07 March 2019
Anita Easton
[FYI request #9273 email]
Tēnā koe Anita
Time Extension of your Official Information Act request, reference: 0053672
Thank you for your email of 9 February 2019, asking for the following information under the Official
Information Act 1982 (the Act):
“In response to my question 2 ("What guidance do you currently provide to staff on how to record the
gender of non-binary people?") you provided a response which addressed the advice given to staff on
how to ensure a binary gender is recorded but did not mention advice about non-binary people in
particular. Can you please confirm that this means that no advice is provided to staff specifically
about how to record the gender of non-binary people. If advice is given, could you please provide it as
it was within the scope of my original question.
In response to my question 3 ('Do you have any advice, legal opinion or other documentation
supporting the view that insisting a non-binary person choose either female or male before they can
receive cover is is not "gender-based discriminations in relation to either personal injury cover or
entitlements”') your response covered only advice which you consider is legally privileged, which I
therefore assume was from the Corporation’s legal team or an external lawyer. Can you please
confirm that this means that no advice or documentation about the issue exists from any other policy,
communications, engagement or operational function. If anything does exist, could you please
provide it as it was within the scope of my original question.
I should note that I expect that my original question 3 covers the issue of whether requiring non-
binary people to provide an inaccurate binary gender before their claim can be processed is a barrier
or disincentive, not just whether their gender is used in decision-making once their claim is accepted
for processing.”
ACC needs extra time
The Act requires that we advise you of our decision on your request no later than 20 working days after
the day we received your request. Unfortunately, it wil not be possible to meet that time limit and we
are therefore writing to notify you of an extension of the time to make our decision, to 15 March 2019.
This extension is necessary because the consultation required to make a decision on your request is such
that a proper response cannot reasonably be made within the original time limit.
We are happy to answer your questions
Please contact me on
[email address] if you would like to talk about this letter. I will be
happy to answer any questions or, if you have any concerns, work with you to resolve these.
If you are not happy with this response, you have the right to make a complaint to the Ombudsman.
Information about how to do this is available at
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or by phoning 0800 802
602.
Nāku iti noa, nā
Emma Coats
Manager Official Information Act Services
Government Engagement & Support
Document Outline
