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BC’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act is about to receive a legislative review for the third time in its history. A Special Committee of the Legislature has been struck, and it is expected to have its first meeting soon.

There will be no shortage of issues for the MLAs to deal with if recent critical reports by FIPA and the Information and Privacy Commissioner are any indication.

Previous reviews took place in 1999 and 2004, and a number of the most important recommendations of those special committees for improving the troubled FOIPP Act and its administration have been ignored by government.

The terms of reference require the Special Committee to report back to the Legislature by May 31, 2010, which is considerably less time than provided for in the Act. This could mean that witnesses will be called in very short order, meaning they will have a very short time to prepare for what should be a very serious exercise.

Information on the Special Committee and its members can be found on the Legislative Assembly website at

http://www.leg.bc.ca/cmt/39thparl/session-1/foi/index.htm