Extension to FOIs

Question

In February, it was reported that ''The department has been requesting 21-day extensions to all FOIs, in addition to the already 30 calendar days in which FOIs are usually answered.'' Over the past 6 months, to date: 1. How many FOI requests has the department received? 2. How many of these requests were complied with within the 30-day statutory timeframe? 3. How many 21-day extensions for these requests were made? 4. How many staff does DHDA have processing FOI requests, to date? 5. How many such staff did DHDA have one year prior? 6. Does DHDA believe it is adequately resourced to handle the FOI requests it recieves? 7. Did the department consider making a submission to the Senate inquiry into the Freedom of Information Bill 2025? Did the department support the aim of the bill to reduce the number of FOI requests?

Answer

Please see attached answer.

Documents

• Question with answer (PDF) (opens in a new tab)
• DHDA SQ26-002727.pdf (opens in a new tab)