Requests for Official InformationNgā tono pārongo

Requests for Official Information

Requests for Official Information should be addressed to the:

Chief Executive
Central Hawke's Bay District Council
PO Box 127
WAIPAWA 4240

or sent to governance@chbdc.govt.nz with "Attention Chief Executive, Local Government Official Information Act Request" in the subject line.

Please be as specific as you can be in making your request as that helps us to find the information for you. Make sure you include your contact details so we can provide you with a response.

How long will it take to process my request?

We will acknowledge your request and in most cases you will receive the information within 20 working days. You can use the calculator on this Office of the Ombudsmen page to determine when the 20 working days expire.

However, if your request is complex, involves a large amount of research and collation, or requires us to consult with other parties, and we cannot provide you with the information within 20 days, we may extend the time limit. We will let you know if we need to do this.

If the information you want is held by another organisation covered by the Act, we may transfer your request to that agency. If we transfer your request, we will advise you of the details within 10 working days of receiving your request.

Urgent requests

You may ask that your request be treated as urgent. If you do, you must give reasons explaining the need for urgency.

Withholding information

We may withhold information for specific reasons. If we do, we will explain the reasons.

The specific reasons enabling us to withhold information are set out in section 6 and section 7 of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act. The most common reasons for withholding information are to:

• protect people’s privacy
• maintain legal privilege
• enable Council to carry on its commercial activities.

What will it cost?

Generally, there will be no charge for completing your request. Occasionally, however, if a request requires substantial collation and research, or we have received a large number of requests from the same person in a short time frame which, taken together, require a large amount of staff resource to respond to, we are able to consider imposing a charge.

If there is going to be a charge to access the information we will advise you of the maximum estimated cost of processing your request before we begin working on it. You can then decide if you want to continue, withdraw or refine your request. If you wish to proceed, you will be asked to pay the cost in advance.

Review of decisions

If you are unhappy with a decision to withhold information, to charge a fee, to extend the timeframe on a request, or if you have any concerns about how we have dealt with your request, you are able to have the decision reviewed by the Office of the Ombudsmen.

Need more information?

If you have any questions regarding official information requests, please email Central Hawke's Bay District Council, with 'Official information request' in the subject line.

For more information see:

• Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act
• Office of the Ombudsmen
• Office of the Privacy Commissioner

Published Response to Information Requests

Responses to the most recent information requests, of broader interest can be found here.

Online Information Request Form (LGOIMA)