Office of the Saskatchewan Information and Privacy Commissioner. Guide to LA FOIP, Chapter 6, Protection of Privacy. Updated 27 February 2023. 267 (3) Section 12 applies, with any necessary modification, to the extension of the period set out in subsection (2). Subsection 31(2) of LA FOIP provides local authorities with the options for responding to requests for correction. Within 30 days, the local authority must respond in writing giving its decision. See Subsection 31(2) of LA FOIP later in this Chapter for more guidance. Subsection 31(3) of LA FOIP allows a local authority to extend the 30-day response period. See Subsection 31(3) of LA FOIP later in this Chapter for more guidance. The right of correction was considered necessary because of the significance that personal information has for the ways in which local authorities deal with individuals in a wide variety of situations. Incorrect personal information in the hands of a local authority can have serious consequence for an individual in his or her dealings with the local authority, whether it be in relation to entitlement to benefits, suitability for employment or contracts or otherwise.693 The right provided to individuals by LA FOIP with regard to the correction of personal information about themselves is not an absolute right to require the correction of any such information that they consider to be incorrect. Such a right would leave local authority information subject to too great an extent, to the viewpoints of the individuals concerned. There will sometimes be uncertainty about whether particular information is correct or incorrect and independent verification may not be possible or feasible. The individual may take one view and the local authority another. In these circumstances, it would be inappropriate to require a local authority to “correct” its information to conform with the individual’s view.694 What the right of correction does provide to individuals is a mechanism for requesting the correction of personal information about themselves when they believe that there is an error or omission in the information. The local authority in question is then free to make the correction desired or not, as it sees fit. If the correction is made, the individual concerned will have achieved his or her objective. If the local authority declines to make the requested 693 Adapted from McNairn, C., Woodbury, C., 2009, Government Information: Access and Privacy, Carswell: Toronto, p. 8-28. 694 McNairn, C., Woodbury, C., 2009, Government Information: Access and Privacy, Carswell: Toronto, p. 8-28.
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