- Federal government will raise maximum RSP contribution limit to $22,000 by 2009
- MLAs' RSP allowance will rise from $9,000 to $11,000 thanks to federal increase

EDMONTON: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) today renewed its call for transparency in MLA compensation, again asking Speaker Ken Kowalski to post information about the annual "RSP allowance" on the web site of the Legislative Assembly. The main page on MLA remuneration, at www.assembly.ab.ca, makes no mention of the MLAs' RSP allowance, which is $9,000 this current year. This main web page also says nothing about MLA severance pay, calculated on the basis of three months' salary for every year in office. A member of the public will see only the MLAs' salary and tax-free allowance mentioned on the web page.

In the 1993 provincial election, Premier Klein campaigned on abolishing the former MLA pension plan, which no longer exists. In August of 2001, just five months after a provincial election in which MLA compensation was not discussed, the Liberal, NDP and Conservative MLAs on the Members' Services Committee voted unanimously to create a new "RSP allowance" set at 50% of the maximum RSP contribution limit as determined by the federal government.

The announcement in the federal budget, this past Wednesday, to increase the maximum RSP contribution limit from $18,000 in 2005 to $22,000 in 2009 means that the MLAs' RSP allowance will rise from $9,000 this year to $11,000 in 2009.

In a letter to Ken Kowalski, Chairman of the Members' Services Committee, CTF-Alberta director John Carpay writes:

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) supports transparency in MLA compensation. As you know, any member of the public who logs on to the main page for MLA remuneration at www.assembly.ab.ca will not see any mention of the MLAs' RSP allowance, which will rise from $9,000 this year to $11,000 by 2009. Further, the MLAs' generous severance pay packages, based on three months' salary for every year in office, is not mentioned either on that main web page.

Alberta taxpayers pay for the MLAs' RSP allowance and generous severance pay packages. Yet, the main web page on MLA remuneration mentions only the MLA salary and the MLA tax-free allowance. In the interest of transparency, the CTF again requests that this main web page be amended to include information about the RSP allowance and the severance pay which MLAs receive when they are defeated or quit.