The disclosure log lists information that has been released in response to an FOI access request for documents held by the agency or minister. See Part 14 of the Guidelines.
If documents that were released in response to an FOI request contain personal or business information, do they have to be published in the disclosure log?
No, if the publication of the personal or business information released in response to an FOI request would be unreasonable. See s 11C(1) of the FOI Act and Part 14 of the Guidelines.
Do documents need to be available in full text or is it possible to provide a link or contact information?
The Information Commissioner recommends that agencies and ministers publish the information in full on their websites. The FOI Act says that agencies must publish information on their websites by:
- making it available for download, or
- publishing links to other web pages where the information can be found, or
- publishing details of how the information may be obtained.
See s 11C(3) of the FOI Act and Part 14 of the Guidelines.
For how long does an agency need to make the information available?
FOI Act does not require information attached or referred to in an agency’s disclosure log to be made available indefinitely. When conducting routine maintenance or updating a website an agency may decide to withdraw some content and make the information available in another form, for example, on request. See Part 14 of the Guidelines.
