Access to Information and Privacy Acts
The Access to Information Act (ATIA) gives Canadian citizens*, permanent residents*, individuals present** in Canada, and corporations located in Canada the right to have access to information in federal government records that are not of a personal nature. The Act ensures that people can ask for information and, if it is not exempt or excluded, the federal government must let them see it or give them a copy.
The Privacy Act (PA) gives Canadian citizens*, permanent residents* and individuals present** in Canada certain rights with respect to personal information about themselves held by federal institutions. The law also protects the individual's privacy by preventing others from having access to personal information and gives individuals substantial control over its collection and use. The Privacy Act only allows you to seek access to your own personal information. It does not give you access to personal information about another individual.
*Requesters may be required to provide proof of citizenship or residency (ATI Regulation 7.3; PA Regulation 8(2))
** Requesters must be physically in Canada at the time the request is filed and at the time access is given. (ATI s.4(1); PA s. 12(1)). Requesters may be required to provide additional proof.
All requesters must provide their name, address, telephone number, and place of residence, work or education.
All information collected by the Canada Council for the Arts is subject to these laws.
Proactive Disclosure
In many cases, you will be able to find the information you are looking for by searching the Canada Council for the Arts website or reviewing the content of the Research link for granting profiles, statistics, issues and trends, art facts and links to additional sources.
The Canada Council policy is to publish, on its website, information on all grants and prizes awards. The “Who received a grant?” link allows users to search for grants and prizes awarded in the previous fiscal year using a number of searchable fields: fiscal year; discipline; program; name of the recipient(s)/organization. Committee members participating in the Peer Assessment process are also listed on the site.
Requesting information under the Access to Information Act (ATIA)
Requesting or correcting personal information under the Privacy Act (PA)
Collection, use and disclose of personal information collected by the Canada Council for the Arts
Social Insurance Number and grant acknowledgements
Principles for Assisting Applicants
Info Source
ATIP annual reports to Parliament
Additional information
Requesting information under the Access to Information Act (ATIA)
To access records under the ATIA you must describe in writing, the information you want including any relevant details to help us locate the information or complete the Request Form (pdf, 51k).
Send your completed request to the Canada Council’s ATIP Coordinator enclosing a $5.00 application fee payable to “Canada Council for the Arts”. If a request requires a lengthy search or involves a large volume of records, you can be asked to pay additional processing fees.
Note: You may not be given complete access to the information requested. For example the ATIA protects information that could be expected to injure private or public interests. The Privacy Act protects specific types of personal information.
An informal request is a request for records which does not invoke the right of access provided by the Access to Information Act or the Privacy Act. There are no formal time constraints, fees or opportunities for independent review of decisions for these types of requests. Contact us informally before using the ATIA.
Information subject to exemption under the Acts is not released informally.
Requesting or correcting personal information under the Privacy Act (PA)
To make a formal request under the Privacy Act complete the Request Form (pdf, 51k) or provide a detailed written description of the information being requested to the Council’s ATIP Coordinator.
Note: There are no fees associated with requests to access your own personal information. The PA only allows you to seek access to your own personal information. It does not give you access to personal information about another individual.
You do not have to use the Privacy Act to obtain feedback on your Canada Council application or to access information about you held in the Council’s files. The Council encourages you to write informally to the appropriate program section. However, external assessments are subject to the Acts (see below).
The Act also contains a procedure for requesting the correction of inaccuracies in personal information. Requests for correction of the content of your information or to add a notation to your personal record under the control of the Canada Council for the Arts is made by completing the Correction to Personal Information Request form.
Collection, use and disclose of personal information collected by the Canada Council for the Arts
The Canada Council receives personal information from people and organizations who apply for grants, members of the committees who assess applications, and many others in the course of its activities. All personal information held by the Council is subject to the ATIP Acts.
The Canada Council may only use personal information for the purposes for which it was originally collected or for uses consistent with that purpose. The following information is protected and can only be disclosed with the individual’s consent:
- home address
- telephone number
- social insurance number
- gender
- date of birth
- written comments about an individual
Once a grant has been approved and the recipient of the prize or grant has been notified in writing, the Council may release the following information without consent:
- name and location of the individual/organization
- amount and purpose of the grant (this may include a summary of the project as well as the expenditures of the grant)
The Canada Council may use this personal information in the following ways:
- annual reporting of successful applications
- statistical reporting, studies, issue and trend analysis
- the Council website’s “Searchable Grant Listing”
- mailing lists to inform clients and stakeholders of Council news, program updates, publications and other information
Information voluntarily provided by applicants and collected on artists and arts organizations (e.g. artistic practice, language, region, gender, age, and cultural and racial diversity) is used by the Council to advance equal opportunity and access to its programs and services.
Peer assessors
The identity of external peer assessors (individuals who make up the committees that review grant applications) is protected by the ATIP Acts and is not divulged to anyone unless the assessor wishes to be identified.
Once the peer assessor’s term has ended, the names and locations of the members of the peer assessment committees are available upon request. The names of the members who served on committees during one fiscal year are published on the Council's website.
(Additional information: Peer Assessment: How the Council makes its decisions)
Grant applications
The Canada Council keeps the contents of applications confidential. Peer assessors reviewing the applications must agree to protect the information entrusted to them. They must also keep the deliberations of the committee meetings, and their written assessments and reports confidential.
On a confidential basis, the Council may share information related to applications and awards with officials in other arts funding agencies for program planning and evaluation.
If you’ve submitted a grant application, you may request to review the contents of your file and the artistic assessments pertaining to the application. The full text of the assessments will be released, except for the name of the assessor and any information that might reveal the assessor's identity as well as personal comments made about other individuals.
Notes are generally not taken in peer assessed committee meetings. A peer committee may choose to make comments about a specific application which are conveyed to the applicant concerned through the letter of announcement. In keeping with the Council's policy of confidentiality, the comments are not attributed to individual peer committee members.
Social Insurance Number and grant acknowledgements
The Canada Council is required by the Income Tax Act to include the individual's Social Insurance Number on the T4As it issues to individuals' grants and services performed. It is not recommended that sensitive personal information, like your Social Insurance Number (SIN) or Personal Identification Number (PIN), be included in any correspondence you send to the Council via electronic means such as email or online contact forms.
Principles for Assisting Applicants
In processing your access request under the Access to Information Act, we will:
1. Process your request without regard to your identity.
2. Make a reasonable effort to assist with the request.
3. Inform you as appropriate when your request needs to be clarified.
4. Make reasonable efforts to locate and retrieve the requested records.
5. Apply limited and specific exemptions to the requested records.
6. Provide accurate and complete responses.
7. Provide timely access to the requested information.
8. Provide records in the format and official language requested, as appropriate.
9. Provide an appropriate location within the government institution to examine the requested information.
Info Source
Info Source is a register of federal information holdings, and includes the Canada Council for the Arts. It is a reference tool for citizens wishing to exercise their rights under the ATIA and PA Acts. Info Source is available online, as well as at most public and academic libraries.
2012 Access to Information Act and Privacy Act Designation Order
ATIP annual reports to Parliament
Annual Reports are the means by which federal institutions account for their administration of the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act, including both their successes and challenges.
In accordance with Section 72 of the Access to Information Act, and in accordance with Section 72 of the Privacy Act, the Annual Report on the administration of the Acts at the Canada Council for the Arts describes how the Council discharged its responsibilities in relation to the Acts in the fiscal year 2011-2012.
2011-2012
2010-2011
2009-2010
2008-2009
How can I get more information?
Contact:
Debbie Stenson
Access to Information and Privacy Coordinator
Canada Council for the Arts
350 Albert Street P.O. Box 1047
Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5V8
Telephone: (613) 566-4414, ext. 4696
Toll free: 1-800-263-5588, ext. 4696
Facsimile (613) 566-4390