NSW Information Commissioner releases the findings from research into the informal release pathway to celebrate Open Government Week 2023

In celebration of Open Government Week 2023, the NSW Information Commissioner published the results from research into the informal release pathway and a compliance audit into the informal release practices of NSW public sector agencies. The compliance audit made several key findings: Overwhelmingly, 83% of informal requests recorded by agencies resulted in information being released. 53% of agencies did not have a documented policy/procedure policy for dealing with informal access requests that was available to staff making decisions on informal applications 58% of agencies did not provide a written outcome to the applicant who requested information 58% of agencies do not have a fixed timeframe for responding to informal access requests. 47% of the agencies indicated that they monitor trends in informal access requests to identify what could be released proactively. Interestingly, the research also found that in general agencies are aware of and using the legislation to release information […]