Freedom of Information

In 1991 the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA) came into force for all municipalities and local boards in Ontario. Its two main purposes are:

1) To provide the right of access to the information held by institutions covered by the Act; subject to limited and specific exemptions; and

2) To protect the privacy of individuals with respect to their personal information held by government institutions. The County Clerk's office administers the Act on behalf of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville.

The Act has a number of provisions dealing with the collection, use and disclosure of personal information. To access detailed information about exemptions and procedures relating to the Act or its Regulations, refer to the Ontario Information and Privacy Commissioner's Office www.ipc.on.ca website.

In most cases, it is not necessary to apply under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act to obtain access to Counties' records. Requests for information can generally be made by calling, writing, or visiting the appropriate department office. When it is deemed appropriate, staff may request that a formal MFIPPA request be made.

To request records under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, follow these steps:

Step 1: Complete a Request Form, or write a letter stating you are requesting information under the act. Any clear written request referring to the Act will also be accepted. Include as much detail as you can when you submit your request.

Step 2: Forward the completed request form or letter to the County Clerk. Please note a $5.00 application fee must accompany the form and payment to:

United Counties of Leeds and Grenville
County Clerk
25 Central Ave. W.
Suite 100
Brockville ON K6V 4N6

Usually, a request is processed within 30 calendar days. This means the Counties must either provide access to the requested record or notify you that the information is exempt under the specific provisions of the Act. If the Counties requires a time extension for any reason, you will be notified.

When the Counties must spend time assembling the records responsive to a request, the Act provides for the application of fees. In addition to the $5.00 application fee, the Act provides that costs may apply; however, sometimes the fees can be waived by the Counties.

Costs that may apply are:

Fees

Search time/Record Preparation Charges

A charge may be applied for every hour of manual search time needed to locate a record and/or the time involved in physically severing exempt material in preparation for disclosure

$7.50/minutes/person

Photocopying Charges

$.20/page

Shipping Costs

Shipping charges such as postage or Courier can be applied

Where the Counties collects personal information about individuals, the Act provides that individuals have the right to correct their down personal information if it is in error. This applies only to personal information about you. After access has been granted to personal information, the information has the right to request:

a) Correction of personal information;

b) A statement of disagreement to the attached to the record;

c) Notification of correction or disagreement to be sent to another who received your information within the previous year

The right of correction applies only to personal information to which and individual is provided access.

Again, you must complete a Request Form and remit a $5.00 payment.

The Counties decides whether the correction will be made. Once it has been decided whether or not the information is to be corrected, the County Clerk with notify you. These decisions may be appealed to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner.