JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A new Mississippi law requiring users of websites and other digital services to verify their age will unconstitutionally limit access to online speech for minors and adults, a tech industry group says in a lawsuit filed Friday. Legislators said the new law is designed to protect children from sexually explicit material. […]

Victoria, January 25, 2023 – Polling results released during Data Privacy Week reveal British Columbians’ views on freedom of information and privacy. “The public continues to see that a fee to file a request for information is unnecessary, and that legislative timelines should be met,” said BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association (FIPA) Executive […]

FIPA recently replied to an OIPC request that sought details on our experiences with application fees for general FOI requests.   In our response, we restated our ongoing concerns with the application fees and provided stories that illustrate these concerns. For example, we expressed concern that the fees were passed into law during the Special Committee’s […]

A law reform activity has begun to ensure political parties respect your privacy rights. Learn more by visiting Your Political Privacy. Become part of the coalition by emailing yourpoliticalprivacy at fipa.bc.ca

The Special Committee to Review the Personal Information Protection Act released its report with recommendations titled Modernizing British Columbia’s Private Sector Privacy Law. “I am strongly encouraged to see many of the recommendations that FIPA, BCCLA, and our partners made to the Committee reflected in the final report” according to Freedom of Information and Privacy […]

The Code of Silence Award for Outstanding Achievement in Government Secrecy is awarded annually by the Centre for Free Expression, Canadian Association of Journalists, Canadian Journalists for Free Expression, and News Media Canada to call public attention to governments, government departments, and agencies that distinguish themselves by denying public access to government information to which […]

Bill 22 is a failure. We suspected it might be bad. On review it is worse than anyone expected. “We started to compile pluses and minuses,” says FIPA (Freedom of Information and Privacy Association) Executive Director Jason Woywada. “The problem is there are so few positives and so many serious minuses we needed to take immediate […]

A step backwards for transparency when the public needs it most. VICTORIA, October 18, 2021 – Bill 22, introduced in the BC legislature today, shows a disregard for the Legislature, its legislation, and, most importantly, British Columbians.  “The legislation falls short. It is a missed opportunity and, in key areas, a step in the wrong direction” according to FIPA (Freedom of Information and Privacy Association) Executive Director Jason Woywada. […]

Join FIPA President Mike Larsen with Commissioner Michael McEvoy for an important update on transparency and privacy in British Columbia. About this event Commissioner Michael McEvoy of B.C.’s Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner (OIPC) will make a brief presentation followed by facilitated question and answers with FIPA President Mike Larsen. This session will […]

As part of our efforts to recognize the importance of the events and actions past and present that surround this date, FIPA wishes to highlight work being done in the area. Legal Perspectives Indigenous Canadian Conceptions of Privacy: A Legal Primer In 2019, while at Thompson Rivers University Faculty of Law, Kimberly Gee was recognized by the Canadian […]

We write today to ask for clarity from each of your Ministries with respect to the announcement made by School District No 79 Cowichan Valley (SD79) to put in place overt video surveillance on the interior and exterior of their school buses, and with respect to the broader issues that this announcement raises. This project was announced by the school district in April of this year via Facebook and was made possible by a $150,000 allocation in provincial and federal funding from the “Safe Return to Class Fund.”

The Ministry of Citizens’ Services launched an online survey soliciting input on access to government information and the protection of privacy. The Ministry says it will use this input to make improvements to the rules surrounding access to information and protection of personal information. The survey is open until 4pm PT on July 15, 2021.   We were hoping for a […]