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Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987

Requests for access to information held by local authorities

15: Documents

You could also call this:

"How local authorities give you information and documents when you ask for them"

Illustration for Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987

When you ask a local authority for information, they can give it to you in different ways. They can let you look at the document, give you a copy, or play a recording for you. They can also give you a written transcript of what the recording says.

The local authority can give you the information in electronic form, like an email. They should give it to you in the way you prefer, unless it would cause problems or break the law. If they cannot give it to you in your preferred way, they must tell you why and explain their reasons if you ask.

If the local authority does not want to give you the information in a certain way, they must consider section 6 and section 7 before making a decision. You can ask them to explain why they made that decision, but they might not be able to tell you if it would hurt someone or something that the law protects. They also have to follow section 8 when deciding what to tell you.

The local authority must balance your right to know with the need to protect certain information, as outlined in section 6 and section 7, and consider any countervailing public interest. They can give you a summary of the information instead of the whole document. They can also tell you about the information over the phone.

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This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM123003.

Topics:
Government and voting > Local councilsRights and equality > Privacy
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14: Extension of time limits, or

"Local authorities can take a bit more time to answer your questions if they need to"

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16: Deletion of information from documents, or

"Getting some information, but not all: what happens when a local authority deletes parts of a document"

Part 2Requests for access to information held by local authorities

15Documents

  1. Where the information requested by any person is comprised in a document, that information may be made available in 1 or more of the following ways:

  2. by giving the person a reasonable opportunity to inspect the document; or
    1. by providing the person with a copy of the document; or
      1. in the case of a document that is an article or thing from which sounds or visual images are capable of being reproduced, by making arrangements for the person to hear or view those sounds or visual images; or
        1. in the case of a document by which words are recorded in a manner in which they are capable of being reproduced in the form of sound or in which words are contained in the form of shorthand writing or in codified form, by providing the person with a written transcript of the words recorded or contained in the document; or
          1. by giving an excerpt or summary of the contents; or
            1. by furnishing oral information about its contents.

              1. Subject to subsections (2) and (3), information made available in any of the ways listed in subsection (1) may be made available in electronic form or by electronic means.

              2. Subject to section 16, the local authority shall make the information available in the way preferred by the person requesting it unless to do so would—

              3. impair efficient administration; or
                1. be contrary to any legal duty of any local authority in respect of the document; or
                  1. prejudice the interests protected by section 6 or section 7 and (in the case of the interests protected by section 7) there is no countervailing public interest.

                    1. Where the information is not provided in the way preferred by the person requesting it, the local authority shall, subject to section 8, give to that person—

                    2. the reason for not providing the information in that way; and
                      1. if that person so requests, the grounds in support of that reason, unless the giving of those grounds would itself prejudice the interests protected by section 6 or section 7 and (in the case of the interests protected by section 7) there is no countervailing public interest.

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                        Notes
                        • Section 15(1A): inserted, on , by section 9 of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Amendment Act 2015 (2015 No 23).