What may a public body ask for to determine whether an applicant cannot afford payment of fees charged to respond to a FOIP request?
Section 93(1)(4) allows the head of a public body to waive all or part of a fee if the applicant cannot afford the payment or for any other reason it is fair to excuse payment. Mount Royal can ask an applicant to provide a submission to support a request for such a fee waiver. It should address the issues of need for the information, alternative sources of the information and the reasons for an inability to pay. The FOIP coordinator should also make every effort to narrow the request or find alternate ways of locating and disclosing information whenever possible.
