Sask MLA Expense Transparency Needed
CTF calls for placing politicians' expenses online like the City of Toronto
WINNIPEG: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) called on Saskatchewan MLAs to improve transparency of their expenses today after identifying flaws with the current system.
Specifically, the CTF called on MLAs to begin placing scanned receipts for their expenses on the internet just like the City of Toronto does and to make the Legislative Assembly's expenses subject to the Freedom of Information Act.
"Currently, taxpayers can only get a glimpse into MLA expenses by first digging through binders in the Clerk’s office and then by asking individual MLAs for permission to see the receipts,” said CTF Prairie director Colin Craig.
“MLAs must be accountable to taxpayers and should put all of this information online, just like the City of Toronto,” continued Craig. “When we asked MLAs for details on some of the more questionable expenses, most of the requests went unanswered. Placing the details on the internet would solve the problem. ”
As the expense details available in the Clerk’s office only provide short descriptions, the CTF inquired with some MLAs for further information and copies of receipts on a few of the expenses that were either unclear or seemed potentially questionable (listed below). Only MLA Ken Chveldayoff responded, noting his bill was for a video recorder and a wall bracket for mounting a TV.
"After speaking with officials at the Saskatchewan Legislature about the controls they have in place, it sounds like the overall system is pretty good," added Craig. "However, bringing the Legislative Assembly's expenses under the Freedom of Information Act and placing MLA expense details online would improve transparency and accountability."
To view the expenses listed above, click here.
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Comments
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Check out Public Accounts pp. 240-241
All the information on office expenses for MLAs are on pages 240-241 at this link: http://www.finance.gov.sk.ca/paccts/paccts09/compendium/reports/200809Volume2.pdf
Some of the expenses for ministerial travel, etc. are actually in the departmental spending items and are listed separately in the document. 2009-10 isn't out yet.
Short List
Hello Craig,
Where are the rest of the MLA's expenditures?
I think you need to have a wider range of expenditures made public as it clearly looks like your leaning to the left and your position as an organization should be non-partisian.
I'd like for you to investigate further into the likes of Kevin Yates, Kim Trew, Sandra Morin, etc.
MLA Expenses
Hi Short List,
Thank you for your email and for visiting our web site.
When I took a quick look at the MLA expense information that is available in the Clerk's office back in February, I was not concerned with an MLA's party affiliation, but whether or not the expenses warranted further questioning or not.
As it turns out, the ones I pulled and had photocopied tended to be from Sask Party MLAs. However, that does not meant to say that a more extensive search would not have produced more questionable NDP MLA expenses.
Who knows. The big picture issue that needs to be addressed is how to make the expenses more transparent. As the documents I scanned are already typed up and stored electronically in the Legislature, it would take little effort to place them online for the world to see.
In the long term, I recommend placing all the information online like the City of Toronto does - see here.
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