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Privacy Policy

Confidentialité
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1. Objectives

This Privacy Policy aims to:

  1. Set out the guidelines and principles to effectively ensure the confidentiality of any personal information collected by technological means;
  2. Protect the confidentiality of any personal information collected by the MRC de Maskinongé throughout its lifecycle;
  3. Indicate the technological means used to collect personal information, the purposes for which it is collected, and how it is processed within the MRC de Maskinongé;
  4. Ensure public trust in the MRC de Maskinongé, demonstrate transparency regarding the processing of personal information, the PERSONAL INFORMATION measures applied by the MRC, and provide access when required.

Collection of Personal Information and Consent

2. Confidentiality

  1. The MRC de Maskinongé keeps all collected personal information confidential and makes it accessible only to employees who need it to perform their duties.
  2. The MRC de Maskinongé specifies its privacy practices when obtaining consent from the individual concerned for the collection of any personal information.
  3. The MRC applies equivalent security measures, regardless of the sensitivity of the information, to prevent breaches of confidentiality and integrity, subject to exceptions in the Act respecting Access.

3. Types of Personal Information Collected by Services

The MRC of Maskinongé regularly, and at least annually, determines the types of personal information collected, the purposes for collecting them, the categories of employees with access, and the methods used to collect and compile this information.

4. Consent to the Collection of Personal Information

  1. The MRC does not collect or retain personal information without the individual’s consent, except as permitted under the Act respecting Access.
  2. Consent must be given for specific purposes, for a necessary duration, and must be:
    • Express: meaning it is clear and unambiguous;
    • Free: meaning it is given without coercion;
    • Informed: meaning it is based on full knowledge.
  3. Except where permitted by law, the MRC will not disclose personal information to third parties without the individual’s specific consent.
  4. Subject to applicable laws and regulations, individuals may refuse to consent to the collection of personal information and still receive services.
  5. To express refusal, individuals must:
    • Upon receiving a form or other document requesting consent from the MRC, decline by not signing and notifying the MRC employee;
    • While using the MRC website, follow the instructions provided to indicate refusal.
  6. Refusal to provide consent may limit access to certain services.
  7. Access to MRC services will be denied in the following cases:
    • Job candidates refusing to provide required personal information for evaluation;
    • Property owners refusing to provide necessary information for property assessment.
  8. Consent to collect personal information through audio or visual recordings includes the right for the MRC to reproduce or distribute the recordings, if justified by the original purposes, with each use subject to privacy protections.

Right of Access and Rectification

5. Right of Access

  1. Every person has the right to be informed about the existence of personal information held in a personal information file, subject to the Act respecting Access.
  2. Except where restricted by law, individuals have the right to access their personal information held by the MRC.
  3. The MRC allows access by letting individuals view their information remotely or on-site during business hours (Monday to Thursday from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 12:45 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., Friday from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.), and obtain a copy.
  4. For individuals with disabilities, the MRC provides reasonable accommodation to facilitate access, following the policy established under section 26.5 of the Act to secure handicapped persons in the exercise of their rights with a view to achieving social, school and workplace integration.
  5. Access to personal information is free of charge. However, reasonable fees may be applied for transcription, reproduction, or transmission, in accordance with applicable regulations.
  6. If fees apply, the MRC must inform the individual of the estimated cost before proceeding.

6. Right to Rectification

  1. Any person who is informed of the existence of inaccurate, incomplete, or misleading personal information may request that it be corrected. This also applies when collection, disclosure, or retention is not authorized by law.
  2. If the MRC refuses to comply with a rectification request, the individual may request that this refusal be documented.
  3. If the MRC agrees to the rectification, it provides the individual with a free copy of the corrected record.

7. Procédure d’accès ou de rectification

  1. A request for access or rectification is only considered if it is made in writing by a natural person who proves their identity as the data subject or as a representative, heir or successor, liquidator of the estate, beneficiary of life insurance or death benefit, or holder of parental authority (even if the minor child is deceased).
  2. Such a request must be addressed to the person responsible for the protection of personal information at the MRC de Maskinongé.
  3. The person responsible for the protection of personal information shall notify the requester in writing of the date the request was received.
  4. This notice of receipt shall indicate the deadlines for responding to the request and the consequences, under the Act respecting access to documents held by public bodies and the protection of personal information (Act respecting Access), of the person responsible failing to meet these deadlines. It shall also inform the requester of the right to apply for a review as provided in Section III, Chapter IV of the Act respecting Access.
  5. The person responsible shall respond to an access or rectification request promptly, and no later than twenty (20) days following the date of receipt.
  6. If it appears impossible to process the request within the prescribed period without interfering with the normal operations of the MRC de Maskinongé, the person responsible may, before the expiry of the period, extend it by up to ten (10) days and shall inform the requester using any means of communication that reaches the concerned person.
  7. The person responsible must justify any refusal to comply with a request and indicate the provision of the Act respecting Access on which the refusal is based.
  8. The decision of the person responsible shall be given in writing and a copy shall be sent to the requester. It must include the text of the relevant legal provision, if applicable, and a notice informing the requester of the review remedy before the CAI provided in Section III, Chapter IV of the Act respecting Access, including the applicable time limit.
  9. The person responsible shall ensure that the personal information subject to the request is retained for the time necessary to allow the requester to exhaust all recourses provided under the Act respecting Access.

8. Retention and protection of personal information

  1. The MRC de Maskinongé hosts and processes all collected personal information itself, within Quebec.
  2. When, in certain circumstances, the MRC de Maskinongé entrusts the collection, retention, or processing of any personal information to a service provider located in Quebec or outside Quebec, it takes all reasonable measures to ensure that the rights of the individuals concerned, as outlined in this policy, are respected by the provider. The laws of jurisdictions outside Quebec may affect the rights of the individuals concerned.

9. Transfers of personal information outside the MRC de Maskinongé

  1. Unless authorized under the Act respecting Access or with specific consent obtained from the individual concerned, the MRC de Maskinongé does not transfer any personal information to a third party outside the MRC.
  2. When any PERSONAL INFORMATION is transferred to a third party through technological means, the third party’s privacy policy, if applicable, shall then apply to that personal information.

10. Right of access to a document of the MRC de Maskinongé

  1. The Act respecting access applies to all documents held by the MRC de Maskinongé, whether they are retained by the MRC or by a third party.
  2. The Act also applies regardless of the format of the document: written, graphic, audio, visual, computerized, or otherwise.
  3. Any person who submits a written request has the right to access documents of the MRC de Maskinongé, except in cases specified by the Act. The right of access only applies to documents that do not require calculations, comparisons of information, or special preparation.
  4. To be admissible, the access request must be sufficiently precise to allow the document to be located.
  5. The Access to Information Officer (AIO) must respond to an access request no later than 20 days after receiving it. If meeting this deadline is not possible without disrupting the normal activities of the MRC, the AIO may extend the deadline by up to 10 days and must notify the requester within the initial 20-day period using any means of communication that reaches the person.
  6. The requester may obtain a copy of the document by any communication method, unless reproduction would harm preservation or pose serious practical difficulties due to its format. The right of access may also be exercised by on-site consultation during the MRC’s regular business hours or remotely.
  7. Access is free of charge. However, fees not exceeding the cost of transcription, reproduction, or transmission may be charged in accordance with the Regulation respecting fees for the transcription, reproduction or transmission of documents or personal information (CQLR, c. A-2.1, r. 3).
  8. If the requester has a disability, the MRC de Maskinongé will, upon request, take reasonable accommodation measures to ensure their right of access as provided in this article. To this end, the MRC considers the policy established under section 26.5 of the Act to secure handicapped persons in the exercise of their rights with a view to achieving social, school and workplace integration (CQLR, c. E-20.1).
  9. The Access to Information Officer must justify any refusal to grant access and indicate the relevant provision of the Act on which the refusal is based.

11. Person responsible for the protection of personal information

  1. Any request for access to a document or file held by the MRC de Maskinongé that contains personal information must be made in writing to the person responsible for access to information and the protection of personal information at the following address:

    Ms. Pascale Plante, Director General and Clerk-Treasurer
    Person responsible for access to information and the protection of personal information

    MRC de Maskinongé
    651 Saint-Laurent Blvd East
    Louiseville, QC, J5V 1J1

    AND by email at: mrcinfo@mrc-maskinonge.qc.ca
  2. Anyone may submit a question regarding this privacy policy of the MRC de Maskinongé.

Administrative measures

12. Complaints

  1. Anyone who feels wronged by the way the MRC de Maskinongé manages the protection of personal information may file a complaint in accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Policy on Governance Rules for the Protection of Personal Information of the MRC de Maskinongé, available on the MRC’s website.
  2. When a written request for access to a document from the MRC de Maskinongé is refused in whole or in part by the person responsible for access to information, or if the response deadline has expired, the requester may apply to the Commission d’accès à l’information for a review of the decision. The request for review must be made in writing within thirty (30) days following the date of the decision or the expiry of the time allowed to respond. It may briefly state the reasons why the decision should be reviewed.