What’s on this page?
This page contains information to assist councils, councillors and other public officials to understand the Public Interest Disclosures Act 2022 (PID Act)
The fundamentals of the new PID Act:
The Secretary of the Department of Planning Housing and Infrastructure is defined under the PID Act as an ‘integrity agency’ for the purposes of exercising certain functions under the Local Government Act 1993 (LG Act). This means that they can accept reports from public officials about wrongdoing and act where those reports relate to local government.
The Secretary has delegated their powers as an integrity agency to officers in the Office of Local Government (OLG). This means that OLG can accept and deal with certain complaints on the Secretary’s behalf.
It is important to remember that council officials can make a report of serious wrongdoing to their own council. In some circumstances, this will be most appropriate way of having the concerns addressed.
OLG has a published a policy that sets out how it will deal with reports of serious wrongdoing from council officials. Council officials who are considering making a report of serious wrongdoing are encouraged to read the policy.
This policy emphasises the importance of providing support to, and protections for, public officials within the local government sector who report serious wrongdoing in accordance with the requirements of the PID Act. This includes:
- creating a climate of trust, where public officials are comfortable and feel supported to report wrongdoing
- keeping the identity of the public official disclosing the serious wrongdoing confidential, where this is possible and appropriate
- protecting public officials from any detrimental action resulting from making a report of serious wrongdoing
- dealing with reports of serious wrongdoing in a prompt, thorough and impartial way, and taking appropriate action if some form of serious wrongdoing has been found
- keeping public officials who make reports of serious wrongdoing informed of their progress and the outcome
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can make a Public Interest Disclosure (PID) report?
Only public officials can make a voluntary PID. Councillor and council employees are public officials.
What can a Public Interest Disclosure (PID) report be about?
The NSW Ombudsman has released its guideline ‘What is a public interest disclosure?’ This provides an overview of the PID Act and explains the different types of disclosures.
Reports must relate to one or more of the following categories of serious wrongdoing to be considered a PID:
- corrupt conduct
- serious maladministration
- a government information contravention (GIPA Act)
- a privacy contravention (PPIP Act)
- a serious and substantial waste of public money
- a local government pecuniary interest contravention
What is detrimental action and how do I report it?
People who report wrongdoing need to be confident they will be protected from harm or disadvantage as a result of making a disclosure. Agencies need to accurately and quickly identify that a disclosure is a public interest disclosure (PID) because, if a report is a PID, the public official who made the report will have special protections under the Public Interest Disclosures Act 2022 (PID Act). These protections apply from the time the PID is received by the agency.
The PID Act contains protections to ensure that a person who has made a PID does not suffer detrimental action such as bullying, harassment or dismissal, as a result. These protections extend to people who are suspected by others of having made a PID (even if they have not) or of potentially making a PID in the future. Investigators of wrongdoing are also protected from detrimental action in the PID Act.
Anyone who suspects they have been subject of detrimental action, should contact the Disclosure Coordinator within their agency to confidentially report the matter as soon as possible.
For more information on detrimental action, please see the facts sheet below and information on the NSW Ombudsman webpage.
How can reports of serious wrongdoing about local government be made?
- Making a report to your council
- Public officials who are a council official can make a report to:
- their manager (if they are a council employee)
- a Disclosure Officer within the council
- the General Manager of the council
- Making a report to OLG
- Public officials can also make a report to OLG:
by writing to OLG at: Locked Bag 3015, NOWRA NSW 2541
by emailing OLG at investigations@olg.nsw.gov.au or olg@olg.nsw.gov.au