Accessing Government Information

Youngman Consultancy can assist you in working your way through the maze of NSW State and Local Government legislation (GIPA) to locate the information you want.
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Under GIPA there are a number of additional ways in which government agencies have to make information available.

This page will help you understand those obligations and assist you with your search.

1. “Where do I start?” will explain there is information that must be made available and other information agencies are encouraged to provide.

2. “Informal Applications for Information” introduces a new method of accessing information without having to make a formal request and pay the associated fees.


 

Where do I Start?

Applying for Information

There are a number of things you need to consider before formally applying for information under the GIPA Act. 
Firstly, GIPA requires a lot of information to be made publicly available under what is referred to as Mandatory Disclosure or Open Access.  Therefore, after you make sure you have the right organisation, you should see if the information you want is already available by checking the agency's website. 

You can do this by going to www.service.nsw.gov.au/nswgovdirectory and you will see an area tilted "Find by Name A-Z". You will then find an alphabetical list which is the first letter of the agency name. You can either use this list to locate the agency for which you are looking or type the name of the agency into the search field on the top of the page.  Councils can be located by typing "Local Government" into the search field on the top of the page.  Then scroll down to NSW Local Government Directory and Councils. Once you find the right website, look for headings like “GIPA”, “Information Available” or the “Right To Know”.  Is there any other information available? 

The second level of disclosure is called Proactive Release.  Agencies are encouraged to proactively release other information they may not have previously published but have no good reason to withhold.  The type of information here would be information that people have routinely applied for in the past, e.g., in the case of Transport for NSW (previously the Roads & Maritime Services travel times; accident statistics, driver test waiting times and other information. 

Look at the agency's website under “GIPA” or “Right to Know” and look for Proactive Release. 

If you can’t find what you are looking for through this method, contact Youngman Consultancy for other options.