disclosure of the information.

Timeframe

You will receive notice of the outcome of your application within 20 working days if consultation with other people is not required, or within 30 working days if consultation with other people is required. Note: Any day during the period declared by the Premier as the Christmas closedown period is not counted as a working day.

If the committee is not able to meet these timeframes, we may seek your agreement to extend the period.

If the NSW Threatened Species Scientific Committee does not give notice of the decision within the statutory or agreed timeframe, the application is deemed to have been refused. Your application will continue to be processed, but your application fee will be refunded and you may seek a review of this deemed refusal. This will not apply if an extension of time has been agreed or payment of an advance deposit is pending.

There is a $30 fee for a formal application and there may be an additional processing charge.

If you are seeking access to personal information about yourself, there is no processing charge for the first 20 hours.

The processing charge may be discounted by 50% where an applicant provides information and supporting documentation demonstrating that they are suffering financial hardship, or where they can demonstrate the information is of special benefit to the public generally.

An advance deposit of up to 50% of the estimated processing charge may be sought – for example, where a large volume of information is sought and/or significant resources are required to process an application. You will have at least 4 weeks in which to pay the advance deposit and the period within which the application is required to be decided stops running until the advance deposit is received by the Committee.

You have a right to request a review of the following decisions:

a. a decision that an application is not a valid access application

b. a decision to transfer an access application to another agency

c. a decision to refuse to deal with an access application (including such a decision that is deemed to have been made)

d. a decision to provide access or to refuse to provide access to information in response to an access application

e. a decision that government information is not held by the NSW Threatened Species Scientific Committee

f. a decision that information applied for is already available to the applicant

g. a decision to refuse to confirm or deny that information is held by the NSW Threatened Species Scientific Committee

h. a decision to defer the provision of access to information in response to an access application

i. a decision to provide access to information in a particular way in response to an access application (or a decision not to provide access in the way requested by the applicant)

j. a decision to impose a processing charge or to require an advance deposit

k. a decision to refuse a reduction in a processing charge

l. a decision to refuse to deal further with an access application because an applicant has failed to pay an advance deposit within the time required for payment

m. a decision to include information in a disclosure log despite an objection by the access applicant (or a decision that the access applicant was not entitled to object).

1. Internal review

You have 20 working days after the notice of a decision has been posted to you to ask for an internal review to be carried out by a more senior officer than the person who made the original decision as if it was a fresh application.

There is a $40 fee for an internal review application (DOCX 32KB) unless the decision has been deemed to be refused because your application was not reviewed in time.

The NSW Threatened Species Scientific Committee must acknowledge your application within 5 working days of receiving it and must decide the internal review within 15 working days. This can be extended by 10 days if the Committee has to consult with a third party, or by agreement with you.

2. External review by the Information Commissioner

If you disagree with any of the decisions listed above, you can ask for a review by the Information Commissioner. You have up to 8 weeks from being notified of the decision to ask for a review by the Information Commissioner.

If you are the person applying for access to information, you do not have to have an internal review of the decision before asking the Information Commissioner to review it.

If you are not the access applicant, you must seek an internal review before applying for a review by the Information Commissioner.

Note: You cannot ask the information commissioner to review a decision that has already been reviewed by the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT).

3. External review by the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal

If you disagree with any of the decisions listed above, you can ask for a review by the Administrative and Equal Opportunity Division of the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT).

You do not have to have the decision reviewed internally, or by the Information Commissioner, before applying for review by NCAT.

You have up to 8 weeks from being notified of the decision to apply to NCAT for review. However, if you have applied for review by the Information Commissioner, you have 4 weeks from being notified of the Information Commissioner's review outcome to apply to NCAT.

If you receive information as a result of a formal application and the NSW Threatened Species Scientific Committee believes that information may of interest to other members of the public, the Committee ordinarily records it in the 'disclosure log'. The disclosure log is publicly available on the Committee's website.

You can object to information being included in the disclosure log if it includes:

• personal information about you or about a deceased person that you personally represent
• information that concerns your business, commercial, professional, or financial interests or research undertaken.

More information about the GIPA Act can also be found at the Information and Privacy Commission website.