Minister for parliamentary business Bruce Crawford said it will ask whether the act should be applied to a wider range of bodies that deliver public services.
This could include: contractors who build and maintain schools, hospitals and roads; private prison operators; leisure, sport and cultural trusts set up by local authorities; Glasgow Housing Association; and the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland.
Speaking at the 2009 Holyrood Freedom of Information Conference in Edinburgh on 8 December, Crawford said the move follows responses to a discussion paper on the options for extending coverage of the act.
"It is important that organisations who deliver key public services for the people of Scotland operate transparently so the public can be reassured we are getting high quality services and value for money," he said. "I am also sympathetic to the view that people should be able to 'follow' the expenditure of public money through their access to information, in particular in relation to PFI/PPP contracts which tend to be high value and long term."
He said that a key part of the consultation will be an examination of any extra costs and burdens associated and any risks to business efficiency and competitiveness.
Crawford added that the government is launching a revised code of practice for public authorities in meeting their FoI obligations.
