Home Privacy Policy Privacy Policy Collection, use and disclosure of personal information by the Alberta Utilities Commission The AUC collects personal information in compliance with section 33(c) of Alberta’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIP). Personal information collected by the AUC will be used only for the purpose for which it was collected or for a use consistent with that purpose. When you visit this site, our web server automatically collects a limited amount of standard information essential to the operation and evaluation of the site. This information is not used to identify individuals who come to the site, nor is it disclosed to other public bodies or individuals. The information that’s collected identifies the following: The page from which you arrived. The date and time of your page request. The IP address your computer is using to receive information. The type and version of your browser. The name and size of the file you request. The AUC does not automatically gather any personal information from you, such as email addresses. This information is only obtained if you supply it voluntarily by initiating contact with us, contributing to our social media site(s), or by registering with us for an AUC proceeding, hearing or consultation using AUC Engage. We do not collect personal information for any general purposes, and we do not collect personal information for commercial marketing. Personal information will not be released to a government agency or third party unless the release is permitted or required by law. The FOIP Act provides access to information held by public bodies which is not available by other means, and allows individuals to request correction of their own personal information that a public body holds, this is called a FOIP request. Participation in AUC Engage consultations AUC Engage, available through the Engage link on the AUC’s website, facilitates consultations by allowing registered users who have created an AUC Engage account to provide submissions on a variety of topics. Submissions provided through AUC Engage are collected by the AUC. The AUC’s use of personal information included in these submissions is in accordance with this privacy policy. AUC Engage consultations may be public, by invitation only, or private. A public consultation allows any person to view submissions provided by any registered user, including any personal information contained in the submission. Consultations by invitation only allow registered users that have been invited to participate to provide submissions, which can be viewed by any person, whether invited or not, through the AUC Engage website. Private consultations are closed to the public and submissions may only be provided, and viewed by, registered users that are taking part in the private consultation. Following any consultation (public, invitation only, or private) the AUC may prepare a public report containing personal information collected through a consultation. If you do not want your personal information publicly available, you may contact us to determine how the personal information contained in your submission may be treated in confidence in accordance with Rule 001, Section 4, as described above. Alternatively, you may create an anonymous AUC Engage account so information that would otherwise constitute personal information is no longer identifiable to an individual. AUC Engage Moderation Policy About moderation This website is moderated by AUC employees. AUC moderators provide support to ensure participants, site administrators, and third-parties are safe from malicious, inflammatory and illegal materials. The AUC’s role in moderation of this site is to ensure that contributions are reviewed and assessed in an impartial manner according to the rules outlined below. This policy covers the following: username rules username sanctions moderation rules moderation sanctions etiquette frequently asked questions Username rules Usernames – which are submitted by participants during the registration process as a way to identify themselves in public facing activities, are approved in accordance with the username rules set out below: Usernames should not be defamatory, obscene or include language which could be deemed offensive. This includes the creative use of characters and symbols to hide explicit content. Users must not masquerade as other members of the public, elected officials, moderators, site administrators or workers from the consulting organization. If you are found to be impersonating someone else you may face sanctions. Usernames must not be a URL or web address. Username sanctions If you breach any of the above username rules upon registering for this site the following will occur: Username change – our moderation team reviews every username submitted to this site via registration. If they deem your username to be in breach of the above rules they will change your username and inform you this has occurred. You can later change your username to something within the rules via your participant profile. Temporary suspension – a participant who repeatedly and flagrantly changes their username in breach of the above rules may be suspended from access to the website for a period of up to one week. The period will reflect both the severity and consistency of the breach. Permanent blocking – a participant who continues to violate the username rules following reinstatement after a period of suspension may have their access to the website permanently blocked. Moderation Rules All public facing contributions – that is, contributions that can be seen by other website users are moderated in accordance with the moderation rules set out below: Never post personal information about yourself or another participant. This includes identifying any individual by their real name if they have not already done so, or providing personal contact information. Never identify an AUC employee by name. Don’t defame anyone or any organization. A comment is defamatory if it lowers or harms the reputation of a person or organization. If you wish to insult anyone, this is not the place to do it. If you wish to accuse anyone of wrongdoing or incompetence, this is not the place to do it. Don’t post anything that could be considered intolerant of a person’s race, culture, appearance, gender, sexual preference, religion or age. Don’t be obscene and don’t use foul language. Lots of people from different backgrounds participate on this website. We want them to be able to continue to do so from home, work, school, university or wherever they may be. Disguising swear words by deliberately misspelling them doesn’t make them any less offensive. Don’t personally insult or harass other participants. Always focus on the logic of the argument rather than the individuals involved in the argument. Participants are entitled to choose not to enter into debate with you. Don’t post or link to any inappropriate, offensive or illegal material. Don’t post any advertisements. Don’t promote self-harm, suicide, violence or criminal activity of any kind. The use of emoji or images to convey inappropriate meaning consistent with the rules outlined above will also be moderated. Ensure comments seek to address the topic or focus of the engagement activity at hand. Users which intentionally distract from or ignore the discussion topic may have their comments treated as off-topic and removed. Sanctions Breaches of the moderation rules will be dealt with as follows: Removal of comment – any comment that, in the view of the moderator, breaches the rules will be removed. Temporary suspension – a participant who repeatedly and flagrantly flouts the moderation rules may be suspended from access to the website for a period of up to one week. The period will reflect both the severity and consistency of the breach. Permanent blocking – a participant who continues to violate the moderation rules following reinstatement after a period of suspension may have their access to the website permanently blocked. Automatic blocking – a participant who posts or links to inappropriate, offensive or illegal material will be immediately blocked from the site. Etiquette The following are not enforceable rules, rather they are suggestions about etiquette to help keep the website respectful and constructive: It’s a good idea to read through the information on the site and the other participant comments before getting involved in the discussion yourself. Always respect the views of other participants even if they don’t agree with you. Be constructive. It’s okay to disagree with other forum participants, in fact we encourage debate, just keep the dialogue positive. Always keep things civil. We recognize that this can be difficult sometimes, especially when you are passionate about an issue, but it is important to keep the discussion focused on the issues rather than letting it deteriorate into personal insults. Once you’ve left your comment keep an eye on the project to see what other people have to say. Stay on topic. The projects on this website have been created for a specific purpose. Please stay within the boundaries of the subject matter. Turn off the “CAPS LOCK”. Writing in ALL CAPS is the equivalent of SHOUTING and can cause offence. Don’t bully, harass or threaten other participants. If another participant proffers an opinion that you don’t agree with, you have no right to demand that they support their position with a detailed argument. They do not have to respond to your questions. It is up to each individual to participate as much or as little as they wish. Please respect the moderators. Their job is to keep the forum safe and constructive so that everybody gets to have their fair say. Frequently asked questions What happens if my comment is removed? If you post something to this website, which is removed by our moderators, you will receive a notification via email informing you of the decision. You will be informed as to which of the moderation rules you are in breach of and asked to review and resubmit your contribution. What if I disagree with a moderation decision? If you disagree with a moderation decision you are able to get in touch with support by contacting webmaster@auc.ab.ca. While the final moderation decision lies with our moderators, you may indicate to us why you think your contribution should be accepted. Can a website owner remove my comment just because they don’t like it? The AUC reserves the right to moderate a contribution if it is felt it is in breach of these moderation rules. In this instance, you will receive a notification via email. How will I know if I have been blocked from the site? If you are repeatedly in breach of our moderation rules you may incur sanctions as outlined above. In the instance that you are blocked from the site, you will receive an email notification informing you of your sanctions and the conditions of those sanctions. What personally identifiable information about me can the moderators access? The AUC’s moderators have access to the user information provided when registering for the site. Moderators can view a user’s name, username and their organization name.