Alberta's new access to information rules come into effect
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The Access to Information Act was first introduced by Service Alberta Minister Dale Nally last November and was passed by the legislature and received royal assent the following month.
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Wednesday's orders-in-council come six months later and proclaim the new legislation into force while also setting out new regulations for the act.
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'Access to information plays a vital role in ensuring public confidence and trust in the integrity of government institutions,' reads a statement from Nally's office.
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'The regulations and policies that will support the Access to Information Act will help secure that trust by demonstrating the government's open and accessible approach to handling official records and enabling and encouraging government departments to proactively disclose more information to Albertans.'
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The act replaces the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act by splitting it into two, with the new Protection of Privacy Act also coming into force on Wednesday.
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Nally has cited the need to overhaul the prior legislation that hadn't been updated in two decades, including by creating a new central website, Transparency Alberta, that includes information about government decisions, spending, and activities, though not a database of completed information requests as seen in other Canadian governments.
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'We expect that the number of records available through Transparency Alberta will grow,' Nally said.
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The new rules have been criticized as further limiting what information can be disclosed.
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They exempt communications between political staff and ministers as not disclosable, with the regulations defining political staff as 'an employee, other than an employee appointed under the Public Service Act, who holds a position in the Office of the Premier or an office of a member of the Executive Council (cabinet).'
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The former timeline for the government to respond to an access to information request is also extended from 30 calendar days to 30 business days.
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