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Good afternoon Ms Binderschmitt,

Thank you for your email received by the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission (the Commission) on 1/11/23, in which you requested access to documents under the Commonwealth Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act).

We have understood your request to be as follows:

SCOPE OF REQUEST –

We have interpreted your scope to be the following:

“…information related to notices issued to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) Quality and Safeguards Commission by Comcare for the financial year 2022-23. These notices are specifically listed on page 139 of the NDIS Commission's Annual Report for the same period.

The notices in question are as follows:

MC00025196 Notifiable Incidents
MC00020714 Consultation mechanisms, issue resolution (WHS related) and hazard identification and management
MC00028634-NT01 Hazard control and consultation
MC00025196 Consultative mechanisms
MC00031458 HSR Negotiations
MC00030540 WHS Complaint

I would also like any communications via email between the NDIS commissioner, COO and/or complaints commissioner regarding these notices included in the scope.”

We note you’ve removed the names of APS level NDIS Commission staff from the scope.

Please let us know if this interpretation is correct.

Further Scoping questions
In addition to the above, could you please confirm whether or not you agree to the following:

• Removing third party personal information (such as names and contact details) from the scope of your request?
• Removing draft documents and duplicates from the scope of your request?

Timeline
The statutory period for processing your request is 30 days commencing from the day after your request was received. Accordingly, a decision will fall due by 1 December 2023.

The 30-day period may be extended under certain conditions, including if third parties are required to be consulted, or where a request consultation process is required. We will advise you if this happens.

Next steps
Please send acceptance of the request scope, and your response to the above scoping questions, to [NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission request email] by COB 8/11/23.

If you wish to discuss any of the above, please respond to this email and we can arrange a time to discuss.

Kind regards,

FOI Team
Legal Services and Internal Integrity Division

E:  [email address] | W:  www.ndiscommission.gov.au

Note: This email and any attachments may contain confidential or legally privileged information (and neither are waived or lost if this email has been sent to you by mistake).  If you are not the intended recipient, you must not use, disclose, copy or retain it.  If you have received it in error, please let me know by reply email and then delete this email from your system and do not retain any copy. Recipients within the NDIS Commission should seek assistance from General Counsel before disseminating this email to third parties or using this advice for a different matter.

The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to them and their cultures, and to elders both past and present.

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Thank you for emailing the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. 

This inbox is monitored between 9 am and 5 pm (AEST), Monday to Friday and
we will respond to your enquiry within 5 business days.

Alternatively you can contact us on 1800 035 544, or visit the website at
[1]www.ndiscommission.gov.au for information and resources.

This is an automated email. Please do not respond.

References

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1. http://www.ndiscommission.gov.au/

Dear Ms Binderschmitt

Freedom of information request number - (61) -23/24-(2)

I refer to your request for access to documents relating to notices issued
to the NDIS Commission by Comcare during the 2022-23 financial year (the
Request) under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).

I am an officer authorised under section 23(1) of the FOI Act to make
decisions in relation to FOI requests. I am writing to tell you that I
believe your request does not satisfy the requirement in paragraph section
15(2)(b) of the FOI Act, in that you have not provided such information
concerning the document as is reasonably necessary to identify it. This is
called a ‘practical refusal reason’ (section 24AA(1)(b) of the FOI Act).

On this basis, I intend to refuse access to the documents you requested.
However, before I make a final decision to do this, you have an
opportunity to revise your request. This is called a ‘request consultation
process’ as set out under section 24AB of the FOI Act. You have 14 days to
respond to this notice in one of the ways set out below.

Why the NDIS Commission intends to refuse your request

The first part of your request seeks access to ‘information related to
noticed issued to the NDIS Commission by Comcare for the financial year
2022-23’. Your request then goes on to list the notices in question as
follows:

MC00025196 Notifiable Incidents

MC00020714 Consultation mechanisms, issue resolution (WHS related) and
hazard identification and management

MC00028634-NT01 Hazard control and consultation

MC00025196 Consultative mechanisms

MC00031458 HSR Negotiations

MC00030540 WHS Complaint

It is not clear whether your request seeks access to a copy of the listed
notices or alternatively, all documents held by the NDIS Commission that
contain reference to or otherwise relate to the above listed notices.
Please advise which interpretation of your request is correct.

If your preference is that the scope if read more broadly (eg all
documents relating to the notices), please note that a practical refusal
ground may exist under section 24AA(1)(a)(i) of the FOI Act on the basis
that the work involved in processing the request would substantially and
unreasonably divert the resources of the agency from its other operations.
A preliminary search of the NDIS Commission’s records for all documents
relating to the notices listed indicates that there are approximately 300
documents that may be relevant to the scope of your request. In this
instance, you may wish to narrow the scope of your request by nominating a
date range for the documents sought or nominating specific types of
documents (for example, correspondence between specific parties).

I have decided that a practical refusal reason exists for the reasons
outlined above.

Request consultation process

You now have an opportunity to revise your request to enable it to
proceed.

Suggested revisions

The NDIS Commission recommends you consider the following in relation to
revising the scope of your request:

o Clarify whether the first part of your request seeks access only to
the notices listed above or alternatively all documents related to the
notices listed above.
o If your request seeks access to all documents related to the notices,
you may wish to narrow the scope of your request by:

o Nominating a date range for the documents sought
o Nominating specific types of documents (for example,
correspondence between specific parties).

Before the end of the consultation period, you must do one of the
following, in writing:

·       withdraw your request;

·       make a revised request; or

·       tell us that you do not wish to revise your request.

The consultation period runs for 14 days and starts on the day after you
receive this notice. You are therefore required to respond to this request
by Monday 4 December 2023

During this period, you are welcome to seek assistance from the NDIS
Commission in relation to revising your request. If you revise your
request in a way that adequately addresses the practical refusal grounds
outlined above, we will recommence processing it. Please note that the
time taken to consult you regarding the scope of your request is not taken
into account for the purposes of the 30 day time limit for processing your
request.

If you do not do one of the three things listed above during the
consultation period or you do not consult the contact person during this
period, your request will be taken to have been withdrawn.

Yours sincerely

Monique Lindridge

Assistant Director, Internal Integrity

NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission

[1]cid:image001.jpg@01D41218.BD3EEDC0

[2]www.ndiscommission.gov.au

References

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2. http://www.ndiscommission.gov.au/