The Canadian Taxpayers Federation wants First Nations chiefs to make their salary information available to the public online.
The group made the announcement Thursday in Ottawa, saying they support a private member’s bill that will force chiefs and band councilors to post their salaries on the Internet.
It’s a move that some First Nations residents say is necessary.
Jeremy Blacksmith lives on Sioux Valley Dakota Nation and said he wants to know why his band can’t afford to fix his home’s broken doors and cracked windows but he’s afraid to ask about the First Nation’s finances.
“I’m just a welfare recipient. Why would they want to share that information with me?” said Blacksmith. “I have no business knowing that anyway.”
Blacksmith said he wasn’t aware he had the right to know. And the Canadian Taxpayers Federation wants that to change.
“I have no objection to that at all,” said Vince Tacan, the chief of Sioux Valley Dakota Nation. “I think that’s something that’s standard. We know what other politicians make.”
Tacan said he makes about $65,000 each year, while five band councilors for the nation make $45,000 a year.
That information as well as the band’s finances are distributed to community members four times a year, according to Tacan.
“The more information you give the community, the more they understand how things work and how much things cost,” said Tacan.
But the taxpayers federation said not all communities are so open and it can sometimes be dangerous for community members to ask for that information. A spokesperson for the federation said on some reserves, band members have even had their lives threatened while trying to find out what their chief and councillors are paid.
Blacksmith said now that he knows how much they make, he’s not impressed.
“We have to write letters for welfare advances just to get emergency food, and they’re making that much money,” said Blacksmith. Blacksmith said the wages are too high considering the widespread poverty in the community.
But Tacan said making improvements to the community – like housing repairs and attracting new businesses – require a lot of time and work and that’s the reason for the salary.
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation spokesperson said 50 reserve politicians made more money than the prime minister of Canada in 2008 and many band members were completely unaware the chiefs representing them were making that much money.
