First Nations Fiscal Management Act ( S.C. 2005, c. 9)

An Act to provide for powers of First Nations respecting taxation, financial administration and the provision of services on reserve lands, to facilitate First Nations’ access to financing secured by local revenues or other revenues, to establish a First Nations Tax Commission, First Nations Financial Management Board, First Nations Finance Authority and First Nations Infrastructure Institute and to make consequential amendments to other Acts

Preamble

Whereas the Government of Canada is committed to responding to, to the extent of its authority, Call to Action 44 in the Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada and implementing the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, including Articles 3 to 5, 20, 21 and 23 as they relate to the pursuit of economic growth in Indigenous communities and to economic reconciliation;

Whereas early contact Indigenous peoples had innovative economic and trade systems supported by public infrastructure, tax systems, sharing practices and the development of trading languages to enable commerce across linguistically diverse regions;

Whereas Indigenous languages have words for taxes and sharing, including the word “taksis” in the Chinook trading language;

Whereas the Government of Canada has adopted a policy recognizing the inherent right of self-government as an Aboriginal right and providing for the negotiation of self-government;

Whereas this Act is not intended to define the nature and scope of any right of self-government or to prejudge the outcome of any self-government negotiation;

Whereas First Nations governments led an initiative in 1988 to amend the Indian Act in order to recognize their jurisdiction over real property taxation;

Whereas First Nations leaders led an initiative that resulted in the development of legislation that would enable First Nations to better exercise their jurisdiction with respect to taxation, financial administration and the provision of services on reserve lands and to participate in pooled debenture borrowing;

Whereas economic development through the application of local revenues and other revenues to support borrowing on capital markets for the development of public infrastructure is available to other governments in Canada;

Whereas local revenue systems on reserves should recognize both the interests of on-reserve taxpayers and the rights of members of First Nations communities;

And whereas First Nations and the Government of Canada recognize the benefits of establishing Indigenous institutions as part of a comprehensive fiscal framework;

NOW, THEREFORE, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

Short Title

Marginal note: Short title

1 This Act may be cited as the First Nations Fiscal Management Act .

Interpretation

Marginal note: Definitions