Freedom of Information

The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (“FOIPPA”) is a provincial statute, which sets out the access and privacy rights of individuals as they relate to the public sector. It was established to make public bodies more accountable to the public and to protect personal privacy. You can find more information from the Office of the Information and Privacy Commission for BC and the Province of BC

What can I request?

You have the right to request any record in the custody or control of the City of Chilliwack, with some exceptions. To clarify the exceptions under the Act, we offer a list of common scenarios where redaction of information is required, depending on the applicable legislation.

Most of the information held by the City is available to the public, such as answers to questions related to departmental operations, bylaws, policies, procedures, and open agendas and minutes. You can click on this link for a more comprehensive list of records that are routinely released or require an FOI request. You can also contact the pertinent department directly here

How do I make a request?

You can submit a request by filling out a Freedom of Information Request form, which is also available at City Hall Reception and Legislative Services counters. If you need assistance completing the form, please contact the Freedom of Information and Privacy Coordinator for the City of Chilliwack at [email protected] or 604.793.2986.If you are requesting personal information on behalf of another person, you will need to obtain their consent and provide us with their signed Consent to Disclosure form. 

To submit your completed Freedom of Information Request form: 

  • Email it to [email protected] 
  • Submit in person at Chilliwack City Hall
  • Mail to: City of Chilliwack, Freedom of Information and Privacy Coordinator, 8550 Young Road, Chilliwack BC, V2P 8A4. 

Is there a fee? 

All Freedom of Information requests are to be accompanied by a $10.00 non-refundable application fee. This fee is required prior to the processing of any request.

  • There are fees for copying and sending the records to the recipient
  • There are fees to access non-personal information if it takes more than three hours to find, or prepare, the records for release
  • If we anticipate an extra charge for these items, we will send a fee estimate before processing the request and may require a deposit

What happens next? 

The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act of BC provides that we must respond to your request within 30 business days of receipt of application fee payment, except in special circumstances where limited extensions may be made. However, we will make every effort to make the records available sooner if possible.

Special circumstances where the public body can extend the request up to 30 additional business days may include: 

  • Third-party consultation
  • Clarification of request (more detail is required to enable us to identify a requested record)
  • A large number of records are requested or must be searched and the time limit would unreasonably interfere with the operations of the public body (this may be further extended at the approval of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner)
  • If locating and retrieving a record exceeds three hours, the public body must provide the applicant with a written fee estimate before providing the services; and, may require the applicant to pay a deposit in the amount set by the head of the public body

Once all preliminary steps are completed, you will receive an acknowledgment letter outlining the process including key timelines. The FOI Coordinator will then request the necessary records from the relevant departments. Once the records are received, the Coordinator will:

  • Compile all documents into a PDF
  • Review the records, redacting any information as required by the Act
  • Send a notification that the documents are ready to be picked up or emailed to you 
Attachments
Description Date File Size 
Consent to Disclosure of Personal Information 2025-01-22 129KB 
Freedom of Information Request Form (Fillable) 2025-01-22 1.87MB 
List of Records Releasable or Require an FOI Request 2025-01-22 285KB