[LINK] Principles on open public sector information released

[Marghanita da Cruz]

Tom Worthington wrote:
> Greetings from the Meta 2011 Conference at ANU University House in 
> Canberra, where Professor John McMillan, the Australian Information 
> Commissioner, launched the new "Principles on open public sector 
> information": 
> <http://www.oaic.gov.au/publications/agency_resources/principles_on_psi_short.html>.
> 

This is a particularly useful version as it can be incorporated into Agency 
websites with a simple server side include (or at least that is the case 
for those whose websites are hosted on Apache servers).

Marghanita

> Along with the principles is a "Report on review and development of 
> principles": 
> <http://www.oaic.gov.au/publications/reports/Principles_open_public_sector_info_report_may2011.html>.
> 
> It is good to see that the commission released the documents in the form 
> of simple and easy to read HTML files, as well as PDF and RTF. They also 
> put the HTML version first, which will be most useful.: 
> <http://www.oaic.gov.au/infopolicy-portal/reports_infopolicy.html>.
> 
> Professor McMillan discussed the role of metadata in information policy. 
> He pointed out that metadata may contain information about individuals 
> and so breach their privacy, under national provacy principles, which 
> apply to government agencies and non-government organisations. 
> Organisations need to check the metadata hidden in documents, before 
> they release them (it can be entertaining to see what is hidden away in 
> documents released by government).
> 
> Professor McMillan also pointed out that metadata is important to the 
> mechanics of implementing the government's information policy. He held 
> up a copy of the new report, at which point I checked it was actually 
> online (which it was).
> 
> One of the audience asked about intellectual property. The Commissioner 
> replied this was the responsibility of the Attorney General's 
> department, but pointed out this was touched on in the information 
> principles and AGs recommend use of a Creative Commons licence for 
> material to be released to the public.
> 
> Here are the eight principles of open government sector information:
> 
> Principle 1: Open access to information - a default position
> 
>      Information held by Australian Government agencies is a valuable 
> national resource. If there is no legal need to protect the information 
> it should be open to public access. Information publication enhances 
> public access. Agencies should use information technology to disseminate 
> public sector information, applying a presumption of openness and 
> adopting a proactive publication stance.
> 
> Principle 2: Engaging the community
> 
>      Australian Government policy requires agencies to engage the 
> community online in policy design and service delivery. This should 
> apply to agency information publication practices ...
> 
> Principle 3: Effective information governance
> 
>      Australian Government agencies should manage information as a core 
> strategic asset. A senior executive 'information champion' or knowledge 
> officer in the agency should be responsible for information management 
> and governance, including:
> 
>          * providing leadership on agency compliance with the 
> Information Publication Scheme and Disclosure Log
>          * ensuring agency compliance with legislative and policy 
> requirements on information management and publication
>          * managing agency information to ensure its integrity, security 
> and accessibility
>          * instigating strategic planning on information resource management
>          * ensuring community consultation on agency information policy 
> and publication practices.
> 
>      The senior officer should be supported by an information governance 
> body that may include people from outside the agency.
> 
> Principle 4: Robust information asset management
> 
>      Effective information management requires agencies to:
> 
>          * maintain an asset inventory or register of the agency's 
> information
>          * identify the custodian of each information holding and the 
> responsibilities of that officer
>          * train staff in information management
>          * establish clear procedures and lines of authority for 
> decisions on information publication and release
>          * decide if information should be prepared for publication at 
> the time it is created and the form of publication
>          * document known limitations on data quality
>          * identify data that must be managed in accordance with 
> legislative and legal requirements, including requirements relating to 
> data security and protection of personal information, intellectual 
> property, business confidentiality and legal professional privilege
>          * protect information against inappropriate or unauthorised 
> use, access or disclosure
>          * preserve information for an appropriate period of time based 
> on sound archival practices.
> 
> Principle 5: Discoverable and useable information
> 
>      The economic and social value of public sector information can be 
> enhanced by publication and information sharing. This requires that 
> information can easily be discovered and used by the community and other 
> stakeholders. To support this objective agencies should:
> 
>          * publish an up to date information asset register
>          * ensure that information published online is in an open and 
> standards-based format and is machine-readable
>          * attach high quality metadata to information so that it can be 
> easily located and linked to similar information using standard web 
> search applications
>          * publish information in accordance with the Web Content 
> Accessibility Guidelines version 2 (WCAG 2.0) endorsed by the Australian 
> Government in November 2009.
> 
> Principle 6: Clear reuse rights
> 
>      The economic and social value of public sector information is 
> enhanced when it is made available for reuse on open licensing terms. 
> The Guidelines on Licensing Public Sector Information for Australian 
> Government Agencies require agencies to decide licensing conditions when 
> publishing information online. The default condition should be the 
> Creative Commons BY standard, as recommended in the Intellectual 
> Property Principles for Australian Government Agencies, that apply to 
> agencies subject to the Financial and Management Accountability Act 
> 1997. Additional guidance on selecting an appropriate licence is given 
> in the Australian Government Open Access and Licensing Framework (AUSGOAL).
> 
> Principle 7: Appropriate charging for access
> 
>      The FOI Act requires agencies to facilitate public access to 
> information at the lowest reasonable cost. This principle applies when 
> information is provided upon request or is published by an agency. Other 
> Acts also authorise charges for specific documents or information access.
> 
>      Agencies can reduce the cost of public access by publishing 
> information online, especially information that is routinely sought by 
> the public. Charges that may be imposed by an agency for providing 
> access should be clearly explained in an agency policy that is published 
> and regularly reviewed.
> 
> Principle 8: Transparent enquiry and complaints processes
> 
>      Agency decision making about information publication should be 
> transparent. This can be supported, within the agency's information 
> governance framework, by an enquiry and complaints procedure for the 
> public to raise issues about agency publication and access decisions. 
> The procedure should be published, explain how enquiries and complaints 
> will be handled, set timeframes for responding, identify possible 
> remedies and complaint outcomes, and require that written reasons be 
> provided in complaint resolution. ...
> 
>      From: "Principles on open public sector information", AOIC, 25 May 
> 2011 
> <http://www.oaic.gov.au/publications/agency_resources/principles_on_psi_short.html>
> ---
> 
> 
> 


-- 
Marghanita da Cruz
http://ramin.com.au
Tel: 0414-869202