Municipal freedom of information and protection of privacy act bc

Part 1 — Introductory Provisions

Definitions

1 Schedule 1 contains definitions of terms used in this Act.

Purposes of this Act

2 (1) The purposes of this Act are to make public bodies more accountable to the public and to protect personal privacy by

(a) giving the public a right of access to records,

(b) giving individuals a right of access to, and a right to request correction of, personal information about themselves,

(d) preventing the unauthorized collection, use or disclosure of personal information by public bodies, and

(e) providing for an independent review of decisions made under this Act.

(2) This Act does not replace other procedures for access to information or limit in any way access to information that is not personal information and is available to the public.

Application

3 (1) Subject to subsections (3) to (5), this Act applies to all records in the custody or under the control of a public body, including court administration records.

(2) Part 3 applies

(a) to all employees, officers and directors of a public body, and

(b) in the case of an employee that is a service provider, to all employees and associates of the service provider.

(3) This Act does not apply to the following:

(a) a court record;

(i) a judge of the Court of Appeal, Supreme Court or Provincial Court,

(ii) an associate judge of the Supreme Court, or

(iii) a justice of the peace;

(d) a record relating to support services provided to a judge of a court referred to in paragraph (b) (i);

(e) a personal note, communication or draft decision of a person who is acting in a judicial or quasi-judicial capacity;

(f) a record that is created by or for, or is in the custody or under the control of, an officer of the Legislature and that relates to the exercise of functions under an Act;

(g) a record that was created by or for the auditor general under the Auditor General for Local Government Act and that relates to the exercise of functions under that Act;

(h) a record of a question or answer to be used on an examination or test;

(i) a record containing teaching or research materials of

(i) a faculty member, as defined in the College and Institute Act and the University Act, of a post-secondary educational body,

(ii) a teaching assistant or research assistant employed at a post-secondary educational body, or

(iii) another person teaching or carrying out research at a post-secondary educational body;

(j) a record placed in the archives of a public body, or the digital archives or museum archives of government, by or for a person or agency other than a public body;

(k) a record relating to a prosecution if not all proceedings in respect of the prosecution have been completed;

(l) a record of a service provider that is not related to the provision of services for a public body.

(4) Despite subsection (3) (f), in respect of a record that is created by or for, or is in the custody or under the control of, an officer of the Legislature and that relates to the exercise of functions under an Act, the following sections apply to the officer of the Legislature, including all employees of the officer of the Legislature and, in the case of an employee that is a service provider, all employees and associates of the service provider:

(a) section 25.1 [unauthorized collection, use and disclosure of personal information prohibited] as it relates to unauthorized disclosure of personal information;

(b) section 30 [protection of personal information];

(d) section 30.5 (2) [notification of unauthorized disclosure];

(e) section 33 [disclosure of personal information];

(f) section 33.1 [disclosure outside of Canada];

(g) section 65.3 [offence to wilfully evade access provisions];

(h) section 65.4 [privacy offences];

(i) section 65.5 [corporate liability];

(j) section 65.6 [penalties].

(4.1) Despite subsection (3) (g), in respect of a record that was created by or for the auditor general under the Auditor General for Local Government Act and that relates to the exercise of functions under that Act, the sections listed in subsection (4) (a) to (j) of this section apply to a public body, including all employees, officers or directors of the public body and, in the case of an employee that is a service provider, all employees and associates of the service provider, that has the record in its custody or under its control.

(5) Part 2 does not apply to the following:

(a) a record that is available for purchase by the public;

(b) a record that does not relate to the business of the public body;

(i) is generated by an electronic system, and

(ii) describes an individual's interaction with the electronic system;

(d) an electronic record that has been lawfully deleted by an employee of a public body and can no longer be accessed by the employee.

(6) This Act does not limit the information available by law to a party to a proceeding.

(7) If a provision of this Act is inconsistent or in conflict with a provision of another Act, this Act prevails unless the other Act expressly provides that it, or a provision of it, applies despite this Act.