Freedom of Information - FOI and Access to the Environment
Freedom of Information
The FOI Act provides that every person has the following new legal rights:
• the right to access official records held by Government Departments or other public bodies listed in the Act;
• the right to have personal information held on them corrected or updated where such information is incomplete, incorrect or misleading; and
• the right to be given reasons for decisions taken by public bodies that affect them.
Therefore people can seek access to personal information held on them - no matter when the information was created - and to other records created after 21 April, 1998.
For further information visit the official Freedom of Information website at https://foi.gov.ie/
What information is available?
Any official information held by public bodies can be sought under the Act. However, the Act provides that in some circumstances certain types of information are exempt from release. Examples include records relating to Government meetings, law enforcement and security, confidential and commercially sensitive information.
How to make a FOI request?
Requests should be submitted in writing along with an application fee, if applicable, (see below) to:
FOI Officer
Dublin West Education Support Centre
Old Blessington Road
Tallaght
Dublin 24
D24 PX58
E-mail:
What fees apply to making a request?
There is no application fee if your request is for personal information only (unless there is a significant number of records involved). If your request is for a record containing non-personal information charges of €20 per hour are applied for search and retrieval of records. A charge of 4c per sheet applies to photocopying and €10 for a CD-ROM containing a copy of the documents.
There is a minimum threshold of €101 below which no search, retrieval and copying fees can be charged.
Once the charge reaches €101, full fees apply;
There is a cap on the amount of search, retrieval and copying fees that can be charged of €500;
There is a further upper limit on estimated search, retrieval and copying fees at €700 above which an FOI body can refuse to process a request, unless the requester is prepared to refine the request to bring the search, retrieval and copying fees below the limit;
How do I appeal a decision made?
If you are not satisfied with the response you have received or if you feel that a proposed charge for search/retrieval or copying of records is excessive you can appeal for an internal review of the decision. Someone more senior than the original decision-maker will undertake the internal review. The reviewer can change or agree with the original decision. There is a fee of €30 (€10 for medical card holders and their dependants) for applications for internal reviews of FOI requests.
If you are unhappy with the decision of the internal reviewer, you have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner at:
Office of the Information Commissioner
18 Lower Leeson Street, Dublin 2
Phone: (01) 6395689 or 1890 223030
Fax (01) 6395674 e-mail:
There is an application fee of €50 (€15 for medical card holders and their dependants) for application for review to the Information Commissioner. There is no charge for an application for review to the Information Commissioner of a decision relating to the requester's personal information or a decision to charge fees.
Access to Information on the Environment (AIE)
Under the European Communities (Access to Information on the Environment) Regulations 2007 (as amended), you have the right to obtain certain environmental information from the Dublin West Education Centre. The AIE legislation sets out the procedures for public access to information relating to the environment held by public bodies and other groups that fall under this legislation. To make a request under AIE legislation, please send it in writing to:
FOI Officer
Dublin West Education Support Centre
Old Blessington Road
Tallaght
Dublin 24
D24 PX58
Email:
In making your request, please:
• Specify that you are making the request under AIE legislation and clearly state the environmental information that you are requesting
• Try to provide as much detail as possible to enable us to process your request efficiently
• Include your return address
You will receive a response within one month from the date on which the request is received by Dublin West Education Centre.
Disclaimer/Note: Please be advised that AIE requests may be refused on certain mandatory grounds (personal information/third party information) or discretionary grounds (commercial confidentiality etc).
Charges:
There is no initial fee for making and AIE request. The Regulations do, however, provide that a public body may charge a reasonable fee for search and retrieval and the copying of records when it makes available environmental information in accordance with the Regulations. This fee will be calculated upon receipt of a request and is dependent on the volume of work involved in compiling information where it has not been previously available in an accessible format. This fee has been set as €20.95 per hour. If requesters require hard copies there may be a fee of 4c per sheet depending on the volume of information contained in the request and this will be advised in the final decision letter. A fee of €10.16 may be applied for a CD-ROM containing copy documents.
Where the estimated cost of supplying information on the environment is likely to exceed 100 euro, a deposit of at least 20% of the total amount will be required. In such cases, the requester will be advised in writing of the position and will be provided with an opportunity to review or amend his/her request. The process will not commence until payment of deposit has been received by the Dublin West Education Centre. It should also be noted that the date for the final decision on the AIE request (which is normally within one month of receipt by the Dublin West Education Centre of the request) will be determined by reference to the date of receipt of the deposit payment.
Fees will be waived where the cost is estimated at less than €10.00 or where the cost of collecting and accounting for the fee would exceed the amount of the fee itself. Where requesters are in a position to view the required documents on site at Dublin West Education Centre there will be no charge for accessing these records, however this is separate to the charge noted above.
Appeals:
If you would like to appeal a decision made by Dublin West Education Centre’s FOI Unit, you can do so by sending a request in writing asking for an internal review of the decision. Please address your review request to:
FOI Officer
Dublin West Education Support Centre
Old Blessington Road
Tallaght
Dublin 24
D24 PX58
Email:
If after the internal review, you are unsatisfied with the decision and would like to make a complaint or appeal the decision again, you can do so by contacting the Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information (“CEI”) at:
Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information
18 Lower Leeson Street
Dublin 2
Tel: 01- 6395689
The AIE Regulations provide that a fee of €150 must be charged for an appeal to the Commissioner for Environmental Information. However, provision is also made for a reduced appeal fee of €50 for medical card holders and their dependants. You must appeal or make a complaint to the CEI within one month of getting the reviewed decision from Dublin West Education Centre.