Annual Report on the Access to Information Act 2018–19

General

The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) regulates the use of nuclear energy and materials to protect health, safety, security and the environment; to implement Canada’s international commitments on the peaceful use of nuclear energy; and to disseminate objective scientific, technical and regulatory information to the public.

The CNSC’s mandate, derived from the Nuclear Safety and Control Act, involves four major areas:

• regulation of the development, production and use of nuclear energy in Canada to protect health, safety and the environment
• regulation of the production, possession, use and transport of nuclear substances, and the production, possession and use of prescribed equipment and prescribed information
• implementation of measures respecting international control of the development, production, transport and use of nuclear energy and substances, including measures respecting the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and nuclear explosive devices
• dissemination of scientific, technical and regulatory information concerning the CNSC’s activities, and the effects on the environment and the health and safety of persons, of the development, production, possession, transport and use of nuclear substances

The CNSC also administers the Nuclear Liability Act, conducts environmental assessments under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012, and implements Canada’s bilateral agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on nuclear safeguards verification.

Purpose of the Access to Information Act

The purpose of the Access to Information Act (AIA) is to extend the laws of Canada to provide a right of access to information in records under the control of a government institution, in accordance with the principles stating that government information should be available to the public, that necessary exceptions to the right of access should be limited and specific, and that decisions on the disclosure of government information should be reviewed independently of government.

Tabling of the annual report

This annual report is prepared and tabled in Parliament in accordance with section 72 of the AIA.

1. Statistical report

I. Requests received under the Access to Information Act

In 2018–19, the CNSC received 248 requests under the AIA (41 fewer requests than in the previous reporting period, see table titled Workload).

The CNSC also processed 38 informal requests during the reporting period. Seven of these were internal requests for a review before documents were released informally on the external website or by other means. The other 31 were informal requests for previously released AIA packages identified on the “Proactive disclosure” page of the CNSC website.

For requests closed during the reporting period, the CNSC processed a total of 88,473 pages and disclosed 37,884 pages to requesters. This represents an increase of 130% compared with the number of pages (38,507) processed in fiscal year 2017–18.

Other federal government agencies and departments responsible for records related to CNSC activities also consulted with the CNSC on 30 occasions. The CNSC processed 1,582 pages for these consultations.

II. Source of requests

The organizations continue to submit an increasing number of requests to the CNSC (see table titled Source of Requests Received). In 2018–19, requests were made most frequently by organizations (81%), followed by businesses (9%), members of the public (6%), media (2%), requesters who declined to identify themselves (2%) and academia (0%).

III. Disposition of closed requests

In 2018–19, the CNSC closed 261 requests. This represents a slight decrease compared with the 267 requests closed in 2017–18. As the table titled Disposition of Closed Requests shows, of the 261 requests closed during the reporting period, records for 50 were disclosed fully, while records for 91 were disclosed in part. There were only 4 requests for which relevant records were exempted in their entirety. The remaining 116 requests were either abandoned by the requester, transferred to another government institution or had no records associated with them.

IV. Exemptions or exclusions invoked

Most of the exemptions invoked by the CNSC in 2018–19 came under three sections of the AIA: subsection 19(1), which protects personal information; paragraphs 20(1)(a), (b), (c) and (d), which protects confidential information supplied by a third party; and paragraphs 21(1)(a), (b), (c) and (d), which protects advice, recommendations and the deliberation process of public servants.

V. Completion time

VI. Extensions

Section 9 of the AIA permits an extension of statutory time limits under certain circumstances. In 2018–19, the CNSC requested extensions on 74 occasions.
In 23 of these cases, an extension was required to provide third-party notifications. In 22 of these cases, an extension was required for consultation within a government institution, other government institutions or other levels of government. Because of the increase in the volume of records processed at the CNSC, a further 29 extensions were needed (since searches through large volumes of records made it impossible to meet the original timelines without interfering with CNSC operations). Most of the extensions were for 31 to 120 days.

VII. Costs

During 2018–19, the CNSC’s Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Office incurred $249,244 in salary costs and $3,905 in goods and services costs to administer the AIA.

See annex A for further statistical information.

With respect to fees collected under the AIA, the information below is reported in accordance with the requirements of section 20 of the Service Fees Act.

• Enabling authority: AIA
• Fee amount: $5
• Total revenue: : $1, 290
• Fees waived: $10
• In accordance with the Interim Directive on the Administration of the AIA, issued on May 5, 2016, the CNSC waives all fees prescribed by the AIA and Regulations made under it, other than the $5 application fee set out in paragraph 7(1)(a) of the Regulations.
• Cost of operating the program: $3,905

2. Practices and procedures

At the CNSC, the Information Management Division (IMD), within the Information Management and Technology Directorate, administers the AIA.

Access to information requests are received by the Records Office and forwarded to the ATIP Office, IMD. Staff members in the ATIP Office process requests in consultation with the appropriate CNSC directorates and with external parties, where necessary.

The CNSC has three full-time employees dedicated to access-to-information activities.

During 2018–19, the CNSC continued to concentrate on providing training to its employees on information management, the AIA, the Privacy Act and information security. This involved formal training given over several sessions, including a directorate all-staff meeting of approximately 59 people; three divisional sessions delivered to 15, 13 and 7 people respectively and an inspection fundamentals program delivered to 13 people. In addition, there were informal training one-on-one awareness sessions.

All training and awareness sessions, both formal and informal, focused on informing employees of their responsibilities under the legislation on access to information. IMD offers an integrated training approach, emphasizing the connections between sound information management practices and an effective ATIP program. The ATIP Office also provides advice and support as required.

Documentation and training materials on the CNSC’s ATIP program are available through its corporate intranet, along with links to other materials, such as legislation, Treasury Board Secretariat policies and guidance documents, and a range of information management and guidance tools. The CNSC did not implement any new policies, guidelines or procedures during the reporting period.

As an organization that values openness and transparency, the CNSC strives to ensure that information is made publicly available without recourse to the AIA. Exceptions to public access to information are limited and specific, as required by the AIA.

The CNSC frequently makes copies of the following documents available to members of the public for their examination:

• current licences and approvals
• revocation or suspension notices
• reports concerning occurrences
• applications for approval of licences
• information on hazards to individuals, the public or the environment
• orders for corrective measures to be taken as a result of significant occurrences
• notices of intent to establish nuclear facilities
• Commission hearing minutes and supporting documentation
• requests for temporary help
• proactive disclosure of senior management travel and hospitality expenses
• proactive disclosure of contract information
• Auditor General of Canada reports (pertaining to the CNSC)
• internal audits

The CNSC also posts, via the Open Government portal, summaries of completed access to information requests processed by the ATIP Office.

3. Delegation of authority

The Governor in Council has delegated to the President of the CNSC the authority to exercise the powers, duties and functions in

the AIA. In turn, the President has designated the Vice-President of the Corporate Services Branch, the Director General of the Information Management and Technology Directorate, the Director of the Information Management Division, and the Senior ATIP Advisor to exercise her powers, duties and functions with respect to the AIA.

See annex C for a copy of the instrument of delegation.

4. Compliance

The CNSC achieved a compliance rating of approximately 96% for completed access- to-information requests closed within the legislated time frame in 2018–19. Many factors led to this rate of compliance, including an electronic retrieval system in use since 2009. This electronic system has reduced the time needed for the ATIP Office to receive the required documents and prepare the files for review and approval. The ATIP Office has established a five-day service standard for subject matter experts to retrieve relevant records and obtain director general sign-off. In addition, through training and awareness sessions, CNSC staff members were generally receptive to their obligations under the AIA and delays were reduced.

5. Complaints and appeals to the Federal Court

During fiscal year 2018–19, the Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) received 21 complaints. The reasons for the complaints include missing records and refusal – exemptions. Of these  complaints 13 were closed in 2018–19. Of these closed complaints, the OIC findings include 8 well-founded, 4 settled and 1 discontinued. The CNSC takes the issue of complaints seriously and works closely with the OIC to develop best practices and lessons learned strategies.

One complaint was carried over from 2017–18.

As always, the CNSC will continue to work closely with the Office of the Information Commissioner to resolve the remaining ongoing complaints in a timely and efficient manner.

No appeals were made to the Federal Court of Canada during 2018–19.

Annex A: Statistical Information

Name of institution: Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission

Reporting period: 2018-04-01 to 2019-03-31

Part 1: Requests Under the Access to Information Act

1.1 Number of requests

	Number of Requests
Received during reporting period	248
Outstanding from previous reporting period	36
Total	284
Closed during reporting period	261
Carried over to next reporting period	23

1.2 Sources of Requests

Source	Number of requests
Media	4
Academia	1
Business (private sector)	23
Organization	200
Public	16
Decline to Identify	4
Total	248

1.3 Informal requests

Completion Time
1 to 15 Days	16 to 30 Days	31 to 60 Days	61 to 120 Days	121 to 180 Days	181 to 365 Days	More Than 365 Days	Total
31	2	0	0	5	0	0	38

Note: All requests previously recorded as “treated informally” will now be accounted for in this section only.

Part 2: Requests Closed During the Reporting Period

2.1 Disposition and completion time

Disposition of Requests	Completion Time
	1 to 15 Days	16 to 30 Days	31 to 60 Days	61 to 120 Days	121 to 180 Days	181 to 365 Days	More Than 365 Days	Total
All disclosed	11	26	8	4	1	0	0	50
Disclosed in part	4	38	11	26	6	4	2	91
All exempted	3	0	0	1	0	0	0	4
All excluded	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
No records exist	83	16	4	1	0	1	0	105
Request transferred	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Request abandoned	7	2	0	0	1	0	0	10
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	109	82	23	32	8	5	2	261

2.2 Exemptions

Section	Number of Requests
13(1)(a)	3
13(1)(b)	2
13(1)(c)	10
13(1)(d)	0
13(1)(e)	0
14	0
14(a)	1
14(b)	0
15(1)	0
15(1) - I.A.*	9
15(1) – Def.*	9
15(1) – S.A.*	9
16(1)(a)(i)	0
16(1)(a)(ii)	0
16(1)(a)(iii)	0
16(1)(b)	0
16(1)(c)	1
16(1)(d)	0
16(2)	0
16(2)(a)	0
16(2)(b)	1
16(2)(c)	15
16(3)	0
16.1(1)(a)	0
16.1(1)(b)	0
16.1(1)(c)	0
16.1(1)(d)	0
16.2(1)	1
16.3	0
16.4(1)(a)	0
16.4(1)(b)	0
16.5	0
17	0
18(a)	4
18(b)	4
18(c)	0
18(d)	2
18.1(1)(a)	1
18.1(1)(b)	1
18.1(1)(c)	1
18.1(1)(d)	0
19(1)	54
20(1)(a)	0
20(1)(b)	40
20(1)(b.1)	40
20(1)(c)	2
20(1)(d)	0
20.1	0
20.2	0
20.4	0
21(1)(a)	35
21(1)(b)	35
21(1)(c)	2
21(1)(d)	0
22	0
22.1(1)	0
23	16
24(1)	0
26	0

* I.A.: International Affairs
Def.:  Defence of Canada
S.A.:  Subversive Activities

2.3 Exclusions

Section	Number of Requests
68(a)	0
68(b)	0
68(c)	0
68.1	0
68.2(a)	0
68.2(b)	0
69(1)	0
69(1)(a)	0
69(1)(b)	0
69(1)(c)	0
69(1)(d)	0
69(1)(e)	0
69(1)(f)	0
69(1)(g) re (a)	0
69(1)(g) re (b)	0
69(1)(g) re (c)	0
69(1)(g) re (d)	0
69(1)(g) re (e)	0
69(1)(g) re (f)	0
69.1(1)	0

2.4 Format of information released

Disposition	Paper	Electronic	Other formats
All disclosed	45	5	0
Disclosed in part	46	45	0
Total	91	50	0

2.5 Complexity

2.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed

Disposition of Requests	Number of Pages Processed	Number of Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests
All disclosed	1866	1815	50
Disclosed in part	82623	35518	91
All exempted	82	0	4
All excluded	0	0	0
Request abandoned	3902	551	10
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0

2.5.2 Relevant pages processed and disclosed by size of requests

Disposition	Less Than 100 Pages Processed		101-500 Pages Processed		501-1000 Pages Processed		1001-5000 Pages Processed		More Than 5000 Pages Processed
	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed
All disclosed	45	710	5	1105	0	0	0	0	0	0
Disclosed in part	45	1096	28	5043	6	2347	6	2991	6	24041
All exempted	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
All excluded	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Request abandoned	9	0	0	0	0	0	1	551	0	0
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	103	1806	33	6148	6	2347	7	3542	6	24041

2.5.3 Other complexities

Disposition	Consultation Required	Assessment of Fees	Legal Advice Sought	Other	Total
All disclosed	8	0	0	4	12
Disclosed in part	41	0	2	21	64
All exempted	1	0	0	1	2
All excluded	0	0	0	0	0
Request abandoned	1	0	0	0	1
Neither confirmed nor denied	0	0	0	0	0
Total	51	0	2	26	79

2.6 Deemed refusals

2.6.1 Reasons for not meeting statutory deadline

Number of Requests Closed Past the Statutory Deadline	Principal Reason
	Workload	External Consultation	Internal Consultation	Other
10	3	0	7	0

2.6.2 Number of days past deadline

Number of Days Past Deadline	Number of Requests Past Deadline Where No Extension Was Taken	Number of Requests Past Deadline where an Extension Was Taken	Total
1 to 15 days	0	1	1
16 to 30 days	0	1	1
31 to 60 days	0	3	3
61 to 120 days	2	2	4
121 to 180 days	0	0	0
181 to 365 days	0	1	1
More than 365 days	0	0	0
Total	2	8	10

2.7 Requests for translation

Translation Requests	Accepted	Refused	Total
English to French	0	0	0
French to English	0	0	0
Total	0	0	0

Part 3: Extensions

3.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests

Disposition of Requests Where an Extension Was Taken	9(1)(a) Interference with Operations	9(1)(b) Consultation		9(1)(c) Third-Party Notice
		Section 69	Other
All disclosed	7	0	3	3
Disclosed in part	17	0	17	19
All exempted	0	0	1	0
All excluded	0	0	0	0
No records exist	4	0	1	1
Request abandoned	1	0	0	0
Total	29	0	22	23

3.2 Length of extensions

Length of Extensions	9(1)(a) Interference with Operations	9(1)(b) Consultation		9(1)(c) Third-Party Notice
		Section 69	Other
30 days or less	7	0	1	0
31 to 60 days	7	0	6	4
61 to 120 days	12	0	12	14
121 to 180 days	3	0	3	3
181 to 365 days	0	0	0	2
365 days or more	0	0	0	0
Total	29	0	22	23

Part 4: Fees

Fee Type	Fee Collected		Fee Waived or Refunded
	Number of Requests	Amount	Number of Requests	Amount
Application	258	$1,290	2	$10
Search	0	$0	0	$0
Production	0	$0	0	$0
Programming	0	$0	0	$0
Preparation	0	$0	0	$0
Alternative format	0	$0	0	$0
Reproduction	0	$0	0	$0
Total	258	$1,290	2	$10

Part 5: Consultations Received From Other Institutions and Organizations

5.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and organizations

Consultations	Other Government of Canada Institutions	Number of Pages to Review	Other Organizations	Number of Pages to Review
Received during reporting period	30	1582	2	22
Outstanding from the previous reporting period	2	29	0	0
Total	32	1611	2	22
Closed during the reporting period	32	1611	2	0
Pending at the end of the reporting period	0	0	0	22

5.2 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions

Recommendation	Number of Days Required to Complete Consultation Requests
	1 to 15 Days	16 to 30 Days	31 to 60 Days	61 to 120 Days	121 to 180 Days	181 to 365 Days	More than 365 Days	Total
Disclose entirely	19	8	2	0	0	0	0	29
Disclose in part	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	2
Exempt entirely	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Exclude entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Consult other institution	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Other	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	20	10	2	0	0	0	0	32

5.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations

Recommendation	Number of Days Required to Complete Consultation Requests
	1 to 15 Days	16 to 30 Days	31 to 60 Days	61 to 120 Days	121 to 180 Days	181 to 365 Days	More than 365 Days	Total
Disclose entirely	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Disclose in part	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Exempt entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Exclude entirely	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Consult other institution	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Other	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	2

Part 6: Completion Time of Consultations on Cabinet Confidences

6.1 Requests with Legal Services

Number of Days	Fewer Than 100 Pages Processed		101‒500 Pages Processed		501-1000 Pages Processed		1001-5000 Pages Processed		More than 5000 Pages Processed
	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed
1 to 15	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
16 to 30	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
31 to 60	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
61 to 120	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
121 to 180	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
181 to 365	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
More than 365	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

6.2 Requests with Privy Council Office

Number of Days	Fewer Than 100 Pages Processed		101‒500 Pages Processed		501-1000 Pages Processed		1001-5000 Pages Processed		More than 5000 Pages Processed
	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed	Number of Requests	Pages Disclosed
1 to 15	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
16 to 30	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
31 to 60	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
61 to 120	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
121 to 180	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
181 to 365	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
More than 365	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Part 7: Complaints and Investigations

Section 32	Section 35	Section 37	Total
21	0	0	21

Part 8: Court Action

Section 41	Section 42	Section 44	Total
0	0	0	0

Part 9: Resources Related to the Access to Information Act

9.1 Costs

Expenditures	Amount
Salaries	$249,244
Overtime	$0
Goods and Services	$3,905
Professional services contracts	$0
Other	$3,905
Total	$253,149

9.2 Human resources

Resources	Person Years Dedicated to Access to Information Activities
Full-time employees	3.20
Part-time and casual employees	0.00
Regional staff	0.00
Consultants and agency personnel	0.00
Students	0.20
Total	3.40

Annex B: Delegation order

The President of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, pursuant to section 73 of the Access to Information Act and section 73 of the Privacy Act, hereby designates the persons holding the positions set out in the schedule hereto, or the persons occupying on an acting basis those positions, to exercise the powers, duties and functions of the President as the head of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, under the provisions of the Act and related regulations set out in the schedule opposite each position. This designations replaces all previous delegation orders.

Schedule

Position	Privacy Act and Regulations	Access to Information Act and Regulations
Vice-President, Corporate Services Branch	Full authority	Full authority
Director General, Information Management and Technology Directorate	Full authority	Full authority
Director, Information Management Division	Full authority	Full authority
Senior ATIP Advisor	Full authority	Full authority

Original signed by

Rumina Velshi
President
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission

Date: April 5, 2019