ABOUT COUNCIL - Parramatta City Council - NSW Government

ACCESS TO INFORMATIONUNDER SECTION 12 OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT ANDFREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACTUnder the provisions of the Government Information (PublicAccess) Act (GIPA) members of the public are entitled torequest information held by Council through both formaland informal means. The GIPA Act replaces the Freedom ofInformation Act and parts of the Local Government Act, bothof which facilitated public access to Council-held documents.During 2010/11, Parramatta City Council continued toadminister its Access to Information Policy and PrivacyManagement Plan. Council received 13 formal GIPAapplications, compared to 44 such applications in 2009/10under the previous Freedom of Information Act. The numberof formal requests received has reduced following theintroduction of the GIPA Act because Council has been ableto process more applications informally, minimising thecost of accessing Council-held information. A total of 854informal GIPA applications were received by Council in the2010/11 financial year.PRIVACY AND PERSONAL INFORMATION PROTECTION ACT 1988s33During 2010/11 Council received no applications for internalreview under the provisions of Part 5 (s53) of the Privacy andPersonal Information Protection Act (PPIPA). In addition, therewere no inquiries by the Ombudsman during the reportingperiod into any GIPA determinations by Council.The Audit Committee provides independent assurance andassistance to Council on the management of risk, controland the compliance framework. Since its establishment inFebruary 2008, the Audit Committee has been operatingin line with the Internal Audit Guidelines published by theDivision of Local Government in September 2010. The currentAudit Committee comprises three Councillors and twoindependent community representatives. Council’s auditorsand senior management are invited to the Audit Committeemeetings. The Audit Committee met five times during the2010/11 financial year.We received no applications for Internal Review during thisperiod.A Publication Guide containing information about Council’sstructure, functions and type of information that is publiclyavailable, is accessible from Council’s website, along with theapplicable application forms.50 PARRAMATTA CITY COUNCIL - ANNUAL REPORT 2010/11