Freedom of Information

Rights to Access Documents

The Western Australian Freedom of Information Act 1992 (FOI Act 1992) gives applicants the right to apply for access to documents held by the Shire of Moora. An applicant’s right to seek access cannot be affected by their reason for wishing to obtain access, and there is no need to demonstrate a reason.

The Shire is required to:

• assist in making an application
• assist in obtaining access to documents at a reasonable cost
• ensure that personal information captured in documents is accurate, complete, up-to-date and not misleading

While the Act provides general right of access to documents, it also recognises some documents require a level of protection, specifically those documents that meet the exemption criteria in Schedule 1 of the FOI Act 1992, which includes (but is not limited to):

• Personal information that identifies a third party
• Information concerning trade secrets
• Information of commercial value
  
  

Making an Application

• Apply in writing to the Freedom of Information (FOI) Officer. 
• Identify or describe the documents concerned, or if you apply for amendment of personal information about yourself you must provide details to show how or why the agency's records are inaccurate, incomplete, out of date or misleading; If you ask for "everything" on a particular subject, the FOI Officer may help you narrow the scope of your application to ensure that the work involved is reasonable. Otherwise an agency may refuse to deal with your application.
• Give an address in Australia where notices can be sent. If possible, include your telephone number and/or email address as this will help the FOI Officer to contact you if necessary, to assist in your application being dealt with efficiently.
• Lodge your written application with the Shire of Moora with any applicable fee payable.

Download a copy of the Shire of Moora's

• Freedom of Information Statement 2024
• Freedom of Information Application to Access Documents Form
  
  

FOI Applications can be Lodged by Mail or Email to:

Freedom of Information Officer
Shire of Moora 
PO Box 211
Moora WA 6510

Email: shire@moora.wa.gov.au

Time Limits

Once the Shire has received a valid application, it is required to provide a Notice of Decision within 45 calendar days. The Shire aims to respond as soon as practicable to any application and will negotiate with the applicant on an extension to the 45-day limit should the application be unusually large or require consultation with a significant number of third parties.

Should the applicant not be satisfied with the decision provided in the Notice of Decision, they have 30 days in which to lodge an Internal Review application. Once the Internal Review application has been received, the Shire has 15 days in which to respond.

Should the applicant still not be satisfied with the outcome of the Internal Review, there is a 60-day period in which to lodge an External Review application with the Freedom of Information Commissioner. The Commissioner will then undertake the review and forward a response within 30 days.

Charges

The Freedom of Information Regulations 1993 includes a schedule of fees and charges payable under the FOI Act. An application fee of $30 is payable when lodging an application for access to documents containing non- personal information.

For Further Information

For further information regarding Freedom of Information visit www.foi.wa.gov.au.