Privacy and Responsible Information Sharing (Information Sharing) Regulations 2025

Committee means the Privacy and Responsible Information Sharing Advisory Committee established under section 204(1) of the Act. Its membership consists of persons referred to in section 204(2)(a), (b) or (c) of the Act, which the Regulations do not reproduce. The Committee’s functions are defined in section 205 of the Act, and include giving advice to the Chief Data Officer. The Regulations do not specify the number of members, but the quorum provisions (regulation 12) refer to total member counts of 4 or 5, and 6 or 7, implying the Committee may have between 4 and 7 members at any time. This uncertainty about the maximum size creates some risk: if the Committee grows beyond 7, the Regulations do not provide a quorum rule, so an amendment or new regulation would be needed.

Chairperson and deputy chairperson are appointed by the Information Sharing Minister from among the ordinary members. The deputy acts for the chair when the chair is unable to act (sickness, absence or other cause). Once appointed, the deputy’s formal acts cannot be questioned later on the ground that the occasion to act had not arisen or had ceased. This provides legal certainty but also means a deputy might inadvertently continue acting beyond the period of incapacity, yet their decisions would remain valid.

Ordinary member means a person appointed under section 204(2)(c) of the Act. Ordinary members cease to hold office on death, resignation, bankruptcy (as defined in the Interpretation Act 1984 section 13D), conviction of an offence punishable by imprisonment for more than 12 months, or removal by the Minister on grounds of neglect, misconduct, incompetence, mental or physical incapacity (other than temporary illness), or absence from three consecutive meetings without leave. Removal requires consultation with the Privacy Minister, adding a layer of oversight but also introducing the possibility of delay or disagreement.

Material personal interest is not exhaustively defined in the Regulations, but regulation 21 provides a mechanism for the chairperson to call on a member to disclose and, failing that, to determine that the member has such an interest. The Regulations do not define “trivial or insignificant” for the purposes of the resolution that can reinstate the member’s participation, leaving significant discretion to the Committee. This discretion could be used to permit participation where there is a genuine but small conflict, or it could be abused to allow conflicted members to vote, thereby undermining the integrity of the committee’s advice.

Chief Data Officer guidelines are documents issued under section 201 of the Act. The Regulations specify how they must be made publicly available: both via a website and by physical copy at the Department’s principal office. This dual requirement ensures access regardless of digital literacy or internet availability, but it imposes a modest ongoing cost on the Department to update both formats.

The Regulations directly affect the following persons and entities:

• Committee members (including the chairperson, deputy chairperson, and ordinary members). They are subject to appointment and removal provisions, duties to attend meetings, disclosure obligations for conflicts of interest, and potential penalties for non-disclosure. They may also be entitled to remuneration determined by the Information Sharing Minister on recommendation of the Public Sector Commissioner. The regulations create a compliance burden for them: they must monitor their own interests, disclose promptly, and avoid participation when conflicted unless the triviality exception applies. They also face uncertainty about whether a part-time advisory role is worth the risk of a $1,000 fine for a failure to disclose.

• The Information Sharing Minister. This Minister appoints the chairperson and deputy chairperson, removes ordinary members (after consulting the Privacy Minister), determines remuneration on recommendation, grants leave, and is the recipient of resignations. The Minister bears the administrative cost of making these decisions and must ensure due process before removal.

• The Privacy Minister. Must be consulted before an ordinary member is removed. This adds a check but also a coordination cost between two ministerial offices.

• The Public Sector Commissioner. Recommends the remuneration and allowances for ordinary members, influencing the cost to the state and the incentive for individuals to serve on the Committee.

• The Chief Data Officer. Exempted from the material personal interest rule in a narrow circumstance: if a matter relates to giving advice to the Chief Data Officer, that alone does not constitute a material personal interest. This ensures the officer can continue to participate in Committee discussions that involve their own role, without being automatically disqualified. However, other interests could still require disclosure. The Chief Data Officer is also the recipient of Committee advice and the subject of the guidelines.

• The information sharing Department. Responsible for maintaining the website and providing a hard copy of the Chief Data Officer guidelines for inspection. This imposes a direct cost: web hosting, updating content, and maintaining a physical copy at the principal office (including staff time to manage inspection requests). There is no express penalty for failing to publish; the Act’s enforcement mechanisms would apply.

• The public (including journalists, researchers, businesses, and individuals). They gain the right to access the Chief Data Officer guidelines via the website or by inspecting a physical copy. This transparency is a benefit, but the practical utility depends on the guidelines being kept up to date and easy to locate. The Regulations do not specify update frequency.

• Other State agencies that interact with the Committee or the Chief Data Officer may be indirectly affected by the committee’s advice or the content of the guidelines, but the Regulations impose no direct duties on them.

Duties of Committee members:

• Disclosure of material personal interest (regulation 20(1)). A member who has a material personal interest in a matter being considered or about to be considered by the Committee must disclose the nature of the interest as soon as possible after the relevant facts come to their knowledge. Failure attracts a penalty of $1,000. This is a strict obligation, with no defence of ignorance. The disclosure must be recorded in minutes.

• Non-participation when conflicted (regulation 22(1)). A member with a material personal interest must not be present while the matter is considered, must not vote, and must not sign or assent to a resolution in respect of the matter. This applies even if a resolution under regulation 23 (declaring the interest trivial) is later passed; the member can only participate if the resolution precedes their participation or if the Committee has already declared the interest trivial. The restriction also extends to proposed resolutions about another member’s interest (regulation 22(2) and (3)).

• Attendance at meetings is implied but not explicitly required (except that absence from three consecutive meetings without leave can ground removal, regulation 8(d)). Members have a duty to attend sufficiently to avoid removal.

• Right to resign (regulation 7). An ordinary member may resign in writing, with resignation taking effect either on receipt by the Minister or on a later specified date. This provides flexibility for members who wish to leave before their term expires.

• Right to remuneration and allowances (regulation 9) as determined by the Minister on the recommendation of the Public Sector Commissioner. The amount is not specified, creating uncertainty for members about what they will be paid. The rate may be set at a level that fails to attract qualified candidates, reducing committee effectiveness, or at a level that overcompensates relative to the work.

• Right to leave of absence (regulation 10). The Committee or the Minister may grant leave on terms determined. This allows members to take time off without risking removal for absence.

• Right to remote attendance (regulation 15). Members may attend by telephone, audiovisual communication or other instantaneous means, unless the Committee requires in person attendance. This reduces travel costs and time, but the Committee may override it, potentially creating a travel burden for members not based in Perth.

• Right to vote unless disqualified (regulation 16). Each member present has a deliberative vote, and questions are decided by majority. Ties are determined in the negative, which means the status quo prevails if opinion is evenly split. This incentivises opponents of a proposal to ensure attendance to force a tie.

Duties of the Information Sharing Minister:

• Appoint chairperson and deputy chairperson (regulations 4, 5). The Minister must appoint an ordinary member as chairperson and may appoint a different ordinary member as deputy. This gives the Minister control over who leads the Committee.

• Remove ordinary members (regulation 8) after consulting the Privacy Minister, but only on specific grounds. The Minister must exercise this power with procedural fairness.

• Determine remuneration (regulation 9) on recommendation of the Public Sector Commissioner. The Minister could set remuneration at zero, potentially discouraging service.

• Grant leave (regulation 10(2)). The Minister may grant leave on terms determined, independent of the Committee’s own leave process.

Duty of the information sharing Department:

• Publish Chief Data Officer guidelines (regulation 25). Must publish on a website maintained by or on behalf of the Department and make a hard copy available for inspection at the principal office during business hours. No deadline is specified; presumably they must be published as soon as practicable after issuance. No penalty for failure is stated in these Regulations.

The Regulations contain only one explicit penalty provision: regulation 20(1) imposes a fine of $1,000 on a Committee member who fails to disclose a material personal interest as soon as possible after the relevant facts come to their knowledge. This is a criminal penalty, enforceable in accordance with the Criminal Code and other relevant legislation. The amount is relatively small - comparable to a parking fine - which may be insufficient to deter non-disclosure, especially for members who stand to gain personally from a decision. The low penalty could be seen as reflecting the advisory (non-decision-making) nature of the Committee, but it nonetheless creates a risk that conflicts go unreported.

Enforcement of this penalty would presumably be undertaken by the Department or the Minister, who could refer the matter to the police or prosecute in court. The Regulations do not specify who enforces the penalty or how. There is no mechanism for administrative penalties (e.g., suspension). The only other enforcement mechanism is removal from office under regulation 8: neglect of duty, misconduct, incompetence, incapacity, or absence from three consecutive meetings. Non-disclosure of a material personal interest could be considered misconduct or neglect of duty, so a member could be removed even if the $1,000 fine is not imposed. However, removal requires consultation with the Privacy Minister and is discretionary, meaning a member who fails to disclose might simply be removed without further penalty.

For failure to comply with the disqualification rules (regulation 22), there is no specific penalty. If a member votes while conflicted, the vote might be challenged, but the Regulations do not provide a remedy (e.g., voiding the decision). Similarly, there is no penalty for the Department failing to publish Chief Data Officer guidelines; compliance would rely on the Act’s enforcement mechanisms or political pressure.

Compounding the enforcement gap, the Regulations do not create a private right of action for third parties. A person who believes a Committee member had an undisclosed interest cannot sue for damages or seek an injunction; they could only complain to the Minister. The $1,000 fine is the only direct monetary sanction, and its deterrent effect is low.

The Regulations are made under the Privacy and Responsible Information Sharing Act 2024 (the Act). The Act is the primary legislation; the Regulations are subordinate and must be consistent with it. Key references in the Regulations include:

• Section 204(1) of the Act - establishes the Committee. The Regulations flesh out its membership, meetings, and conflicts.
• Section 204(2)(a), (b), (c) of the Act - identifies who are Committee members. The Regulations do not reproduce that section, so readers must cross-reference the Act to know who qualifies.
• Section 205 of the Act - sets out the Committee’s functions (giving advice to the Chief Data Officer). Regulation 19 confirms that the Chief Data Officer does not have a material personal interest merely because a matter relates to giving that advice.
• Section 201(4) of the Act - requires Chief Data Officer guidelines to be made publicly available. Regulation 25 provides the method.

The Regulations also refer to the Interpretation Act 1984 (WA). Specifically, regulation 6(c) applies section 13D of the Interpretation Act 1984, which defines bankruptcy and administration of insolvent estates. This ensures that a person who is bankrupt (as defined under State law) ceases to be an ordinary member automatically, without the need for Ministerial action.

The Regulations do not mention the Public Sector Management Act 1994 or the Financial Management Act 2006, but the role of the Public Sector Commissioner (regulation 9) implies broader public sector governance standards apply. The remuneration determination may also need to comply with any applicable public sector wages policy.

There is no interaction with federal privacy laws (e.g., the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth)), as these Regulations are purely procedural. However, if the Committee handles personal information, the Act’s privacy provisions would apply separately.

Because the Regulations are new and limited in scope, there is no conflict with other regulations. They would prevail over any inconsistent regulation but are subordinate to the Act.

The Regulations have only one version, as shown in the Compilation table. They were published as SL 2025/118 on 25 June 2025 and commenced on 1 July 2025. No amendments have been made; the compilation table is current as of the date of publication. There are no transitional provisions, savings provisions, or notes of future amendments. This means the Regulations are fresh and untested. Any amendment would require a new regulation-making process under the Act.

The practical significance is that users can rely on the Regulations as stable for the immediate future, but any changes would need to be monitored. The Regulations do not include a sunset clause or review date, so they will remain in force until repealed or amended.

There is no litigation history involving these Regulations. They came into force on 1 July 2025 and as of the date of this analysis, no court decisions have dealt with them. There is no prospect of litigation until a dispute arises - for example, a Committee member challenges removal, a member is fined for non-disclosure, or a third party challenges the validity of a Committee decision on conflict of interest grounds. The Regulations are so procedural that the most likely area for legal challenge is the definition of “material personal interest” and the application of the triviality exception. However, given the low penalty and the advisory nature of the Committee, litigation may be rare.

The absence of cases does not mean the Regulations are risk-free. The lack of judicial interpretation means that ambiguous terms (e.g., “neglect of duty”, “misconduct”, “trivial or insignificant”) have not been clarified. Any future litigation could narrow or broaden these concepts. Potential claimants could include a removed member (challenging the procedure) or a member who faces a $1,000 fine (arguing the interest was not material). The Regulations also do not provide for merits review or internal review of decisions, so any challenge would have to go to the Supreme Court of Western Australia under judicial review principles.

1. The $1,000 penalty is a trap for the unwary. A Committee member who forgets to disclose a material personal interest, or who does not realise they have one, faces a criminal fine. The obligation arises “as soon as possible” after the facts come to the member’s knowledge, which could be interpreted strictly. Even a brief delay could technically be a breach. The fine is small but the reputational damage could be significant.

2. No definition of “material personal interest”. The Regulations do not define the term, leaving it to the Committee and the chairperson to determine. This creates uncertainty. For example, a member who is a director of a charity that might be affected by advice could be deemed to have a material interest, even if the impact is indirect. The chairperson’s ability to determine that a member has an interest (regulation 21) gives one person significant power to exclude a member from participation, and there is no right to challenge that determination before the meeting.

3. The triviality exception (regulation 23) requires a Committee resolution. A member cannot simply self-certify an interest as trivial; the entire Committee must vote to declare it so. If the Committee refuses, the member is locked out. This could be used tactically by other members to exclude a dissenting voice.

4. The quorum rules are fragile. With 4 or 5 members, quorum is 3. If one member is disqualified due to a conflict under regulation 22, and another is absent, quorum might not be met for that matter. If 2 members are disqualified, quorum becomes 3 from the remaining (regulation 24), but if there are only 4 total, that leaves only 2 eligible, so the meeting cannot proceed. This could paralyse the Committee.

5. Hard copy requirement is still mandatory. In 2025, requiring a physical copy of guidelines at a government office may seem outdated. The Department must maintain the paper copy, which is a minor but recurring cost. If the principal office moves or the business hours change, the compliance method may need to be updated.

6. No penalty for failing to publish guidelines. Regulation 25 imposes a duty but attaches no penalty. If the Department simply fails to publish, there is no direct enforcement mechanism in these Regulations. An affected person could potentially seek judicial review or complain to the Ombudsman, but that is costly and slow.

7. The chairperson cannot be absent and without a deputy when a resolution without meeting is needed (regulation 18(3)). If the chairperson is unable to act and no deputy is appointed, the Committee cannot pass resolutions by circulation. This could delay urgent matters.

8. Remote attendance can be overridden. The Committee can require in-person attendance (regulation 15(2)), creating a travel burden for members outside Perth. This could disproportionately affect regional members and reduce diversity.

9. Removal for absence from three consecutive meetings requires “notice”. Regulation 8(d) says a member can be removed for absence “without leave, from 3 consecutive meetings of which the member had notice.” This implies that if a member did not receive notice (e.g., email went to spam), they cannot be removed on that ground. Members should maintain current contact details and monitor communications.

10. The Minister controls remuneration but may set it at zero. There is no minimum remuneration. The Public Sector Commissioner makes a recommendation, but the Minister can ignore it. Potential members should negotiate compensation before accepting appointment.

For Committee members:

1. Monitor for conflicts. Before each meeting, proactively review any matter to be considered and identify any personal, financial, or professional interest that could influence your judgment. If unsure, err on the side of disclosure and seek guidance from the chairperson or the Department.

2. Disclose promptly. As soon as you become aware of a material personal interest, disclose it to the Committee - preferably in writing or at a meeting. Do not wait for the matter to arise. File the disclosure with the Committee secretary and ensure it is recorded in the minutes. Disclosing early avoids the $1,000 penalty and protects your position.

3. Participate only if cleared. If you have disclosed an interest, do not stay in the room during discussion or vote unless the Committee has passed a resolution that the interest is trivial or insignificant (regulation 23). If no such resolution is passed, leave the meeting for that agenda item and do not vote on related resolutions.

4. Keep attendance records. Maintain your own log of meetings attended and any leave granted, to avoid being caught by the three consecutive meeting rule (regulation 8(d)). If you cannot attend, request leave from the Committee or the Minister in advance, in writing.

5. Resign in writing if you need to leave. Follow regulation 7: submit a written resignation to the Information Sharing Minister. Specify an effective date (immediately or later) to control the transition.

6. Check your eligibility. If you are or become bankrupt (as defined by the Interpretation Act 1984) or are convicted of an offence with a prison term of more than 12 months, your membership automatically ceases. You should notify the Minister as soon as possible to avoid the appearance of holding out.

For the Information Sharing Minister:

• When appointing a chairperson or deputy, ensure the person is an ordinary member (regulation 4, 5). Keep a written record of the appointment.
• Before removing an ordinary member, consult the Privacy Minister and document the consultation. Grounds must be specific and evidence-based (regulation 8).
• Set remuneration only after receiving a recommendation from the Public Sector Commissioner. The recommendation should be in writing and retained.

For the information sharing Department:

• Publish the Chief Data Officer guidelines on the Department’s website as soon as they are issued. The URL should be stable and easily findable. Update the page whenever guidelines are amended.
• Maintain a hard copy at the principal office. Ensure it is the current version and available during business hours without requiring an appointment. Consider placing it in a public area or with the receptionist.
• Keep a record of when guidelines were published and any updates, to demonstrate compliance.

For Committee secretariat (likely departmental officers):

• Schedule the first meeting promptly after appointments (regulation 11(1)).
• Prepare accurate minutes (regulation 17) and record all disclosures and determinations regarding material personal interests.
• Manage remote attendance logistics, ensuring reliable communication links (regulation 15).
• When a resolution without meeting is proposed, circulate it to all members and obtain written assent from a quorum. Ensure the chairperson is available (unless a deputy is acting) per regulation 18(3).