BY DREW BARNES
MLA for Cypress-Medicine Hat
Imagine a world where information flows freely. A world where government automatically posts the conditions of and needed upgrades for your local hospital, or reports about the standards of patient care, or accounts for every tax dollar.
In this dream of easy information access there are no complicated applications, no cumbersome hoops to jump through, and no denials from shadowy government offices. There are no needless and lengthy delays. Finally, there are no bills demanding thousands of dollars before you get the information you seek.
Getting hassle-free information on what your tax dollars pay for sounds pretty great, right? Alberta is a long way off from achieving a free-flowing information society. Recently, however, MLAs had a chance to take a big step towards enhancing freedom of information in Alberta.
I was honoured to be able to present Bill 204 in the Alberta Legislature this spring, the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FOIP) Amendment Act.
The focus of Bill 204 was simple: to provide Albertans better access to information about government. Unfortunately, the PC government did not see a need to improve information access to Albertans and voted it down.
As an MLA, I frequently hear from constituents asking for more information about government ministries, Alberta Health Services, or other provincial government agencies. But when I try to access the information I need to serve my constituents, like regular Albertans, I am repeatedly blocked and bombarded by costly bills worth thousands of dollars. Under the FOIP process, applicants can apply for a fee waiver if it is in the public interest. However, this is often denied and the appeal process can take months or years.
Bill 204 sought to remedy this problem. My private member’s bill would have allowed MLAs up to four cost-free FOIP requests per year. MLAs would be able to better serve their constituents by having access to the information they need.
FOIP has proven invaluable in uncovering misuse of tax dollars. Whether it was the South Africa travel expenses, the abuse of the government air fleet to attend partisan rallies, or the sole-sourcing of contracts that didn’t deliver value for taxpayers, FOIP has been the tool of choice for journalists and enterprising Albertans to find out what their government has been up to.
It is my hope that Alberta will continue to move towards greater freedom of information. Albertans can count on Wildrose continuing to push for greater accountability and transparency in government. If you would like to share your thoughts on Bill 204, please write to: Cypress.MedicineHat@assembly.ab.ca.