As a public authority, the George Town Council is bound by the provisions of the Right to Information Act and is committed to furthering the objectives stated within it.
Information Disclosure PolicyInformation Disclosure
The Right to Information Act 2009 commenced on 1 July 2010 and provides for greater access to information held by government bodies by:
Why do we have a Right to Information Act?
Section 3 of the Act includes this statement of the objects of the Act:
(1) The object of this Act is to improve democratic government in Tasmania -
(a) by increasing the accountability of the executive to the people of Tasmania; and
(b) by increasing the ability of the people of Tasmania to participate in their governance; and
(c) by acknowledging that information collected by public authorities is collected for and on behalf of the people of Tasmania and is the property of the State.
(2) This object is to be pursued by giving members of the public the right to obtain information held by public authorities and Ministers.
(3) This object is also to be pursued by giving members of the public the right to obtain information about the operations of Government.
(4) It is the intention of Parliament -
(a) that this Act be interpreted so as to further the object set out in subsection (1); and
(b) that discretions conferred by this Act be exercised so as to facilitate and promote, promptly and at the lowest reasonable cost, the provision of the maximum amount of official information.
How do I get Access to Information?
The George Town Council is required by the Right to Information Act 2009 to make information available to the public through proactive disclosure, this means we are to routinely make information available which will assist the public in understanding what it is we do and how we do it.
This is may be done via our website, through publications (e.g. Council Newsletters), via reports (e.g. our Annual Report).
Some information is not released in this way, either because it is not of general public interest or because it is information the Council would need to assess against the exemptions in the Right to Information Act 2009 prior to disclosure.
If you cannot find the information via one of the means below contact the Council and we may be able to assist you in finding it or we may give it to you. If it is not freely available we will assist you to make an application for an assessed disclosure.
You may find information from the George Town Council in one of the following ways:
Via Tasmania Online
Direct from the George Town Council
Assessed Disclosure
Applications for the George Town Council are to be addressed to:
The General Manager
George Town Council
PO Box 161
George Town TAS 7253
Or email: council@georgetown.tas.gov.au
A form to assist in making an application is available from Council Office, or can be downloaded HERE.
Applications for information need to be made to the department, authority or council holding the relevant information or most closely linked to the information. A webpage like this one is available for most other public authorities.
If you are not using the form, please note that your applications must be made in writing and include the information which is requested in the application form - this is a requirement of Regulation 4 of the Right to Information Regulations 2021.
Applications are to be accompanied by the application fee. The application fee is 25 Fee Units as designated by the Department of Treasury and Finance annually.
For further information regarding your Right to Information request please download Council's Application for Assessed Disclosure to Information Procedure.
What will we do once we have your Application?
If the application or part of the application is refused, then the reasons for the refusal to provide the information must be provided as part of the decision together with details on the right to seek a review of the decision. This is done by writing to:
Right to Information Officer
George Town Council
PO Box 161
George Town TAS 7253
If the officer assessing your request does not get back to you in the timeframe allowed then we are taken to have refused your application and you are able to make an application for review to the Ombudsman if your choose. Some information on reviews by the Ombudsman can be found on the Office of the Ombudsman's website
Further Information
The Manual and Guidelines will provide you with a little more detail on making requests under the RTI Act and how they are processed by the agency to which the request is sent.
These are available on the Office of the Ombudsman's website
Related Acts and Regulations
You can view, download and print the following Acts and Regulations made available by the Tasmanian Legislation Online website.
[Right to Information Act 2009]
[Right to Information Regulations 2021]
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