Freedom of Information

The Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) enables any member of the community to request information in documentary form held by Government and its agencies. 

The FOI Act does not apply to documents which are available for a fee, part of a public register or are already publicly available; for example, a copy of a Planning Permit. 

Details about information that is publicly available can be found here Publicly Available Information - Mornington Peninsula Shire (mornpen.vic.gov.au)

For Planning and Building documents, please see section below.

Our Freedom of Information Part II Information Statement  explains how Council is making information readily available to the public.

How to make a Freedom of Information request

All requests must be for documents and be in writing. You need to be specific with the types of documents you are requesting and provide us with a timeframe. If the terms of your request are not deemed sufficiently clear; under section 17 of the FOI Act you will be asked to provide clarification.

All requests must be accompanied by the application fee (see fees and charges below).

Download: Freedom of Information application form(PDF, 360KB)

Your form can be lodged with us as follows:

Via email: foi@mornpen.vic.gov.au

Via post: the FOI Officer, Mornington Peninsula Shire Council, Private Bag 1000, Rosebud VIC 3939

In person at either the Rosebud, Mornington or Hastings Customer Service Centres.

For more information visit the Make a freedom of information request page on The Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner (OVIC) website.

Fees and Charges

Under section 22 of the FOI Act and the Freedom of Information (Access Charges) Regulations 2025, access charges are applicable to FOI requests. The application fee and access charges increase annually on 1 July and are set by government regulations. A summary of the charges is as follows:

Application Fee: $34.50

Access Charges

  • Search time – per hour or part thereof: $25.90
  • Supervision for inspection of documents – per hour to be calculated per quarter hour or part thereof:   $25.90 per hour. Up to 15 minutes - $6.50

Copying charges:

  • per black and white A4 page: 20 cents
  • Copying charges – other formats: Reasonable costs incurred by Council.

Payment

Please note:

  • No charges apply to requests for the correction or amendment of your own personal information.
  • Under section 22(4) of the FOI Act, if it is estimated that the charges will be between $70.00 and $100.00, a deposit of $25.00 is required before the request is further processed.
  • If the calculated amount will exceed $100.00, the required deposit amount is 50% of the estimated charge.
  • Documents are not provided until the applicable charges are paid.
  • Final access charges are calculated once the documents have been located; you will be notified of the additional amount to be paid. Access charges consist of search time, photocopying and inspection charges.
  • The application fee may be waived if payment would cause you hardship. Council requires evidence of hardship to waive the fee. Examples of suitable evidence include a copy of the applicant’s valid Health Care or Pensioner Concession card.

Processing a Freedom of Information Request

The timeframes for processing an FOI request can vary.

The minimum timeframe for processing an FOI request is 30 days. The timeframe may be extended by 15 days if consultation is required.

The timeframe commences from the date a valid request is received. A request is considered valid if the application fee is paid or has been waived and the terms of the request are sufficiently clear. If the terms of the request are not sufficiently clear, we will contact you to clarify your request and provide you with assistance to do so if necessary.

Where documents that fall within the scope of a request contain information about individuals other than the applicant or contain certain business information that is not the applicant’s, consultation must occur with those third parties to seek their views on release of the information. As part of the consultation process, an applicant’s name and description of the request may be provided to the third parties.  

Where a decision is made to release third party information without the consent of the third party, the third party has a 60 day period to appeal the decision at the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT). At the end of the 60 day period, if no appeal has been made, the documents will be released to the applicant.

A Notice of Decision is provided to an applicant detailing the documents that were considered, and the reasoning for any exemptions applied to information. If an applicant disagrees with the decision not to release documents or to exempt information, they may seek a review of the decision by the Information Commissioner. Details about how to apply for a review are included in the Notice of Decision.

 

Exempt documents

You can ask for access to any document held by Mornington Peninsula Shire Council, however there are some cases where access may not be granted, or documents provided in a redacted form due to exemptions permissible under the Act. Common exemptions relevant to council documents are:

  • Law enforcement documents – section 31(1)
  • Documents affecting legal proceedings – section 32(1)
  • Personal information about a person other than the applicant (such as names, addresses, phone numbers) – section 33(1)
  • Information relating to trade secrets (putting a commercial business at an unreasonable disadvantage) – section 34(1)
  • Information obtained in confidence – section 35(1)

Planning and Building documents

Contact

You can contact Council’s Freedom of Information Officer with your enquiries and for assistance in making a valid request under the FOI Act.

Phone: 5950 1000

Email: foi@mornpen.vic.gov.au

Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner

The Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner (OVIC) is an independent regulator with combined oversight of information access, information privacy, and data protection. You can contact OVIC for a review of an FOI decision made by Council or if you have a complaint about the way Council has handled your request.

For further information about FOI, visit ovic.vic.gov.au

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