Certifications and disclosures
Certification and reports
The Auditor General has audited the accounts and financial statements of the Department of Transport and provides a report on the findings.
| Certification of financial statements (2016/2017) | Kb |
|---|---|
| Certification of key performance indicators (2016/2017) | Kb |
| Independent auditor's report (2016/2017) | Kb |
Customer feedback
DoT's Complaints Handling Policy and Procedures allow complaints to be made in person, by phone, fax, online or in writing, in line with the Australian Standard on Complaints Handling (AS ISO 10002-2006).
Complaints are managed through DoT's Customer Feedback System (CFS), which is administered within Objective DoT's electronic document and record management system (EDRMS).
Type of feedback received 2016-17
In 2016-17, the following types of feedback were managed through the CFS.
| Feedback type | % Received |
|---|---|
| Complaints | 68 |
| Compliments | 5 |
| Feedback and information | 27 |
A comparison of the types of feedback received in 2016-17, compared with previous years, is shown below.
In 2016-17, DoT continued to analyse customer feedback and improve accessibility for customers wishing to submit a general enquiry online. These measures to improve the customer experience may have contributed to the overall increase in feedback from 2015-16 as customers found the process more accessible.
Breakdown of complaints by business unit for 2016-17
| Business Units | Complaints | Feedback, information and compliments | Total customer feedback | % of DoT total complaints |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Driver and Vehicle Services | 1,631 | 777 | 2,708 | 82.88% |
| Marine Safety | 46 | 40 | 86 | 2.34% |
| Coastal Infrastructure | 11 | 16 | 27 | 0.56% |
| Regional Services | 54 | 7 | 61 | 2.74% |
| On-demand Transport | 190 | 22 | 212 | 9.65% |
| Other | 36 | 66 | 102 | 1.83% |
| Total | 1,968 | 928 | 2,896 |
"Other" includes Policy Planning and Investment, People and Organisational Development, Office of the Director General and Corporate Services. These business units typically do not receive consistent complaints or other feedback through the year, so have been included as a single category.
On-demand Transport (OdT) complaints received increased from 2.5 per cent to almost 10 per cent of the total complaints received throughout the year. Factors that could be attributed to this increase are the introduction of processes to formally capture complaints from a wider range of sources in OdT and the current OdT industry reform activities.
Employment and industrial relations
Full-time equivalents (FTE) and headcount as at 30 June 2017
| Status | Headcount* | FTE* |
|---|---|---|
| Permanent full-time | 1,125 | 1,125.00 |
| Permanent part-time | 216 | 140.87 |
| Temporary full-time | 116 | 116.00 |
| Temporary part-time | 23 | 13.68 |
| Senior Executive Service | 19 | 19.00 |
| Total | 1,499 | 1,414.55 |
*Headcount and FTE numbers include paid employees and employees on unpaid leave.
In 2016 -17, DoT withdrew from the Department for Planning and Infrastructure Agency Specific Agreement 2007. DoT continued to work in partnership with its Joint Consultative Committee to consult on initiatives and address any issues.
Freedom of information
DoT's Freedom of Information (FOI) Coordinator is the initial contact point for all FOI related matters.
In accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 1992 (the Act), DoT is required to respond to FOI access applications within 45 days of receipt, unless an extension is negotiated. The average time to process applications in 2016-17 was 18 days.
FOI fees and charges
FOI fees and charges are set under the Act. Apart from the application fee for non-personal information, all charges are discretionary. Details of fees and charges are listed below.
| Application | Amount |
|---|---|
| Personal information about applicant. | No fee |
| Application fee (for non-personal information). | $30.00 |
| Charge for time taken dealing with the application. | $30.00 per hour |
| Charge for access time supervised by staff. | $30.00 per hour |
| Charges for photocopying. | $30.00 per hour for staff time and 20 cents per copy |
Rights of review
The Act allows dissatisfied applicants to request an internal review of the initial decision made by DoT. In accordance with Section 40 of the Act, a request for an internal review must be forwarded to the FOI Coordinator, in writing, within 30 days of the date of the initial decision.
Following an internal review, matters remaining in dispute can be submitted to the Office of the Information Commissioner for external review. Such applications must be submitted within 60 days from the date of internal review decision.
No fees or charges apply to internal or external reviews.
FOI statistics for 2016-17
FOI statistics for 2016-17, compared with previous years, are detailed in the table below.
| Application | Number received 2013-14 |
Number received 2014-15 |
Number received 2015-16 |
Number received 2016-17 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total received (not including those transferred to another agency). | 204 | 257 | 351 | 310 |
| Internal reviews. | 10 | 19 | 15 | 13 |
| External reviews. | 2 | 7 | 7 | 2 |
| Transferred to another agency. | 15 | 7 | 10 | 2 |
Governance disclosures
Contracts with senior officers
During 2016-17, other than normal contracts for employment of services, no senior officers or firms of which senior officers are members, or entities in which senior officers have substantial interests, had any interests in existing or proposed contracts with DoT.
Unauthorised use of credit cards
DoT staff hold corporate credit cards (purchasing cards) where their functions warrant usage of this facility. Despite each cardholder being reminded of their obligations annually under the Department's purchasing card policy, 14 employees inadvertently utilised their purchasing cards in their personal capacity in 2016-17. None of these matters was referred for disciplinary action as the Chief Finance Officer noted that the nature of the expenditure was immaterial and characteristic of an honest mistake.
| Description | 2016-17 No. |
2016-17 $ |
|---|---|---|
| Number of instances the purchasing card has been used for personal use. | 20 | |
| Number of referrals for disciplinary action instigated during the reporting period. | Nil | |
| Aggregate amount of personal use expenditure for the reporting period. | 570 | |
| Aggregate amount of personal use expenditure settled by the due date (within five working days). | 285 | |
| Aggregate amount of personal use expenditure settled after the period (after five working days). | 285 | |
| Aggregate amount of personal use expenditure outstanding at balance date. | - |
Other financial disclosures
Pricing policies of services provided
DoT reviews its fees and charges annually to reflect, where legally permissible, full cost recovery in the provision of its services pursuant to the departmental policy for costing and pricing.
The following gazettes contain variations to DoT's fees and charges for the 2016-17 financial year:
- Western Australia Government Gazette No. 62 dated 15 April 2016
- Western Australia Government Gazette No. 75 dated 13 May 2016
- Western Australia Government Gazette No. 80 dated 20 May 2016
- Western Australia Government Gazette No. 83 dated 27 May 2016
- Western Australia Government Gazette No. 96 (Special) dated 14 June 2016
- Western Australia Government Gazette No. 231 dated 23 December 2016
Major capital projects
DoT's major capital projects, those over $5 million, for the 2016-17 financial year are detailed in the table below.
Capital projects incomplete
| Project | Expected year of completion | Project life spent up to 30/6/2017 $'000 |
Estimated cost to complete $'000 |
Estimated total cost of project $'000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exmouth Boat Harbour | 2017-18 | 16,856 | 3,290 | 20,146 |
| Burswood Public Jetty | 2017-18 | 1,013 | 3,987 | 5,000 |