Public interest disclosure

Certain disclosures trigger a special framework put in place to handle serious or systemic concerns that can’t be dealt with by the normal complaint or feedback system.

It places them in a category called a public interest disclosure (PID).

The Public Interest Disclosure Act 2012 (the Act) places an onus on the ACT Electoral Commission, as an ACT Public Service (ACTPS) entity, to take action to resolve a problem once we are aware of it.

The PID scheme aims to encourage those in a position to report wrongdoing and protect them when they come forward.

Disclosable conduct

Disclosable conduct includes activity by an individual or an ACTPS entity that:

is illegal
misuses or wastes public money or resources
is misconduct
is maladministration
presents a danger to the health or safety of the public
presents a danger to the environment.

A PID might relate to events which are happening now, in the past, or that may happen in the future.

A PID can be about the actions of:

staff and employees of the ACT Public Sector and ACT Legislative Assembly
Members of the Legislative Assembly
contractors, sub-contractors and volunteers
not-for-profit or non-governmental organisations servicing the community under a contract with an ACTPS entity.

Unintentional disclosure

People can make disclosures unintentionally, during a casual conversation, or without indicating the information is provided as a PID.

All employees should be aware of this type of disclosure and managers and supervisors of their possible role as a receiving officer.

For example:

A colleague may mention in passing that an invoice was paid for furniture that was never delivered.
You may overhear a conversation that a manager has hired their own family member without declaring a conflict of interest.

Both of these examples should be addressed as disclosures.

Anyone can make a public interest disclosure

Anyone with information that indicates substantial mismanagement or misuse of public resources can make a PID.

This includes members of the public, contractors who work with ACTPS entities and ACTPS employees.

You may make a PID even if can’t identify a particular person responsible for the activity.

Your disclosure can be anonymous but this means we can’t:

keep you informed on the way the disclosure is handled
provide you with protection.

ACT Public Sector employees

Under the Act, all ACT public sector employees must report any fraudulent, corrupt or maladministration that comes to their attention.

Making a public interest disclosure

A PID can be made in person, on the phone or in writing. It does not have to be a formal complaint or report.

ACTPS employees can make a PID to their supervisor or manager.

A PID can also be made to a public official of an ACTPS entity, for example a Chief Financial Officer, a Workplace Health and Safety representative or a committee member.

Once the PID is disclosed, the supervisor or other public official becomes a Receiving Officer.

Receiving Officer

The Receiving Officer does not have the authority to make decisions about a PID. They must forward the PID to the Designated Disclosure Officer.

Whether a person has witnessed disclosable conduct personally or someone has told them about it, they should pass that information to the DDO.

This includes receiving second-hand information that indicates potential disclosable conduct, including supervisors and managers receiving information from their staff.

Designated Disclosure Officer

The head of an ACTPS entity is a Designated Disclosure Officer. In the case of Elections ACT, this is the Electoral Commissioner. The Deputy Electoral Commissioner also has delegated powers to act as the entity's DDO.

View how to contact us.

The role of the DDO is to:

legitimately receive a PID
support and notify the discloser as appropriate
ensure appropriate action is taken in relation to the PID
maintain the effective administration of the process.

For PIDs which relate to the head of an ACTPS entity the DDO could be the ACT’s:

public sector standards commissioner
head of service
auditor-general
ombudsman
integrity commissioner.

For a PID which relates to the Legislative Assembly, a DDO is any of the following:

the clerk of the Legislative Assembly
the ACT Auditor-General
the ACT Ombudsman.

Action taken

Once a DDO has received a PID, they will send the discloser a letter of acknowledgement.

The DDO then takes the following steps:

Initial assessment

The DDO considers the following options:

Refer: If the DDO believes the disclosure is better handled in another ACTPS entity, the matter should be referred.
Assess: The DDO must decide whether the disclosure is a PID and if so it must be investigated.
Investigate: If the disclosure is assessed to be a PID, the DDO decides whether the investigation should be internal or whether they should oversee an external investigation.
Not investigate: In certain circumstances th e DDO may decide not to investigate a PID.
Manage the process: The DDO tracks and manages the process.

Investigate

If the DDO decides to investigate the PID, they must develop clear and relevant terms of reference and timeframes.

Final decision

The DDO makes a decision based on the recommendations of the investigation.

The ACTPS entity must take action. The DDO documents their decision and provides it to:

the discloser
the Public Sector Standards Commissioner
the head of the ACTPS entity to which the PID relates.

Protection for disclosers

The Act protects a discloser who acts honestly and reasonably in making a PID from attacks or reprisal resulting from the PID.

Anyone who retaliates against the discloser is committing an offence under Section 40 of the Act.

This person may be disciplined or pursued for damages in court.

Under the Act, ACTPS employees who make a disclosure are not liable to administrative action, including disciplinary action or dismissal because of making a disclosure.

Contact us

To make a PID or for more information, contact us.