British Columbia will be the first province to legislate a duty to document: Finance Minister

VICTORIA, B.C. – Finance Minister Mike de Jong has announced that B.C. will be the first Canadian province to legislate a duty to document.

Bill 6, Information Management (Documenting Government Decisions) Amendment Act, 2017, will:

• Help improve the way the Province manages valuable information on behalf of its citizens
• Reinforce British Columbia’s commitment to open governance
• Enhance compliance with best practices in information management

The bill will address recommendations by former information and privacy commissioner David Loukidelis.

The government says a legislated “duty to document” means ‘public servants will have to create records that document the key business decisions of government. Inclusion in the Information Management Act also will extend this legal requirement to the government bodies listed in the legislation.’

Mike de Jong says that the bill will be of benefit to British Columbia.

“Together, these amendments will ensure the Information Management Act remains the strongest legislation of its kind in Canada. The duty-to-document legislation will formalize this good practice in legislation while ensuring British Columbia remains at the forefront of information management with strong oversight and consistent practice across government.”