Nations hold out on transparency act provisions

The Tsuu T’ina First Nation does not need legislation for chief and council to be fiscally accountable to their membership, say leaders. And no legislation will force the Treaty 7 First Nation in southern Alberta to open its financial records in their entirety to the federal government.

When the First Nations Financial Transparency Act became law July 29, Tsuu T’ina submitted 20 pages to Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada which accounted for the funding received from Canada and comprises 10 or 11 per cent of Tsuu T’ina’s overall budget. As federal dollars do not pay salaries for chief and councillors, those figures were not included in the documents submitted.

“We’re providing our members the full funding report,” said Tsuu T’ina CEO Peter Manywounds. “The rest of the funds are self-generated by our enterprises.”

Over the past 20 months, he says, Tsuu T’ina council has held 11 general meetings, including four different occasions at which membership has requested and been provided with detailed financial information.

Because Tsuu T’ina already practises transparency with its membership, and because disclosing the details of its complex economic dealings would be damaging in a competitive business environment, Manywounds says chief and council chose not provide that information to the federal government.

Manywounds also points out that Tsuu T’ina expressed its disapproval with the legislation when the federal government proposed it.

Tsuu T’ina First Nation does not stand alone in its opposition to the legislation as is indicated by the less than one-third of First Nations that met the July 29 deadline to either post their financial records on their own Web site or offer them up to AANDC to post on the government Web site.

“We were not party to the design of the law and we were opposed to it from the outset, mainly because we said we wanted to get involved. This being said, we always said we have nothing against transparency and accountability. It’s really a matter of how it’s being done and in this case, clearly being imposed against First Nations,” said Ghislain Picard, interim National Chief for the Assembly of First Nations.

At this point, he says, the AFN is “trying to concentrate our message around what’s being put out there. That seems to be the focus and I would say almost naturally because people will key in on that.”

Kwikwetlem First Nation Chief Ron Giesbrecht’s payment of $914,219 in 2013 is one of the figures the Canadian Taxpayers Federation is talking about. And it’s the very reason CTF  championed the First Nations Financial Transparency Act, says Derek Fildebrandt, Alberta director with CTF. The organization pushed the legislation because of complaints from First Nations members who were having difficulty getting straight answers from their band councils.

“There are other chiefs out there who are being paid exorbitant sums, who are well aware that if it becomes public to their own people and to taxpayers how much they’re making that they too will end up in the headlines,” said Fildebrandt. He offers this as a reason why First Nations are not posting their financials.
However, he admits to being surprised by the widespread non-compliance.

Fildebrandt contends that chiefs’ salaries should reflect those of elected municipal officials.

Picard refutes Fildebrandt’s claim. “First Nations chiefs and elected officials don’t have the same duties as a mayor of any municipality across the country. It’s far more demanding. Chiefs could easily be negotiators, could easily be administrators, or even, at times, social workers. They have to be in the community 24/7, always on the ready.”

Picard also challenges the CTF’s claim of rampant misuse of federal dollars for salaries. He says AFN’s analysis indicates the average salary of an elected First Nations’ official as between $35,000 and $40,000.

Canadian Press reports that Federal Aboriginal Affairs Minister Bernard Valcourt will give First Nations until the end of November to comply before imposing penalties, including withholding federal funding.

“I really hope it doesn’t come to that. There are important services that need to be provided. First Nations need the money,” said Fildebrandt. “I think it would be very bad of chiefs to let their own people suffer in order to keep their pay a secret.”
Picard said he has heard talk of First Nations taking action if the federal government cuts off funding.

Grand Chief David Harper of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak says bands are ready to blockade provincial installations, such as pipelines, in their fight against the First Nations Financial Transparency Act.

Manywounds says he would like to see a process put in place for the federal government to accommodate First Nations’ concerns.
“We have a very sophisticated operation and we’re not prepared to jeopardize what we’ve achieved so far and where we’re headed on behalf of our membership by a one issue piece of legislation that may not be constitutionally (sound) or may infringe on inherent treaty and Aboriginal rights,” he said.

Fildebrandt does not believe a Constitutional challenge is valid.

“I cannot see any Constitutional argument that would protect these people from basic disclosure required from any democracy on the planet,” he said.