Freedom of Information
Comfort Letter vs. Freedom of Information Requests
Unsure if the information you are seeking should be made as a Comfort Letter or a Freedom of Information Request?
Comfort Letters provide information on land use items such as the current zoning, building permit records, etc. and are most commonly requested by law firms of Real Estate Agents wanting to know the current status of a property before the finalization of a property sale.
Copies of records or building permit plans will not be provided through a Comfort Letter and these should be made through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the Town of Oliver.
Click Here to request a Comfort Letter.
If you have questions regarding Zoning or OCP for a particular property please call 250-485-6200.
Corporate Services staff process Freedom of Information applications made to the Town of Oliver as defined by the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
About Freedom of Information Requests
To make a request for access to records:
- complete the online form below
- download and print the Request for Access Form
- contact the Town Office for a hard copy
Please return your completed form to Municipal Hall. Once submitted, your form will be reviewed and you will be contacted for follow up on payment of necessary fees and any additional paperwork or information that may be required to process your request.
We will process your request as quickly as possible and within the 30 business day time frame specified in the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act Legislation. If the record is an old one or involves signifcant staff time, the Town may require a time extension of an additional 30 days.
The Act provides that the Town may charge fees for the costs of providing applicants with records. The charge for non-commercial applicants is $7.50 per quarter hour after the first three hours for locating, retrieving and preparing records for disclosure. Additional fees such as photocopying and shipping also apply.
If there are costs involved in processing a formal request, we will send you a fee estimate before processing your application. Applicants are encouraged to maintain open communication.
What to do if you have a complaint regarding a request for access to records?
If you have tried to resolve your complaint directly with the Town and remain unsatisfied with the resolution, or if they did not respond to your complaint, you can request a review by contacting the office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for British Columbia.
