June 17, 2024
In June 2024, the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner (OIPC) introduced two new forms for use by public bodies to submit time extension requests under section 14 of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIP Act).
The forms can be found on the Forms page of our website here.
The OIPC also developed this guidance entitled the RFTE Practice Note 2024 on how to fill out and use the forms.
These changes align with the OIPC strategic priority, found in our 2024-2027 Business Plan, of enhancing internal processes to support our legislative mandate and to improve timelines. Instead of one form for all time extension requests, our office will be using two forms. One form is for the first request for a time extension. The other form is for any subsequent requests for time extensions for the same file.
The practice note and forms have been revised to support public bodies in providing the information that the Commissioner requires to make decisions under section 14 of the FOIP Act. Prior to this, the required information was generally outlined in the practice note or in the decisions themselves. However, it was not explicitly mentioned on the form.
The new forms prompt the user to 1) provide the required information under section 14 and 2) demonstrate the reasons why the amount of time requested is reasonable in the circumstances.
The decisions made in response to time extension requests will also look different. The information provided in the forms by public bodies will be incorporated into the decisions on the form itself. The public body will fill in the form requesting the time extension and the Commissioner’s decision will appear at the bottom of the form. These changes streamline this process.
Public bodies must now use the new forms to submit time extension requests to our office.
If you have any questions, you may direct them to timeextension@oipc.ab.ca.