Victorian Numbered Acts Victorian Numbered ActsBefore section 64 of the Principal Act insert —
(1) If, in the course of a review under Division 1 of Part VI or a complaint process under Part VIA, an agency or Minister claims that a document is an exempt document, the Freedom of Information Commissioner may ask for an explanation as to why it is exempt.
(2) Subject to subsection (3), if the Freedom of Information Commissioner is not satisfied that he or she can reasonably make a decision or recommendation on the basis of the explanation given under subsection (1), the Commissioner may ask to inspect and make copies of the document unless it is a document claimed to be exempt under section 28 or 29A.
(3) If the document is claimed to be exempt under section 31 —
(a) the inspection of the document requested under subsection (2) may only take place at the premises of the agency which, or the Minister who, made the claim; and
(b) the Freedom of Information Commissioner is not entitled to possession of, or to make copies of, the document.
(1) The Freedom of Information Commissioner must do all things necessary to ensure that only a specified person has access to a document, or the contents of a document, produced to the Commissioner in a review under Division 1 of Part VI or in dealing with a complaint under Part VIA.
(2) Any person who is or has been a specified person must not intentionally or recklessly disclose any information or document or the contents of any document received or considered in the course of a review under Division 1 of Part VI or a complaint under Part VIA to any person other than—
(a) a specified person in the course of performing the person's functions under this or any other Act or acting for or on behalf of a specified person in the performance of those functions; or
(b) the person who provided the information or document or that person's representative; or
(c) in accordance with section 61N.
Penalty: 240 penalty units or imprisonment for 2 years or both .
(3) Subject to subsection (4), the Freedom of Information Commissioner may copy any document produced to the Commissioner in a review under Division 1 of Part VI or in dealing with a complaint under Part VIA other than a document claimed to be exempt under section 28, 29A or 31.
(4) The Freedom of Information Commissioner may copy a document that is claimed to be an exempt document (other than a document claimed to be exempt under section 28, 29A or 31)) only to the extent that this is necessary for the performance of the Commissioner's functions in conducting a review or dealing with a complaint.
(5) The Freedom of Information Commissioner must, on completion of a review or a complaint process—
(a) return any document produced to the Commissioner in the review of a request or in dealing with the complaint to the person who produced the document; and
(b) return to that person, or destroy, any copies of the document.
(6) In this section "specified person" means—
(a) the Freedom of Information Commissioner; or
(b) a member of staff of the office of the Freedom of Information Commissioner; or
(c) a contractor, agent or other person acting for or on behalf the Freedom of Information Commissioner.