Right to Information Act 2009

The information commissioner may, on written application by a non-profit organisation, decide whether a non-profit organisation has financial hardship status by considering the nature and size of the organisation’s funding base and the amount of the organisation’s liquid funds.

The commissioner must give a non-profit organisation that has applied for financial hardship status prescribed written notice of the decision.

The commissioner’s decision that a non-profit organisation has financial hardship status has effect for 1 year from the date of the decision.

While there is in effect a decision that a non-profit organisation has financial hardship status—

the non-profit organisation must give the commissioner written notice of any substantial improvement in the organisation’s financial circumstances as soon as practicable after the improvement happens; and

the commissioner may revoke the decision if the commissioner considers that the non-profit organisation’s financial circumstances at any time result in the commissioner considering that the organisation should not have financial hardship status.

If the commissioner revokes a decision that a non-profit organisation has financial hardship status, the commissioner must, as soon as practicable, give the organisation prescribed written notice of the revocation.

If an organisation that has made an access application to an agency or Minister receives a notice under subsection (5) during the processing period for the application, the organisation must immediately advise the agency or Minister that the decision that the organisation has financial hardship status has been revoked.

If the commissioner gives a non-profit organisation written notice of a decision that it is not to be given financial hardship status, the non-profit organisation may not make another application for a decision under subsection (1) unless—

there is a substantial deterioration in its financial circumstances;

it is more than 1 year since the date of the commissioner’s decision.