Summary#
This bill creates an independent Commissioner and Office for Modern Treaty Implementation. The Commissioner will review and audit how federal institutions carry out modern treaties with Indigenous peoples, and report findings to Parliament. The Office will support the Commissioner and is added to key federal statutes for staffing, access to information, privacy, and languages.
- Creates a full-time Commissioner for up to 7 years, renewable once, approved by both Houses of Parliament (Bill: Appointment).
- Allows the Commissioner to review or audit any federal activity tied to modern treaty implementation and make recommendations (Bill: Reviews and performance audits; Report).
- Requires federal institutions to share needed information and to respond to draft findings before reports are final (Bill: Access to information; Draft — government institutions).
- Sends final reports to Parliament and copies to affected Indigenous partners; annual and special reports are also tabled (Bill: Final report; Reports — Annual report; Special reports).
- Lists 30 Indigenous modern treaty partners in a Schedule and requires their consultation for key decisions, including the Commissioner’s appointment and any Act changes (Bill: Schedule; Consultations).
- Coordinates work with the Auditor General to avoid duplication and allows limited information sharing subject to other laws (Bill: Coordination of activities; Information sharing).
What it means for you#
- Households
- No direct changes to taxes, benefits, or services are specified. This bill focuses on federal oversight and reporting (Bill: Purpose and scope throughout).
- Indigenous modern treaty partners
- May ask the Commissioner to conduct reviews or performance audits on federal implementation activities (Bill: Reviews and performance audits).
- Receive drafts of relevant findings and can submit written responses that must be included in final reports (Bill: Draft — Indigenous modern treaty partners; Inclusion in final report).
- Get copies of final reports once tabled in Parliament (Bill: Final report — Copy of report).
- Are consulted on the Commissioner’s appointment, on proposed amendments to the Act and Schedule, and during mandated 5-year/7-year independent reviews and 10-year parliamentary reviews (Bill: Appointment; Consultations; Reviews — Parliamentary and Independent).
- Can collaborate with the government on regulations made under the Act (Bill: Regulations — Collaboration).
- Federal government institutions
- Subject to reviews and performance audits of activities related to modern treaty implementation, in line with CPA performance audit standards (Bill: Reviews and performance audits; Auditing standards).
- Must provide the Commissioner with information needed to fulfill their mandate, subject to any other Act that expressly limits access; joint protocols can be required if information is not forthcoming (Bill: Access to information; Provision of information).
- Will receive draft findings and must submit written responses within set timelines; responses are published in final reports (Bill: Draft — government institutions; Inclusion in final report).
- May be briefed by the Commissioner and should expect coordination with the Auditor General to avoid overlap (Bill: Briefings; Coordination of activities).
- Parliament
- Must approve the Commissioner’s appointment by resolutions of both the Senate and the House of Commons (Bill: Appointment).
- Receives final reports from each review or audit, plus annual and special reports within 15 sitting days (Bill: Final report; Reports).
- Must review the Act every 10 years (Bill: Reviews — Parliamentary review).
- Workers and job seekers
- A new federal Office is created. Staff are hired under the Public Service Employment Act; the Commissioner may also hire temporary experts with Treasury Board–approved pay (Bill: Office — Establishment; Staff; Technical or specialized assistance).
- The Office is added to the Official Languages Act list and other core statutes, which shapes hiring and service obligations (Bill: Consequential Amendments).
- Businesses and local governments
- No direct obligations or benefits are specified (Bill: Scope).
Expenses#
Estimated net cost: Data unavailable.
- No fiscal estimate or dollar appropriation is stated in the bill text. Data unavailable.
- Cost drivers set in the bill:
- Commissioner’s salary and expenses set by the Governor in Council (Bill: Rank, powers and duties — Salary and expenses).
- Office staff hired under the Public Service Employment Act (Bill: Staff).
- Authority to hire temporary technical experts with Treasury Board–approved remuneration (Bill: Technical or specialized assistance).
- Travel and living expenses for the Commissioner when performing duties (Bill: Rank, powers and duties — Salary and expenses).
- Structural/administrative changes (enabling, not quantified):
- Adds the Office to the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act schedules (Bill: Consequential Amendments).
- Adds the Office to the Financial Administration Act (Schedules I.1 and IV) and Public Service Superannuation Act (Bill: Consequential Amendments).
- Adds the Office to the Official Languages Act list (Bill: Consequential Amendments).
Proponents' View#
- Improves accountability on modern treaty implementation by creating an independent, full-time Commissioner with deputy head powers and direct reporting to Parliament (Bill: Rank, powers and duties; Final report).
- Ensures timely visibility into problems because the Commissioner can set priorities, conduct audits to CPA standards, and issue special reports at any time (Bill: Procedures and manner — Priorities; Auditing standards; Special reports).
- Strengthens whole-of-government follow-through by granting access to needed information and requiring institutions to respond to findings (Bill: Access to information; Draft — government institutions).
- Embeds Indigenous participation through required consultations on appointments, legislative changes, periodic reviews, and during each review’s terms and methodology (Bill: Appointment; Consultations; Reviews — Duties of Commissioner — reviews).
- Aligns with UN Declaration and Canada’s policy commitments by emphasizing treaty implementation and the honour of the Crown (Bill: Preamble; Mandate).
- Limits duplication by requiring coordination with the Auditor General and permitting information sharing subject to other laws (Bill: Coordination of activities; Information sharing).
Opponents' View#
- Creates a new office with ongoing staffing, salary, and operating costs, but the bill provides no cost estimate or cap (Bill: Establishment; Staff; Rank, powers and duties — Salary and expenses). Data unavailable.
- Risks overlap with existing oversight and treaty-specific review bodies; while coordination is required, the Commissioner still has broad discretion to launch reviews, which may duplicate work (Bill: Reviews and performance audits; Coordination of activities).
- Provides recommendations but no binding enforcement powers, so fixes may depend on political will rather than orders (Bill: Report — Recommendations only; no order-making authority stated).
- Grants wide access to institutional information and allows limited sharing, which may raise confidentiality management challenges even with security and non-disclosure rules (Bill: Access to information; Information sharing; Security requirements; Non-disclosure).
- Sets no minimum number of audits or reviews per year; coverage and timeliness could vary based on the Commissioner’s chosen priorities (Bill: Procedures and manner — Priorities).
- Appointment requires political approvals, which could delay setup or raise concerns about perceived independence despite safeguards (Bill: Appointment — Consultation and approval by both Houses).