Section 68 — Freedom of Information Act 1982: Investigations and complaints—guide

This Part is about investigations by the Information Commissioner and by the Ombudsman. Division 2 sets up a system for investigations by the Information Commissioner. The Information Commissioner may investigate an action taken by an agency in the performance of functions or the exercise of powers under this Act on a complaint from a person, or on the Information Commissioner’s initiative. If a person disputes the merits of an access refusal decision or an access grant decision, this Act provides elsewhere for the review of that decision (see Parts VI, VII and VIIA). However, this does not prevent a person from making a complaint to the Information Commissioner about the way in which the agency has handled the decision. The Information Commissioner has powers to obtain documents, to question persons and to enter premises (see Subdivision D of Division 2). At the conclusion of the investigation, the Information Commissioner must give a notice to the complainant and to the respondent agency about the Information Commissioner’s findings, with any recommendations that the Information Commissioner believes the agency ought to implement (see section 86). If the Information Commissioner is not satisfied that the agency has taken adequate and appropriate action to implement the recommendations, the Information Commissioner may take further steps (see sections 89, 89A and 89B). Division 3 deals with the investigation of complaints by the Ombudsman about action taken under this Act.