The Freedom of Information Amendment (Parliamentary Budget Office) Bill 2012 was introduced in the House of Reps on Wed 10.10.2012. It proposes to amend the Freedom of Information Act 1982 and Privacy Act 1988 to provide a new FOI exemption for documents related to requests to the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO).
The functions of the PBO include preparing election policy costings [tax policies would presumably feature heavily in this] upon request of authorised party representatives and Independent members of parliament, and preparing policy costings outside of the caretaker period upon request of individual senators and members of parliament.
The Bill would amend the FOI Act to provide an exemption for information held by departments and agencies that relates to a confidential request to the PBO. The provisions in the Bill would commence on the day it receives Royal Assent.
[LTN 196, 10/10]