Information request

The principle of openness applies in principle to all authorities, i.e. entities exercising public power. These include, for example, government agencies and institutions, courts, and municipalities and their authorities. The law also applies, where applicable, to companies and entities that have a statutory right to exercise public power.

Under the principle of openness, an authority has an obligation to respond to a request for information concerning its activities. The response must include the requested information in full or, alternatively, a legal justification for refusing the request in whole or in part. It is also possible that the authority does not have the requested information and cannot therefore disclose it.

What types of materials can information requests be made for?

In principle, all types of information content are subject to the principle of public access. In addition to ordinary paper and electronic documents, these include, for example, database queries, surveillance camera recordings, organizational charts of public bodies, politicians' calendar information with certain reservations, information on expense accounts, correspondence between politicians and lobbyists, and internal communications within an authority related to a specific procedure.

A request for information cannot be used to request information about yourself. Please contact the authority in another way (for example, by logging into their service) to access your own information or to make a request for information, which is different from a request for information).

Making a request for information

When preparing a request for information, it is worth considering the following questions:

– What specific political theme or decision interests me in particular?
– Are there any documents that specifically address the political or legal preparation of this theme and/or the political responsibility associated with it?
– Which authority holds these documents? In this context, a private company or foundation that operates on a public commission or with public funding is also considered an authority.
– Are these documents already publicly available?
– How can I identify these documents as accurately as possible even when I cannot identify certain documents or am not sure if they exist?
– Can I limit the information request, for example, by time, by organizational unit, or by document type?

How should you format your request for information?

– A short and clearly specified information request makes the authority's work easier and speeds up the response.
– Only essential information should be included in the information request so that the recipient of the request quickly understands what information is being sought.
– There is no need to justify the request in any way or provide reasons for the necessity of the information.
– The sender of the information request is required to behave in a professional and friendly manner towards the recipient of the request.

When will I receive a response to my request for information?

In principle, a request for information must be processed without delay if the requested information is simple and easily accessible. The response time is two weeks if the matter is more complex, or one month if it requires special measures or a greater workload than usual.

Please note:

– If the request concerns personal data – we will verify your identity
– if the document contains confidential information, e.g. business secrets or personal data, we cannot disclose the information. In this case, you will receive a written decision with reasons and instructions for appealing. You can appeal to the municipality or, if that does not produce results, you can appeal to the administrative court.
– In partially confidential documents, the confidential parts are covered up