Thank you.

My name is Rob Wright. I'm the associate deputy minister for Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada.

Thank you, Mr. Chair, for inviting me, along with my colleague Christopher Duschenes, who is the director general responsible for indigenous institutions and governance modernization, to participate in this important study on taxation revenue and economic reconciliation.

Before beginning, I want to acknowledge that we are gathered on the traditional territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe people.

We welcome the opportunity to participate in the committee's study and to outline how Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada is working collaboratively with first nations to support them in shaping their economic futures.

Of course, we're not doing this work alone with first nations. While we support the First Nations Tax Commission and the other institutions of the First Nations Fiscal Management Act, Finance Canada, as you saw, is the lead department on taxation, and its leadership and collaborative work in this space are critical. Similarly, colleagues at Indigenous Services Canada and, from the previous hour, the Department of Justice and other departments play vitally important roles.

Historically, through colonial systems and structures, the federal government actively impeded the ability of indigenous peoples to participate in and contribute to Canada's economy. Today, we recognize those harms and their long-term negative impacts, and CIRNAC, along with other federal departments, is working to renew our relationship and support indigenous self-determination and the full participation of indigenous peoples in Canada's economy.

One way we're doing this is through the First Nations Fiscal Management Act and the four independent first nations-run fiscal institutions, which provide first nations with the support and tools to strengthen their communities and build their economies. First nations choose whether to participate in and to leverage authorities under the act.

Almost two-thirds of first nations are now scheduled under the act, with many of them taking full advantage of these economic tools. While all first nations can pass bylaws related to the taxation of land under section 83 of the Indian Act, the First Nations Fiscal Management Act provides first nations with authorities similar to those of municipal governments in the areas of financial management, property taxation and local revenues, as well as financing for infrastructure and economic and social development.

To date, 160 first nations have enacted property taxation laws under this act, and another 27 are taxing land use under section 83 of the Indian Act, collecting almost $125 million annually. Taxation allows first nations to collect stable, local revenues from land uses such as agricultural permits and leases, oil, gas and timber leases, commercial and residential leases and utilities. First nations then choose how to invest these revenues according to their own priorities.

That's just one of the ways that communities are taking control of their own future.

Before the First Nations Fiscal Management Act came into force in 2006, first nations governments did not have access to affordable long-term capital like other governments. Owing to historical barriers stemming from the Indian Act, first nations were charged prohibitive interest rates and banks were reluctant to lend.

The situation is very different today. Communities exercising powers under the act have received nearly two billion dollars in loans from the First Nations Finance Authority. That money is used for community development, which is the very definition of economic self-determination.

In addition, these communities score higher on the community well-being index.

Collectively, these authorities and supports are advancing reconciliation, self-determination and socio-economic development in first nations in line with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. A living example of this was the codevelopment with indigenous partners of amendments to the First Nations Fiscal Management Act, Bill C-45, which passed in Parliament just last June.

This collaborative approach is also consistent with the government's commitment to modern treaties and self-government arrangements, which cover over 40% of Canada's land mass.

They establish relationships between the Crown and indigenous peoples, and provide indigenous governments with the ability to generate revenue through direct taxes.

The full inclusion of indigenous peoples in the economy could mean tens of billions of dollars in growth to Canada's GDP. For example, a recent report from the Atlantic Policy Congress of First Nations Chiefs Secretariat found that indigenous economies had a direct contribution of $3.6 billion in 2020 to the Atlantic economy alone.

Despite the progress that has been made—