Our reference: CRB 25-269
Alex Pentland via Right to Know
By email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear Applicant
Decision on your Freedom of Information Request
On 11 February 2025, you submitted a request to the Classification Review Board (the Review Board), seeking
access to documents under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).
1
Your request
You requested access to:
Any correspondence received or exchanged by the Classification Review Board from any member of
the 47th Parliament of Australia.
To avoid doubt, this request extends to include members of the Federal House of Representatives
and members of the Federal Senate.
On 12 February 2025, you advised that the dates for the request were 26 July 2022 until 12 February 2025.
2
Authority to make decision
I am authorised to make decisions in relation to Freedom of Information requests under section 23(1) of the
FOI Act.
3
Decision
The right of access under the FOI Act is limited to a ‘document of an agency’, being a document in the
possession of the Review Board, whether created by the Review Board or received by the Review Board
(section 4 of the FOI Act refers).
Section 24A of the FOI Act provides that an agency may refuse a request for access to a document if:
(a)
all reasonable steps have been taken to find the document, and
(b)
the agency or Minister is satisfied that the document:
(i)
is in the agency's or Minister's possession but cannot be found, or
(ii)
does not exist.
The Review Board has conducted searches of its information holdings, and has also sought assistance from
the Department, which provides secretariat services to the Review Board, to locate any documents relevant
to your request. No documents matching the description in your request were identified as being in the
possession of the Review Board.
I am satisfied that all reasonable steps have been taken to find documents which would be relevant to your
request and that the documents do not exist in the possession of the Review Board.
I have decided, in accordance with section 24A of the FOI Act, that the Review Board does not hold a
document in its possession that meets the terms of your request.
4
Material taken into consideration
In making my decision, I had regard to the following:
• the terms of your request
• the provisions of the FOI Act
• the guidelines issued by the Australian Information Commissioner under section 93A of the FOI Act
(the FOI Guidelines)
• advice from departmental officers with responsibility for the subject matter contained in the
documents captured by your request
5
Legislative provisions
The FOI Act, including the provisions referred to in my decision, are available on the Federal Register of
Legislation website: www.legislation.gov.au/Series/C2004A02562.
6
Your review rights
If you are dissatisfied with my decision, you may apply for a review of it.
An application for IC review must be made in writing to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
(OAIC) within 60 days of the decision.
If you are not satisfied with the way we have handled your FOI request, you can lodge a complaint with the
OAIC. However, the OAIC suggests that complaints are made to the agency in the first instance.
More information about the Information Commissioner reviews and complaints is available on the OAIC
website here: www.oaic.gov.au/freedom-of-information/foi-review-process.
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Further information
The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts provides
administrative assistance to the Classification Review Board in relation to FOI matters.
If you require further information regarding this decision, please contact the Department’s FOI Section
at xxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely
Susan Bush
Convenor
Classification Review Board
Date: 03 March 2025
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