Legislation
The Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) is
Australian Commonwealth legislation which gives members of the
public rights of access to official documents of the Government of
the Commonwealth and of its agencies.
The 1982 FOI Act had its origins from an FOI Bill introduced in
1972 which was reviewed by the Senate Standing Committee on
Constitutional and Legal Affairs.
In Australia, the FOI Act was passed at the federal level in 1982,
applying to all "ministers, departments and public authorities" of
the Commonwealth. There is similar legislation in all states and
territories.
The Freedom of Information Amendment (Reform) Act
2010 (Cth) and the Australian Information Commissioner Act 2010
(Cth) received Royal Assent on 31 May 2010, and contain the most
significant changes to the Federal FOI regime since its
establishment.