Public Access to Information (GIPA)
GIPA Act
The Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (the GIPA Act) replaces the Freedom of Information Act 1989 and section 12 of the Local Government Act 1993 in NSW.
The GIPA Act encourages the proactive release of Council information and aims to promote a more open and transparent government.
There are four avenues to access Council information under the GIPA Act:
- Mandatory disclosure of open access information
- Proactive release of information
- Informal release of information
- Formal access application
You can find out more about right to information, the public interest test and the ways to access government information under the GIPA Act on the NSW Information and Privacy Commission (IPC) website at www.ipc.nsw.gov.au. The IPC is an independent statutory authority responsible for overseeing the provisions of the GIPA Act. Please note the IPC does not and is unable to provide legal advice to stakeholders.
Check Councils Access to Information Held by Council Policy(PDF, 232KB) & procedure and Councils Agency Information Guide 2025-2026(PDF, 6MB).
Lodging a Formal Application
If information cannot be obtained through any of the avenues outlined above, a Formal Access Request(PDF, 356KB) may be submitted to Council. Council will only require a formal application as a last resort. This is most likely where a request involves a large volume of information, where providing access would unreasonably divert Council resources (for example, where extensive searching or retrieval from archives is required), or where the information sought contains personal or business information relating to third parties who must be consulted prior to release.
Section 41 of the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (GIPA Act) sets out the requirements for a valid access application. An application must:
- be made in writing and sent to or lodged with Council;
- clearly state that it is an access application made under the GIPA Act;
- be accompanied by the prescribed $30 application fee;
- include a postal address in Australia for correspondence; and
- contain sufficient information to enable the requested government information to be identified.
Once a valid access application is received, Council must notify the applicant of its decision within 20 working days. This timeframe may be extended under section 57(2) of the GIPA Act where consultation with third parties is required or information must be retrieved from archives. Processing charges also apply at a rate of $30 per hour for the time taken to deal with the application.
Applicants who are dissatisfied with a reviewable decision under section 80 of the GIPA Act have the right to seek a review. Further information about available review rights is outlined in this Fact Sheet(PDF, 240KB).
Making an Informal Request
Where possible, information not published on our website can be provided informally, unless there is a valid reason to require a formal application under the Governance Information (Public Access) Act (GIPA). Under the Act, access to other information may be granted unless there is an overriding public interest against its disclosure.
Using the Informal Access Request(PDF, 302KB) for any other information required which can be downloaded and emailed or posted to council@cabonne.nsw.gov.au or PO Box 17, Molong NSW 2866.
Please note the GIPA Act provides no statutory timeframe by which informal requests must be decided within. Council is not required to disclose government information pursuant to an informal request and is also not required to consider an informal request for government information (s8(3)). Council can decide however by what means information is to be released in response to an informal request (s8(4)).
Open Access to Information and Your Rights
Open Access Information
Under the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (GIPA Act) and the Government Information (Public Access) Regulation 2018 (GIPA Regulation), all NSW agencies are required to make a range of open access information publicly available, unless there is an overriding public interest against disclosure of
Open access information is to be publicly available free of charge on Council's website (unless to do so would impose an unreasonable additional cost on the Council).
Information About Council:
Your Right to Information
On 1 July 2010 new right to information legislation came into effect, replacing the former freedom of information law.
The new law:
- creates new rights to information that are designed to meet community expectations of more open and transparent government
- encourages government agencies to proactively release government information.
You can find out more about your right to information and new ways to access NSW government information on the Information and Privacy Commission New South Wales (nsw.gov.au)
Proactive Release - Agency Information Guide
(1) An agency is authorised to make any government information held by the agency publicly available unless there is an overriding public interest against disclosure of the information.
(2) The information that an agency decides to make publicly available is to be made publicly available in any manner that the agency considers appropriate, either free of charge or at the lowest reasonable cost to the agency.
(3) An agency must, at intervals of not more than 12 months, review its program for the release of government information under this section to identify the kinds of government information held by the agency that should in the public interest be made publicly available and that can be made publicly available without imposing unreasonable additional costs on the agency.
(4) An agency can facilitate public access to government information contained in a record by deleting matter from a copy of the record to be made publicly available if inclusion of the matter would otherwise result in there being an overriding public interest against disclosure of the record.
(5) The functions of an agency under this section may only be exercised by or with the authority (given either generally or in a particular case) of the principal officer of the agency.
The information Council has decided to proactively make available is listed within Council's Agency Information Guide 2025-2026.pdf(PDF, 6MB)
Contact our Governance Team