Part 8—References

• GLOSSARY
• LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES
• LIST OF REQUIREMENTS

Glossary

Term	Definition
Action Taken	What we did to resolve or otherwise respond to a contact to our Office. Different types of contact may have different available actions, which can include: conducting a formal investigation resulting in a report resulting in comments to the agency finalised without comments or suggestions to the agency conducting an assessment of a matter resulting in a decision (such as on an FOI review application) resulting in a recommendation to the agency (such as for a reparation payment relating to abuse in Defence) assessing a complaint and finalising without a formal investigation, with or without making preliminary inquiries of an agency referral back to the agency or organisation about whom the complaint is made referral to another agency or complaint-handling body in relation to program specific matters—carrying out the relevant statutory process in relation to enquiries providing the information sought otherwise responding to the request.
Contact	Any external contact to our Office. Contacts are made up of complaints, program specific matters and any other enquiries.
Authorised officer	An officer appointed by the Principal Officer of an agency to receive and allocate public interest disclosures.
Community detention	A form of immigration detention that enables people in detention to reside and move about freely in the community without having to be accompanied or restrained by an officer under the Migration Act 1958.
Compensation for Detriment caused by Defective Administration (CDDA)	A scheme that allows Australian Government agencies under the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 to provide discretionary compensation to people who have been adversely affected through an agency's defective actions or inaction.
Complaint	Contact with our Office indicating that something is unsatisfactory or unacceptable, in relation to an action by an agency or organisation within our jurisdiction. This includes: complaints about a Commonwealth Government agency, including the Australian Defence Force and the Australian Federal Police complaints, including disputes, about public or private sector bodies, received under any of the following jurisdictions: Postal Industry Ombudsman, Overseas Students Ombudsman, VET Student Loans Ombudsman and Private Health Insurance Ombudsman) complaints about ACT Government agencies (under the ACT Ombudsman jurisdiction, and including ACT FOI complaints, ACT PID complaints and complaints about the ACT Integrity Commission) complaints made about an agency or organisation within our jurisdiction, but where the issue raised is out of our jurisdiction (e.g. an immigration decision which was made by the Minister personally). We are unable to consider this situation further, but it is still counted as a complaint to our Office.
Controlled operation	A covert operation carried out by law enforcement officers under the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth) for the purpose of obtaining evidence that may lead to a prosecution of a person for a serious offence. The operation may involve law enforcement officers engaging in conduct that would otherwise constitute an offence.
Enquiry	Any contact with our Office that is not a complaint or program specific matter. This can include: a request to the Office (e.g. a request from a journalist, a request under the FOI Act for documents we hold, a Public Interest Disclosure about us, or a service delivery complaint made about our own services) a purported complaint about an agency or organisation which is determined to be out of our jurisdiction on the basis of the organisation being complained about (e.g. telecommunications, banking, State government) other enquiries (e.g. how do I make a complaint about Agency X; an enquiry about private health insurance; PID enquiries; enquiries made to the ACT Ombudsman regarding FOI/Reportable Conduct, complaint handling advice for providers).
Finalised	A contact is finalised when we have finished taking action in response to that contact.
Metadata	Information about a communication which does not include its content. In the example of a phone call, metadata may include the phone numbers of the two parties to the conversation, the duration, date and time of that phone call but not what was said.
Natural justice	In administrative decision-making, natural justice means procedural fairness. This includes the right to a fair hearing, that decisions are made without undue bias, providing a person to present a case addressing any adverse matters and providing reasons for decisions.
Outcome	The end result of a contact to our Office. These can vary depending on the type of contact, and can include: rectifying the situation for a person (such as restoring a payment; waiving a debt; a different decision; a better explanation from the agency; an apology) assistance or advice for a person (such as referral to a more appropriate avenue; a better explanation by us on review rights; advice on how to make a complaint; an agency considering a matter in a more timely manner) outcomes which reflect our role as independent and impartial (such as independent assurance that the agency's decision was lawful and reasonable) outcomes for the broader community (such as changes to an agency's policies or practices)
Out of jurisdiction (OOJ)	A matter about which the Office has no legal power under the Ombudsman Act 1976 to investigate.
Own motion investigation	An investigation conducted on the Ombudsman's own initiative.
Program specific matter	An application, report or other statutory process, which requires processing by our Office, but is not a complaint. This includes: applications under the ACT FOI Act (review requests, extensions of time, etc) reports of Defence abuse PHIO mediations FOI mediations notifications under the ACT Reportable Conduct scheme PIDs, extension requests and notifications.
Public interest disclosure (PID)	Unless otherwise stated, this relates to an internal disclosure of wrongdoing, which has been reported by a public official to an authorised internal recipient.
Review rights	People who disagree with a decision made about them or who believe they have been treated unfairly by a government agency may appeal against the decision or ask for it to be reviewed by the agency. If the person is not satisfied with this process he or she may complain to the Ombudsman (provided the complaint is within our jurisdiction), noting the Ombudsman does not have the power to change or remake a decision.
Serious abuse	'Serious abuse' (within Defence) is defined as sexual abuse, serious physical abuse and serious bullying and harassment. All reports of abuse are assessed to determine whether the reported abuse meets this definition.
Stored communications	This typically refers to emails and text (SMS) messages, but may also include images or videos, that have been electronically stored by a telecommunications carrier or internet service provider. For instance, an SMS message is stored by a carrier and sent when the intended recipient is able to receive it. Stored communications access occurs under warrant for the purposes of obtaining information relevant to the investigation of an offence.
Surveillance devices	These are typically listening devices, cameras and tracking devices. The use of these devices will, in most circumstances, require the issue of a warrant.
Telecommunications interceptions	The recording of telephone conversations or other transmissions passing over a telecommunications network. Interceptions occur under warrant for the purposes of obtaining information relevant to a criminal investigation.
The Office	The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman.
The Ombudsman	The person occupying the statutory position of Commonwealth Ombudsman.
Waiting period	How long a person needs to be covered under a private health insurance policy before he or she is eligible for benefits. The maximum waiting periods for hospital policies are set down in the Private Health Insurance Act 2007 (Cth).
Within jurisdiction	A contact about a matter that the Office may investigate under the Ombudsman Act 1976.

List of tables and figures

List of tables

Table 1—DHS complaints

Table 2—Immigration detention facility inspections

Table 3—Law enforcement and integrity agencies subject to inspections and reviews by the Office

Table 4—Non-law enforcement agencies subject to review by the Office

Table 5—Inspections conducted during 2018–19

Table 6—Reviews conducted during 2018–19

Table 7—Public reports produced during 2018–19

Table 8—Complainant survey

Table 9—2018–19 complaints and disputes about registered private health insurers

Table 10—Number of complaints about insurers and providers

Table 11—Complaint issues

Table 12—Overseas Visitors Health Cover complaints

Table 13—PIO complaints received and finalised in 2018–19

Table 14—Issue outcomes for finalised complaints in 2018–19

Table 15—Issue outcomes for investigations finalised in 2018–19

Table 16—Average number of authorised officers

Table 18—Audit and Risk Committee Members

Table 19—Workforce Profile as at 30 June 2018 and 30 June 2019

Table 20—Number and expenditure on Consultants Current Report Period (2018–19)

Table 21—Information about Remuneration for Key Management Personnel

Table 22—Information about remuneration for senior executives

Table 23—All Ongoing Employees Current Report Period (2018–19)

Table 24—All Non-Ongoing Employees Current Report Period (2018–19)

Table 25—All Ongoing Employees Previous Report Period (2017–18)

Table 26—All Non-Ongoing Employees Previous Report Period (2017–18)

Table 27—Australian Public Service Act Ongoing Employees Current Report Period (2018–19)

Table 28—Australian Public Service Act Non-Ongoing Employees Current Report Period (2018–19

Table 29—Australian Public Service Act Ongoing Employees Previous Report Period (2017–18)

Table 30—Australian Public Service Act Non-Ongoing Employees Previous Report Period (2017–18)

Table 31—Australian Public Service Act Employees by full time and Part time Status Current Report Period (2018–19)

Table 32—Australian Public Service Act Employees by Full-time and Part-time Status Previous Report Period (2017–18)

Table 33—Australian Public Service Act Employment Type by Location, Current Report Period (2018–19)

Table 34—Australian Public Service Act Employment Type by Location, Previous Report Period (2017–18)

Table 35—Australian Public Service Act Indigenous Employment, Current Report Period (2018–19)

Table 36—Australian Public Service Act Indigenous Employment, Previous Report Period (2017–18)

Table 37—Australian Public Service Act Employment arrangements Current Report Period (2018–19)

Table 38—Australian Public Service Act Employment salary ranges by classification level (Minimum/Maximum) Current Report Period (2018-19)

Table 39—Number of disclosures assessed as meeting the criteria under s26 of the PID Act and alleged disclosable conduct.

Table 40—Agencies that have reported not receiving PIDs

Table 41—PID investigations completed and action/s taken in response to recommendations

List of Figures

Figure 1—Executive and Senior Management structure at 30 June 2019

Figure 2—Trend in how contacts and complaints were received over the last five years

Figure 3—Complaints received by government agency

Figure 4—Investigation outcomes

Figure 5—Complaint assurance initiatives

Figure 6—Centrelink complaint issues

Figure 7—NDIA complaints received

Figure 8—NDIA complaint issues 2018–19

Figure 9—Reports of abuse received

Figure 10—Most reported locations

Figure 11—Complaints overview

Figure 12—Total Complaints and Enquiries by Year

Figure 13—PIO complaint issues in 2018–19

Figure 14—Issues raised in finalised investigations

Figure 15—Complaints by education sector in finalised investigated complaints

Figure 16—2018–19 Disclosures at a glance

Figure 17—Allegations of disclosable conduct–FY comparison

Figure 18—Use of s 48 – FY comparison

Figure 19—Findings of disclosable conduct – FY comparison

Figure 20—2018–19 Referrals to other investigative mechanisms

Figure 21—Investigation timeframes

Figure 22—Claims of reprisal

Figure 23—The three core themes delivered at PID forums

Figure 24—Committee structure

List of requirements

PGPA Rule Reference	Part of Report	Description	Requirement	Pg no.
17AD(g)	Letter of transmittal
17AI		A copy of the letter of transmittal signed and dated by accountable authority on date final text approved, with statement that the report has been prepared in accordance with section 46 of the Act and any enabling legislation that specifies additional requirements in relation to the annual report.	Mandatory	5
17AD(h)	Aids to access
17AJ(a)		Table of contents.	Mandatory	8-9
17AJ(b)	Section 8	Alphabetical index.	Mandatory	208-218
17AJ(c)	Section 8	Glossary of abbreviations and acronyms.	Mandatory	192-195
17AJ(d)	Section 8	List of requirements.	Mandatory	199-207
17AJ(e)		Details of contact officer.	Mandatory	7
17AJ(f)		Entity's website address.	Mandatory	7
17AJ(g)		Electronic address of report.	Mandatory	7
17AD(a)	Review by accountable authority
17AD(a)	Section 1	A review by the accountable authority of the entity.	Mandatory	12-15
17AD(b)	Overview of the entity
17AE(1)(a)(i)	Section 2	A description of the role and functions of the entity.	Mandatory	18-19
17AE(1)(a)(ii)	Section 2	A description of the organisational structure of the entity.	Mandatory	20
17AE(1)(a)(iii)	Section 2	A description of the outcomes and programmes administered by the entity.	Mandatory	29
17AE(1)(a)(iv)	Section 2	A description of the purposes of the entity as included in corporate plan.	Mandatory	29
17AE(1)(aa)(i)	Section 2	Name of the accountable authority or each member of the accountable authority	Mandatory	19
17AE(1)(aa)(ii)	Section 2	Position title of the accountable authority or each member of the accountable authority	Mandatory	19
17AE(1)(aa)(iii)	Section 2	Period as the accountable authority or member of the accountable authority within the reporting period	Mandatory	19
17AE(1)(b)		An outline of the structure of the portfolio of the entity.	Portfolio departments mandatory	N/A
17AE(2)		Where the outcomes and programs administered by the entity differ from any Portfolio Budget Statement, Portfolio Additional Estimates Statement or other portfolio estimates statement that was prepared for the entity for the period, include details of variation and reasons for change.	If applicable, Mandatory	Nil to report
17AD(c)	Report on the Performance of the entity
	Annual performance Statements
17AD(c)(i); 16F	Section 2	Annual performance statement in accordance with paragraph 39(1)(b) of the Act and section 16F of the Rule.	Mandatory	28-45
17AD(c)(ii)	Report on Financial Performance
17AF(1)(a)	Section 3	A discussion and analysis of the entity's financial performance.	Mandatory	46
17AF(1)(b)	Section 7	A table summarising the total resources and total payments of the entity.	Mandatory	174-175
17AF(2)		If there may be significant changes in the financial results during or after the previous or current reporting period, information on those changes, including: the cause of any operating loss of the entity; how the entity has responded to the loss and the actions that have been taken in relation to the loss; and any matter or circumstances that it can reasonably be anticipated will have a significant impact on the entity's future operation or financial results.	If applicable, Mandatory.	Nil to report
17AD(d)	Management and Accountability
	Corporate Governance
17AG(2)(a)	Section 6	Information on compliance with section 10 (fraud systems)	Mandatory	127
17AG(2)(b)(i)		A certification by accountable authority that fraud risk assessments and fraud control plans have been prepared.	Mandatory	5
17AG(2)(b)(ii)		A certification by accountable authority that appropriate mechanisms for preventing, detecting incidents of, investigating or otherwise dealing with, and recording or reporting fraud that meet the specific needs of the entity are in place.	Mandatory	5
17AG(2)(b)(iii)		A certification by accountable authority that all reasonable measures have been taken to deal appropriately with fraud relating to the entity.	Mandatory	5
17AG(2)(c)	Section 6	An outline of structures and processes in place for the entity to implement principles and objectives of corporate governance.	Mandatory	124-127
17AG(2)(d) – (e)		A statement of significant issues reported to Minister under paragraph 19(1)(e) of the Act that relates to noncompliance with Finance law and action taken to remedy noncompliance.	If applicable, Mandatory	Nil to report
	External Scrutiny
17AG(3)	Section 6	Information on the most significant developments in external scrutiny and the entity's response to the scrutiny.	Mandatory	127
17AG(3)(a)	Section 6	Information on judicial decisions and decisions of administrative tribunals and by the Australian Information Commissioner that may have a significant effect on the operations of the entity.	If applicable, Mandatory	127
17AG(3)(b)		Information on any reports on operations of the entity by the AuditorGeneral (other than report under section 43 of the Act), a Parliamentary Committee, or the Commonwealth Ombudsman.	If applicable, Mandatory	N/A
17AG(3)(c)		Information on any capability reviews on the entity that were released during the period.	If applicable, Mandatory	Nil to report
	Management of Human Resources
17AG(4)(a)	Section 6	An assessment of the entity's effectiveness in managing and developing employees to achieve entity objectives.	Mandatory	127-128
17AG(4)(aa)	Section 7	Statistics on the entity's employees on an ongoing and nonongoing basis, including the following: (a) statistics on fulltime employees; (b) statistics on parttime employees; (c) statistics on gender (d) statistics on staff location	Mandatory	165-169
17AG(4)(b)	Section 7	Statistics on the entity's APS employees on an ongoing and nonongoing basis; including the following: Statistics on staffing   classification level; Statistics on fulltime employees; Statistics on parttime employees; Statistics on gender; Statistics on staff location; Statistics on employees who identify as Indigenous.	Mandatory	167-173
17AG(4)(c)	Sections 6, 7	Information on any enterprise agreements, individual flexibility arrangements, Australian workplace agreements, common law contracts and determinations under subsection 24(1) of the Public Service Act 1999.	Mandatory	129, 172
17AG(4)(c)(i)	Section 6	Information on the number of SES and nonSES employees covered by agreements etc identified in paragraph 17AG(4)(c).	Mandatory	129
17AG(4)(c)(ii)	Section 7	The salary ranges available for APS employees by classification level.	Mandatory	173
17AG(4)(c)(iii)	Section 6	A description of nonsalary benefits provided to employees.	Mandatory	129
17AG(4)(d)(i)		Information on the number of employees at each classification level who received performance pay.	If applicable, Mandatory	Nil to report
17AG(4)(d)(ii)		Information on aggregate amounts of performance pay at each classification level.	If applicable, Mandatory	Nil to report
17AG(4)(d)(iii)		Information on the average amount of performance payment, and range of such payments, at each classification level.	If applicable, Mandatory	Nil to report
17AG(4)(d)(iv)		Information on aggregate amount of performance payments.	If applicable, Mandatory	Nil to report
	Assets Management
17AG(5)	Section 6	An assessment of effectiveness of assets management where asset management is a significant part of the entity's activities	If applicable, mandatory	133
	Purchasing
17AG(6)	Section 6	An assessment of entity performance against the Commonwealth Procurement Rules.	Mandatory	132
	Consultants
17AG(7)(a)		A summary statement detailing the number of new contracts engaging consultants entered into during the period; the total actual expenditure on all new consultancy contracts entered into during the period (inclusive of GST); the number of ongoing consultancy contracts that were entered into during a previous reporting period; and the total actual expenditure in the reporting year on the ongoing consultancy contracts (inclusive of GST).	Mandatory	Nil to report
17AG(7)(b)		A statement that "During [reporting period], [specified number] new consultancy contracts were entered into involving total actual expenditure of $[specified million]. In addition, [specified number] ongoing consultancy contracts were active during the period, involving total actual expenditure of $[specified million]".	Mandatory	Nil to report
17AG(7)(c)	Section 6	A summary of the policies and procedures for selecting and engaging consultants and the main categories of purposes for which consultants were selected and engaged.	Mandatory	132
17AG(7)(d)	Section 6	A statement that "Annual reports contain information about actual expenditure on contracts for consultancies. Information on the value of contracts and consultancies is available on the AusTender website."	Mandatory	132
	Australian National Audit Office Access Clauses
17AG(8)		If an entity entered into a contract with a value of more than $100 000 (inclusive of GST) and the contract did not provide the AuditorGeneral with access to the contractor's premises, the report must include the name of the contractor, purpose and value of the contract, and the reason why a clause allowing access was not included in the contract.	If applicable, Mandatory	N/A
	Exempt contracts
17AG(9)		If an entity entered into a contract or there is a standing offer with a value greater than $10 000 (inclusive of GST) which has been exempted from being published in AusTender because it would disclose exempt matters under the FOI Act, the annual report must include a statement that the contract or standing offer has been exempted, and the value of the contract or standing offer, to the extent that doing so does not disclose the exempt matters.	If applicable, Mandatory	N/A
	Small business
17AG(10)(a)	Section 6	A statement that "[Name of entity] supports small business participation in the Commonwealth Government procurement market. Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) and Small Enterprise participation statistics are available on the Department of Finance's website."	Mandatory	132
17AG(10)(b)	Section 6	An outline of the ways in which the procurement practices of the entity support small and medium enterprises.	Mandatory	132
17AG(10)(c)		If the entity is considered by the Department administered by the Finance Minister as material in nature—a statement that "[Name of entity] recognises the importance of ensuring that small businesses are paid on time. The results of the Survey of Australian Government Payments to Small Business are available on the Treasury's website."	If applicable, Mandatory	N/A
	Financial Statements
17AD(e)	Section 7	Inclusion of the annual financial statements in accordance with subsection 43(4) of the Act.	Mandatory	140-161
	Executive Remuneration
17AD(da)	Section 7	Information about executive remuneration in accordance with Subdivision C of Division 3A of Part 23 of the Rule.	Mandatory	163-164
17AD(f)	Other Mandatory Information
17AH(1)(a)(i)		If the entity conducted advertising campaigns, a statement that "During [reporting period], the [name of entity] conducted the following advertising campaigns: [name of advertising campaigns undertaken]. Further information on those advertising campaigns is available at [address of entity's website] and in the reports on Australian Government advertising prepared by the Department of Finance. Those reports are available on the Department of Finance's website."	If applicable, Mandatory	N/A
17AH(1)(a)(ii)	Section 6	If the entity did not conduct advertising campaigns, a statement to that effect.	If applicable, Mandatory	133
17AH(1)(b)		A statement that "Information on grants awarded by [name of entity] during [reporting period] is available at [address of entity's website]."	If applicable, Mandatory	N/A
17AH(1)(c)	Section 6	Outline of mechanisms of disability reporting, including reference to website for further information.	Mandatory	134
17AH(1)(d)	Section 7	Website reference to where the entity's Information Publication Scheme statement pursuant to Part II of FOI Act can be found.	Mandatory	162
17AH(1)(e)	Section 7	Correction of material errors in previous annual report	If applicable, mandatory	176
17AH(2)	Sections 3, 4, 5	Information required by other legislation	Mandatory	110-120 177-188