Office of the Saskatchewan Information and Privacy Commissioner. Guide to LA FOIP, Chapter 6, Protection of Privacy. Updated 27 February 2023. 95 Application means a formal request to an authority.255 Discretionary benefits: Discretionary means a choice given to a decision-maker as to whether, or how, to exercise a power.256 Involves the exercise of judgement and choice.257 Benefit means an advantage or profit gained from something.258 Benefit connotes some advantage or betterment.259 A favourable or helpful factor or circumstance.260 For a benefit to be discretionary, the decision-maker must have a choice as to whether, or how, to grant the benefit. There must not be a duty to grant the “benefit”.261 IPC Findings In Review Report 130-2015, the Commissioner considered the Ministry of Environment’s application of the equivalent provision in The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIP) to a list of the names of eight companies and two individuals that submitted mineral exploration proposals to the Ministry of Environment. The Ministry of Environment asserted the proposals qualified as applications for discretionary benefits described in subsection 24(3)(a) of FOIP. The Commissioner found that in order for subsection 24(3) of FOIP to apply, the criteria at both subsections (a) and (b) must apply. The Commissioner found that companies do not qualify as identifiable individuals so would not qualify as personal information as required by subsection 24(3)(b) of FOIP. Further, the Commissioner found that the mineral exploration proposals constituted work product and not personal information. Subsection 24(3) of FOIP was found to not apply. 255 Pearsall, Judy, Concise Oxford Dictionary, 10th Ed. at p. 64, (Oxford University Press). 256 AB IPC Order 98-014 at [16]. 257 Garner, Bryan A., 2019. Black’s Law Dictionary, 11th Edition. St. Paul, Minn.: West Group at p. 586. 258 Pearsall, Judy, Concise Oxford Dictionary, 10th Ed. at p. 126, (Oxford University Press). 259 Hans v. STU, 2016 NBKB 49 (CanLII) at [29]. 260 SK OIPC Review Reports LA-2009-001 at [90] to [92] and 082-2017 at [18]. 261 AB IPC Order 98-014 at [16].
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