Public Access to Information Policy

As administrator of the pension plan for public school teachers in Manitoba, the Teachers’ Retirement Allowances Fund (TRAF) strives to be as open and transparent as possible in its dealings with members and stakeholders. To this end, we produce a number of regular communications for your benefit in addition to maintaining an updated website with information relevant to your needs.



However, should you desire access to a specific record that we do not routinely disclose, you may submit a written request for its release. As a provincial government agency, TRAF is subject to The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA). Under FIPPA, we are obligated to provide you with any record in our custody or control, subject to certain exceptions, as set out below.

Application process

To request a copy of a record under our care, please complete the prescribed application form. The proper application form is Form 1 of Schedule A of the Access and Privacy Regulation, and is available online at http://www.gov.mb.ca/chc/fippa/appforms.html. To assist us in identifying the record, be sure to include as much detail as possible in making your request. Please submit your application to:

Kaely Zettel

Privacy Officer
Teachers’ Retirement Allowances Fund


330 – 25 Forks Market Road


Winnipeg, Manitoba R3C 4S8

Tel: 204-975-3666 or 1-800-782-0714


Fax: 204-944-0361



We will make every reasonable effort to assist you and to respond to your request without delay, openly, accurately and completely. If a fee is required, we will provide you with a fee estimate before performing the requested services.



Should the requested record include information exempted from disclosure, we will provide you with the remainder of the record if the exempted information can reasonably be severed from it. To the extent that a requested record includes information the disclosure of which might invade the privacy, or affect the interests of a third party, we may disclose the requested record after giving notice to, and receiving the consent of, that person.
¹

We will notify you within 30 days whether access to the record or part of the record sought is granted or refused. If we are able to grant your request, we will enclose the record or, if that is not practical, we will inform you where, when and how to obtain access. If we are unable to grant your request, we will provide you with the general reasons for refusal.


Exceptions to disclosure


Access to a record will be refused if it falls within one of the exceptions to disclosure under FIPPA. There are two types of exceptions to disclosure in FIPPA: mandatory exceptions and discretionary exceptions.

If a mandatory exception applies, we have no discretion to disclose the requested record. The main mandatory exceptions to disclosure concern records containing information relating to the following:

• Privacy of a third party
• Business interests of third parties
• Cabinet confidences
• Information provided by another government

If a discretionary exception applies, we may disclose the information in a record even though the information falls within the exception. Before doing so, we will consider all relevant factors in determining whether or not it is appropriate to disclose the requested record. Included in this category are class exceptions, which concern the type of information in a record rather than the consequences of disclosure, and exceptions which, if disclosed, would create a reasonable expectation of harm. Some key discretionary exceptions to disclosure concern records containing information relating to the following:

• Advice to a public body
• Individual or public safety
• Law enforcement and legal proceedings
• Security of property
• Solicitor-client privilege
• Economic interests of a public body
• Confidential evaluations

Examples of records that would fall within one of the above exceptions and would not be disclosed by TRAF include the following:

• Personal information other than your own
• Individual pension amounts or details
• Financial statement working papers
• Legal opinions or information pertaining to litigation
• Minutes of in camera sessions of the TRAF Board or a committee thereof

Ombudsman

Complaints concerning refusal of access to a record may be addressed directly to the Provincial Ombudsman’s office at the address below:

Manitoba Ombudsman


750 – 500 Portage Avenue

Winnipeg, Manitoba R3C 3X1


Tel.: 204-982-9130 or 1-800-665-0531

Fax: 204-942-7803


Website: www.ombudsman.mb.ca

1. “Third party” is defined by The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act as “a person, group of persons or an organization other than the applicant or a public body.” ↩︎