One aboriginal-reserve politician in Atlantic Canada made $978,468 last year – $216,130 in salary, $34,000 in per diem travel expenses, and the rest listed simply as “other remuneration” in documents disclosed by the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs.
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation, which obtained the information using federal access to information laws, was not provided the name of the big earner or details to identify any of the other 221 chiefs and councillors who took home the tax-free equivalent of more than $100,000 in 2008-09.
Colin Craig, the federation’s prairie director, said Monday that Canadians, including the residents of reserves, have no way of knowing who is making large amounts of money by sitting on Canada’s native councils and whether the salaries and other income – most of which is taxpayer funded – is justified.
The documents obtained by the CTF show that the take-home pay of on-reserve chiefs and councillors varies dramatically from reserve to reserve and region to region. Many earned less than $60,000.
But more than 80 aboriginal-reserve politicians were paid a tax-free equivalent that was higher than the amount Prime Minister Stephen Harper made last year, and 222 were making more than their respective premiers, according to the taxpayers federation.
“We’re not suggesting, and the numbers don’t show, that this is happening on every reserve,” Mr. Craig said. “But I think what the numbers do show is that this is a very serious problem in Canada and greater transparency would especially help reserve politicians who aren’t taking advantage of the situation.”
In many cases, the salaries were non-existent or quite modest. But honorariums and other remuneration pushed the total take-home pay of chiefs and councillors into the six-figure bracket.
Representatives of the Assembly of First Nations were unavailable to speak to the issue on Monday.
When the CTF released a partial list of salaries of on-reserve politicians in October, Grand Chief Ron Evans of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs pointed out that aboriginal politicians must deal with many stressful issues, including land claims, health care, poverty and overcrowded housing.
Mr. Evans said at that time he was glad the taxpayers federation had raised the issue because it is important to have a discussion about it. But, he said, unlike the premiers, the chiefs don’t get a pension when they leave office.
The federal government, meanwhile, has indicated that it is concerned about the lack of transparency around the salaries of reserve politicians.
John Duncan, the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs, told the House of Commons on Monday that the government would be supporting a private member’s bill introduced by Conservative MP Kelly Block that would require the amounts paid to band chiefs and councillors to be posted to the Internet.
Ms. Block said her bill, which will be debated in the House for the first time on Thursday, does not question whether the amounts paid are reasonable. “It’s just calling for the same kind of accountability and transparency that other elected officials find themselves coming under,” she said.
Mr. Craig, on the other hand, does ask whether it is right for on-reserve politicians to be earning amounts that exceed those of politicians who head much larger jurisdictions.
“These tax dollars aren’t meant for reserve politicians to live high on the hog,” Mr. Craig said. “They are meant for services for the people. But, far too often, reserve politicians are letting down their own people.”
