Annual report to Parliament on the application of the Privacy Act 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022

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    Place du Centre, 4th floor
    200 Promenade du Portage
    Gatineau QC K1A 1K8

    7 October 2022

    The Honourable Bill Blair, P.C., M.P.
    President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada
    and Minister of Emergency Preparedness
    House of Commons
    Ottawa ON K1A 0A6

     

    Dear Minister:

    In accordance with section 72 of the Privacy Act, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada is pleased to submit to Parliament this report on its activities relating to the application of the Act for the period 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022.

    Sincerely,

    Original signed by
    Kathleen Fox
    Chair

    1.0 Introduction

    Pursuant to section 72 of the Privacy Act, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) is pleased to table in Parliament this report on its activities relating to the application of the Act. The report covers the period from 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022.

    The purpose of the Privacy Act is to protect the privacy of individuals with respect to personal information about themselves held by government institutions such as the TSB, and to provide individuals with a right of access to that information.

    The Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board Act provides the legal framework that governs the TSB’s activities. Our mandate is to advance transportation safety in the air, marine, pipeline and rail modes of transportation by:

    • conducting independent investigations, including public enquiries when necessary, into selected transportation occurrences in order to make findings as to their causes and contributing factors;
    • identifying safety deficiencies, as evidenced by transportation occurrences;
    • making recommendations designed to eliminate or reduce any such safety deficiencies; and
    • reporting publicly on our investigations and on the findings in relation thereto.

    The TSB’s administration of its Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) activities is in accordance with the government’s stated principles that government information should be available to the public with only specific and limited exceptions. Furthermore, the TSB treats personal information in compliance with the code of fair information practice expressed in the Privacy Act.

    2.0 ATIP Office organization

    During 2021–22, the Director General, Corporate Services held the responsibilities of the ATIP Coordinator. The ATIP Office also consisted of four full-time positions and temporary help.

    The ATIP Office administers the requests made pursuant to the Act and provides functional advice and guidance to managers and employees concerning the release of information and protection of privacy. ATIP analysts are required to exhibit strong consultative and negotiating skills when meeting with requesters, employees of the TSB, and representatives of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner.

    3.0 Delegation of authority

    As required by the legislation, a delegation of authority is in place. For the purposes of the Privacy Act, the “head of the institution” as defined in section 3 of the Act is the Chair of the TSB. The incumbents of the positions of Chief Operating Officer, General Counsel, Director General for Corporate Services and Senior ATIP Analyst have been delegated powers by the Chair deemed appropriate for the effective administration of the Act. These employees ensure that the TSB meets all its obligations fairly and consistently. The delegation of authority was updated in November 2019 and remains unchanged. A copy of the Delegation Order is attached as Appendix A.

    4.0 Disposition of requests

    4.1 Requests for personal information

    During the 2021–22 reporting period, ten (10) formal requests for personal information were received, compared to twenty-two (22) in 2020-21, to twenty-three (23) received in 2019–20 and twenty-six (26) in 2018–19. Privacy requests received by the TSB are primarily attributed to Canadian airline pilots inquiring as to whether they are named in any occurrences reported to the TSB as certain international airlines request this information as a pre-employment requirement. As well, some employees will request access to their personal information.

    Of the eleven (11) requests closed in 2021–22, records were fully disclosed in eight (8) cases (73%), partially in two (2) cases (18%) and records didn’t exist in one (1) case (9%). One (1) request closed had been carried over from the last fiscal year.

    Of the requests closed during the reporting period, ten (10) were completed within 1 to 15 days and one (1) was completed within 31 to 60 days. The average time taken to process a request during the 2021–22 reporting period was fourteen (14) calendar days, compared with last year’s average of thirty-three (33) in 2020-21 and eight (8) calendar days in 2019–20. Reduced delays can be explained by increased access to office and repository sites with the easing of pandemic measures.

    During this period, the ATIP Office was involved in the search, preparation, and review of seven hundred eighty-four (784) pages of information, and the reproduction and release of two hundred ninety-two (292) pages of information. During past fiscal years, one thousand nine hundred thirty-four (1934) pages were reviewed and seven hundred (700) pages released in 2020-21 and twenty-two (22) pages were reviewed and eighteen (18) pages released in 2019–20. The variation in the number of pages reviewed between years is due to the different type of requests received and additional requests from employees requesting access to their personal information.

    The TSB’s open approach allows for the disclosure of information to its employees without necessarily requiring the Privacy Act to be invoked. Human resources officers and support staff handle these requests as part of their routine duties. The TSB remains vigilant in meeting requirements under the Act to protect personal information under its control. This is achieved by ensuring that employees are cognizant of their responsibility to protect the personal information they handle in the course of their duties and by respecting the code of fair information practice enshrined in the legislation.

    Finally, although the TSB ATIP office was temporarily affected following the mid-March 2020 closure of offices due to the pandemic, the TSB ATIP Office operated normally in 2021-22, making full use of digital tools.

    5.0 Costs

    During 2021–22, the ATIP Office incurred an estimated $27,209 in costs to administer the Privacy Act, compared to $28,574 for the reporting period of 2020–21, $39,007 for 2019–20, and $48,071 for 2018–19. These costs include salaries, overtime, goods and services, and professional services contracts for temporary help staff but do not include the resources expended by other areas of the TSB to meet the requirements of the Act.

    6.0 Training and education

    The TSB has an orientation program in place for new employees, which includes training on ATIP awareness. In addition, the TSB made it mandatory for all staff to attend comprehensive ATIP training sessions given by the ATIP Office. During 2021–22, the ATIP Office provided five (5) training sessions of two (2) hours each to thirty-seven (37) employees, compared to none (0) in 2020–21 and one (1) in 2019–20.

    Given the responsibilities and knowledge requirements of the TSB’s ATIP Office, there is a long learning curve for its staff. Continuous on-the-job training is provided to ATIP staff to ensure sound and current knowledge of ATIP requirements and procedures, as well as TSB operations. In this context, ATIP staff attended all ATIP Community Meetings organized by the Treasury Board Secretariat during 2021–22. These Community Meetings provide the TSB ATIP staff with valuable information on trends and best practices within the ATIP circle, updates on recent complaints and court cases, and tools to help improve service standards within the field. Finally, the TSB ATIP staff attended the yearly Canadian Bar Association Symposium on Access to Information and Privacy latest trends.

    7.0 Policies, guidelines, and procedures

    There were no changes to privacy-related policies, guidelines, or procedures implemented by the TSB during the reporting period 2021–22.

    8.0 Complaints and investigations

    No complaints were received by the Privacy Commissioner in 2021-22.

    9.0 Monitoring process

    The TSB monitors the time to process privacy requests, through biweekly meetings between the ATIP Coordinator and the Senior ATIP Analyst, during which the status of outstanding requests is reviewed. Any significant issues are raised to the Chief Operating Officer on an ad hoc basis when required.

    10.0 Material privacy breaches

    No material privacy breaches occurred during the reporting period.

    11.0 Privacy impact assessments

    The TSB did not undertake any privacy impact assessments during the reporting period.

    12.0 Disclosures pursuant to paragraph 8(2)(m)

    During fiscal year 2021–22, the TSB made no disclosure of information in the public interest pursuant to paragraph 8(2)(m).

    13.0 Statistics required by the Treasury Board

    The statistics required by the Treasury Board Secretariat are found in Appendix B.

    Appendices

    Appendix A – Delegation order

    1 November 2019

    Designation orders - Privacy Act

    The Chair of the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, pursuant to Section 73 of the Privacy Act, hereby designates the persons holding the positions set out in the table below, or the persons occupying on an acting basis those positions, to exercise the specified powers and perform the related duties and functions of the Chair as the Head of a government institution under the Privacy Act.

    This designation replaces the designation dated 5 January 2017.

    Postions Sections of the Privacy Act
    Chair All sections
    Chief Operating Officer All sections
    General Counsel All sections
    Director General, Corporate Services All sections
    Senior ATIP Analyst Extensions - Section 15

    Original signed by
    Kathleen Fox

    Chair

    Appendix B – Statistical Report on the Privacy Act

    Name of institution: Transportation Safety Board of Canada

    Reporting period: 2021-04-01 to 2022-03-31

    Section 1: Requests under the Privacy Act

    1.1 Number of requests received
      Number of requests
    Received during reporting period 10
    Outstanding from previous reporting periods 1
    • Outstanding from previous reporting period
    		 0  
    • Outstanding from more than one reporting period
    		 1  
    Total 11
    Closed during reporting period 11
    Carried over to next reporting period 0
    • Carried over within legislated timeline
    		 0  
    • Carried over beyond legislated timeline
    		 0  
    1.2 Channels of requests
    Source Number of requests
    Online 2
    E-mail 8
    Mail 0
    In person 0
    Phone 0
    Fax 0
    Total 10

    Section 2: Informal requests

    2.1 Number of informal requests
      Number of requests
    Received during reporting period 0
    Outstanding from previous reporting periods 0
    • Outstanding from previous reporting period
    		 0  
    • Outstanding from more than one reporting period
    		 0
    Total 0
    Closed during reporting period 0
    Carried over to next reporting period 0
    2.2 Channels of informal requests
    Source Number of requests
    Online 0
    E-mail 0
    Mail 0
    In person 0
    Phone 0
    Fax 0
    Total 0
    2.3 Completion time of informal requests
    Completion time
    1–15 days 16–30 days 31–60 days 61–120 days 121–180 days 181–365 days More than 365 days Total
    0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    2.4 Pages released informally
    Fewer than 100 pages processed 101–500 pages processed 501–1000 pages processed 1001–5000 pages processed More than 5000 pages processed
    Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed
    0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

    Section 3: Requests closed during the reporting period

    3.1 Disposition and completion time
    Disposition of requests Completion time
    1–15 days 16–30 days 31–60 days 61–120 days 121–180 days 181–365 days More than 365 days Total
    All disclosed 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 8
    Disclosed in part 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 2
    All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    No records exist 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
    Request abandoned 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Total 10 0 1 0 0 0 0 11
    3.2 Exemptions
    Section Number of requests Section Number of requests Section Number of requests
    18(2) 0 22(1)(a)(i) 0 23(a) 0
    19(1)(a) 0 22(1)(a)(ii) 0 23(b) 0
    19(1)(b) 0 22(1)(a)(iii) 0 24(a) 0
    19(1)(c) 0 22(1)(b) 0 24(b) 0
    19(1)(d) 0 22(1)(c) 0 25 0
    19(1)(e) 0 22(2) 0 26 2
    19(1)(f) 0 22.1 0 27 0
    20 0 22.2 0 27.1 0
    21 0 22.3 0 28 0
      22.4 0  
    3.3 Exclusions
    Section Number of requests Section Number of requests Section Number of requests
    69(1)(a) 0 70(1) 0 70(1)(d) 0
    69(1)(b) 0 70(1)(a) 0 70(1)(e) 0
    69.1 0 70(1)(b) 0 70(1)(f) 0
      70(1)(c) 0 70.1 0
    3.4 Format of information released
    Paper Electronic   Other
    E-record Data set Video Audio
    0 10 0 0 0 0
    3.5 Complexity
    3.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed for paper or e-record formats
    Number of pages processed Number of pages disclosed Number of requests
    784 292 10
    3.5.2 Relevant pages processed by request disposition for paper and e-record formats by size of requests
    Disposition Fewer than 100 pages processed 101–500 pages processed 501–1000 pages processed 1001–5000 pages processed More than 5000 pages processed
    Number of requests Pages processed Number of requests Pages processed Number of requests Pages processed Number of requests Pages processed Number of requests Pages processed
    All disclosed 8 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Disclosed in part 0 0 1 124 1 652 0 0 0 0
    All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Request abandoned 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Total 8 8 1 124 1 652 0 0 0 0
    3.5.3 Relevant minutes processed and disclosed for audio formats
    Number of minutes processed Number of minutes disclosed Number of requests
    0 0 0
    3.5.4 Relevant minutes processed per request disposition for audio formats by size of requests
    Disposition Less than 60 minutes processed 60-120 minutes processed More than 120 minutes processed
    Number of requests Minutes processed Number of requests Minutes processed Number of requests Minutes processed
    All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0
    All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0
    All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Request abandoned 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Total 0 0 0 0 0 0
    3.5.5 Relevant minutes processed and disclosed for video formats
    Number of minutes processed Number of minutes disclosed Number of requests
    0 0 0
    3.5.6 Relevant minutes processed per request disposition for video formats by size of requests
    Disposition Less than 60 minutes processed 60-120 minutes processed More than 120 minutes processed
    Number of requests Minutes processed Number of requests Minutes processed Number of requests Minutes processed
    All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0
    All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0
    All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Request abandoned 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Total 0 0 0 0 0 0
    3.5.7 Other complexities
    Disposition Consultation required Legal advice sought Interwoven information Other Total
    All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0
    Disclosed in part 1 0 0 0 1
    All exempted 0 0 0 0 0
    All excluded 0 0 0 0 0
    Request abandoned 0 0 0 0 0
    Neither confirmed nor denied 0 0 0 0 0
    Total 1 0 0 0 1
    3.6 Closed requests
    3.6.1 Number of requests closed within legislated timelines
    Number of requests closed within legislated timelines 11
    Percentage of requests closed within legislated timelines (%) 100
    3.7 Deemed refusals
    3.7.1 Reasons for not meeting legislated timelines
    Number of requests closed past the legislated timelines Principal reason
    Interferences with operations/ Workload External consultation Internal consultation Other
    0 0 0 0 0
    3.7.2 Requests closed beyond legislated timelines (including any extension taken)
    Number of days past legislated timelines Number of requests past legislated timeline where no extension was taken Number of requests past legislated timeline where an extension was taken Total
    1–15 days 0 0 0
    16–30 days 0 0 0
    31–60 days 0 0 0
    61–120 days 0 0 0
    121–180 days 0 0 0
    181–365 days 0 0 0
    More than 365 days 0 0 0
    Total 0 0 0
    3.8 Requests for translation
    Translation requests Accepted Refused Total
    English to French 0 0 0
    French to English 0 0 0
    Total 0 0 0

    Section 4: Disclosures under subsections 8(2) and 8(5)

    Paragraph 8(2)(e) Paragraph 8(2)(m) Subsection 8(5) Total
    0 0 0 0

    Section 5: Requests for correction of personal information and notations

    Disposition for correction requests received Number
    Notations attached 0
    Requests for correction accepted 0
    Total 0

    Section 6: Extensions

    6.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests
    Number of requests where an extension was taken 15(a)(i) Interference with operations 15 (a)(ii) Consultation 15(b) Translation purposes or conversion
    Further review required to determine exemptions Large volume of pages Large volume of requests Documents are difficult to obtain Cabinet confidence section (section 70) External Internal
    1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
    6.2 Length of extension
    Length of extensions 15(a)(i) Interference with operations 15 (a)(ii) Consultation 15(b) Translation purposes or conversion
    Further review required to determine exemptions Large volume of pages Large volume of requests Documents are difficult to obtain Cabinet confidence section (section 70) External Internal
    1–15 days 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    16–30 days 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
    31 days or more   0
    Total 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0

    Section 7: Consultations received from other institutions and organizations

    7.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions, organizations
    Consultations Other Government of Canada institutions Number of pages to review Other organizations Number of pages to review
    Received during the reporting period 0 0 0 0
    Outstanding from the previous reporting period 0 0 0 0
    Total 0 0 0 0
    Closed during the reporting period 0 0 0 0
    Carried over within negotiated timelines 0 0 0 0
    Carried over beyond negotiated timelines 0 0 0 0
    7.2 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions
    Recommendation Number of days required to complete consultation requests
    1 –15 days 16–30 days 31–60 days 61–120 days 121–180 days 181–365 days More than 365 days Total
    All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Consult other institution 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    7.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations outside the Government of Canada
    Recommendation Number of days required to complete consultation requests
    1–15 days 16–30 days 31–60 days 61–120 days 121–180 days 181–365 days More than 365 days Total
    All disclosed 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Disclosed in part 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    All exempted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    All excluded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Consult other institution 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

    Section 8: Completion time of consultations on Cabinet confidences

    8.1 Requests with Legal Services
    Number of days Fewer than 100 pages processed 101–500 pages processed 501–1000 pages processed 1001–5000 pages processed More than 5000 pages processed
    Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed
    1–15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    16–30 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    31–60 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    61–120 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    121–180 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    181–365 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    More than 365 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    8.2 Requests with Privy Council Office
    Number of days Fewer than 100 pages processed 101–500 pages processed 501–1000 pages processed 1001–5000 pages processed More than 5000 pages processed
    Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed Number of requests Pages disclosed
    1–15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    16–30 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    31–60 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    61–120 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    121–180 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    181–365 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    More than 365 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

    Section 9: Complaints and investigation notices received

    Section 31 Section 33 Section 35 Court action Total
    0 0 0 0 0

    Section 10: Privacy impact assessments (PIAs) and personal information banks (PIBs)

    10.1 Privacy impact assessments
    Number of PIA(s) completed 0
    Number of PIA(s) modified 0
    10.2 Institution-specific and central personal information banks
    Personal information banks Active Created Terminated Modified
    Institution-specific 2 0 0 0
    Central 53 0 0 0
    Total 55 0 0 0

    Section 11: Privacy breaches

    11.1 Material privacy breaches reported
    Number of material privacy breaches reported to TBS 0
    Number of material privacy breaches reported to OPC 0
    11.2 Non-material privacy breaches
    Number of non-material privacy breaches 0

    Section 12: Resources related to the Privacy Act

    12.1 Allocated costs
    Expenditures Amount
    Salaries $27,209
    Overtime $0
    Goods and services $683
    • Professional services contracts
    		 $0
    • Other
    		 $683
    Total $27,892
    12.2 Human resources
    Resources Person-years dedicated to privacy activities
    Full-time employees 0.400
    Part-time and casual employees 0.000
    Regional staff 0.000
    Consultants and agency personnel 0.000
    Students 0.000
    Total 0.400