PO Box 7820, Canberra BC ACT 2610
9 October 2024
Our reference: LEX 81846
Frank N Fearless
Only by email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear Frank N Fearless
Acknowledgement of your Freedom of Information Request
I refer to your request for access to documents under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982
(the FOI Act). You requested access to:
‘Dear Services Australia,
This request relates to the cohort of debts 'indirectly' affected by income
apportionment. A number of such cases were paused by the Agency in April. I believe
at the time, it was 42,000 debts affecting 31,000 people.
I seek the most recent document prepared by the Agency which describes:
- The potential extent and nature of the cohort (breakdown by payment type etc)
- the manner in which income apportionment affected or may have affected the
calculation.
This request is in the public interest as it will assist the public to understand what full
remediation of income apportionment will actually look like. In 2020, the secondary
effects of unlawful robodebt received no systemic remedy, as the Agency chose
lowest cost options. With the agency proposed recalculation method now lying under
a legal cloud, these documents will assist an improved policy conversation.’
Your request was received by Services Australia (the Agency) on 3 October 2024 and the 30
day statutory period for processing your request commenced from the day after that date.
You should therefore expect a decision from us by 4 November 2024. The period of 30 days
may be extended if we need to consult third parties or for other reasons. We will advise you if
this happens.
Administrative Release of Documents
The Agency has administrative access arrangements ('the arrangements') for the release of
certain documents without the need for a formal FOI request. If you agree to the release of
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documents under these arrangements, we may provide you with documents under the
arrangements, where appropriate.
Any parts of your FOI request that are addressed by documents being released under the
arrangements will be considered withdrawn. The arrangements do not extend to information
or materials of third parties. You will be notified when documents are released to you under
the arrangements.
Disclosure Log
Please note information released under the FOI Act may be published in a disclosure log on
the agency's website. Section 11C of the FOI Act requires this publication, however it is
subject to certain exceptions, including where publication of personal, business, professional
or commercial information would be unreasonable.
Personal information of Agency staff
We consider staff details to be personal information of those staff members. As part of the
FOI application process, we will seek your consent to exclude the following information from
documents that may be captured by your request:
names of Services Australia staff below the Senior Executive level (junior staff)
direct staff telephone numbers, signatures, logon identifiers and email addresses.
If you consent to exclude this information, we will treat it as outside the scope of your request
and therefore irrelevant under Section 22 of the FOI Act.
Charges
No charge is payable for providing a person with their own personal information.
If you are requesting non-personal information the Agency will advise you as soon as
practicable if a charge is payable to process your request, and the amount of any such
charge.
How we will send documents to you
Unless you have requested to receive correspondence and documents relating to your FOI
request via post we will communicate with you via this email address. Some documents may
be too large to send to you via email. If applicable we will seek your consent to provide the
requested documents to you electronically via a secure file sharing platform. Please advise
us as soon as possible if you wish correspondence or documents to be sent to another
address, or if your email address changes.
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Further assistance
We ask that you provide confirmation as to whether you agree to the use of the
arrangements and the exclusion of non-SES staff personal information, as outlined above, by
COB 17 October 2024.
If you have any questions please email xxx.xxxxx.xxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely
Molly
FOI Officer
Freedom of Information Team
FOI and Reviews Branch | Legal Services Division
Services Australia
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