Statement: The VSB’s Denial of Our FOI Fee Waiver

Read our letter to the VSB regarding the waiver denial. Sent September 17, 2021.

Update: On October 14, the VSB reduced The Nest’s fee estimate following a formal request for reconsideration.

In August, The Griffins’ Nest sent an FOI request under section 5 of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIPPA) to the Vancouver School Board for records related to an educational program of the district for upcoming an investigative article. The records requested were related to financial spending and program effectiveness, and were clearly in the public interest.

Under FOIPPA, public bodies, including school boards, are required to respond, assist, and provide records to a person who submits a request for information regarding the body’s activities. There are a few narrow exceptions under FOIPPA where a public body does not have to, or cannot provide the applicant with the requested information, but generally they have to provide the applicant with the requested information.

All of this is intended to be done free of charge, except when a large request is submitted where the public body is permitted to charge a reasonable processing fee under section 75 of FOIPPA. However, where records are in the public interest (as in they contain information the public should know in a democratic country), or where the applicant is unable to pay the fee for a valid reason, the applicant may write to the public body requesting a fee waiver under s. 75(5)(a) or (b).

The Nest did just that when it was given a $220 fee estimate by the VSB’s FOI office. We submitted a fee waiver request, under both the affordability and public interest exemptions. (The letter is linked at the top of this statement).

The waiver request was promptly denied, in an email simply saying "Unfortunately, we are unable to grant your fee waiver request.", before going on to inform us we may reduce the size of our request to lower the fee. No actual reason was given.

The Nest wrote back in the above letter asking the VSB to reconsider their fee waiver denial, a step required before a compliant to the OIPC is filed.

The Nest’s Editorial Board strongly disagrees with the VSB’s undemocratic and restrictive approach to our press freedom. The $220 fee in our view is more of an attempt to keep files away from the public rather than cover the cost of a large FOI request. It is a direct attack on freedom of information, freedom of expression, and freedom of the press.

The records we requested are clearly and obviously in the public interest, and as students, our own school board should not be trying to charge us for accessing democracy. That is completely unacceptable.

This is the second major press freedom obstruction incident The Nest has had to deal with in the past year.

The Nest intends to continue to defend its press freedom, and defend the public’s right to an open and transparent government — a government that doesn’t withhold public interest documents and charge kids for trying to access them.

The Griffins’ Nest Editorial Board and Staff Reporters are grateful for the support of its readership, particularly the students, staff, and parents/guardians of the Eric Hamber Secondary Community. Follow the Journalism Blog for more details on Hamber’s nationally recognized student newspaper.

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