Parliamentary Committee Notes: First Nations and Inuit Policing Program
Proposed Response
- Indigenous communities, like all communities in Canada, should be places where people and families feel safe and secure.
- Indigenous communities have unique needs and priorities, and the Government recognizes the importance of ensuring culturally responsive police services while respecting the province or territory’s jurisdiction.
- Currently, the First Nations and Inuit Policing Program provides support for communities to administer their own police force, or receive enhanced policing services from the police of jurisdiction. These agreements are cost-shared between the federal and provincial or territorial governments.
- In Budget 2021 the Government of Canada announced up to $540.3 million over five years starting in 2021-2022 and $126.8 million ongoing to support First Nations and Inuit communities served under the Program.
- To further address policing needs identified by Indigenous communities, Budget 2024 proposes to provide:
- $267.5 million over five years, starting in 2024-25, and $92.5 million per year ongoing to Public Safety Canada for the First Nations and Inuit Policing Program and to support the work of Public Safety Canada’s Indigenous Secretariat; and
- $200 million over five years, starting in 2024-25, to repair, renovate and replace policing facilities in First Nations and Inuit communities.
If Pressed About Program Spending
- Public Safety Canada was able to deliver approximately $220M in funding through the FNIPP in 2023-24.
- We are aware that there have been some issues with lapsed funding in the Community Tripartite Agreement stream due to a number of complex issues, ranging from police officer vacancies, inability to fulfill position requirements as well as differences in funding cycles between the federal, provincial and territorial governments.
- As this federal program cost matches provincial and territorial investments, if their funding does not materialize or it is lower than expected, then the federal funds reserved for this purpose can’t be spent.
- The Government recognizes the issues and is working on a detailed action plan in partnership with provinces, territories, law enforcement and First Nations and Inuit communities that would address this problem moving forward.
Background
In Canada, section 91(24) of the Constitution Act, 1867 provides the federal government with legislative authority over “Indians and Lands reserved for the Indians”, while section 92(14) provides the provincial/territorial government with legislative authority over the “Administration of Justice”, which includes jurisdiction over policing in the province or territory (PT).
While PTs are responsible for the “Administration of Justice”, the Government of Canada has taken steps to bridge the equity gap between police services in Indigenous communities and non-Indigenous communities.
In 1991, concerns about policing services in First Nation (FN) communities led to the establishment of the First Nation and Inuit Policing Program (FNIPP) – a contribution program to enhance the effectiveness of policing services in FN and Inuit communities for professional, dedicated and responsive police services to the communities they serve. The FNIPP is the Government of Canada’s mechanism to support culturally appropriate and responsive policing and community safety services in Indigenous communities across the country, supporting roughly 450 FN and Inuit communities across Canada. Eligible costs under the FNIPP are shared with PTs in accordance with a 52% federal and 48% PT cost-share ratio, reflecting the shared jurisdiction of policing in Indigenous communities. This cost-share provision signals that the FNIPP does not guarantee a full payment of all expenses related to policing, but rather a contribution to the services provided by PT governments, in which the federal government can participate up to a maximum of 52%.
Funding under the FNIPP is provided to support two main policing models:
- Self-Administered Police Service Agreements: A First Nation or Inuit police service is authorized or established by the provincial/territorial government and provides day-to-day policing services to a First Nation or Inuit community; and,
- Community Tripartite Agreements: A contingent of police officers from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police provides dedicated policing to a First Nation or Inuit community to supplement base-level provincial/territorial policing services provided. Community Tripartite Agreements are made pursuant to bilateral Framework Agreements between Canada and the participating province/territory.
In addition to these two main policing models, the FNIPP also provides support to other policing agreements.
Despite the progress made by the FNIPP since 1991, Indigenous people in Canada continue to register concerns that their communities do not have equitable access to the same level of policing and community safety services as non-Indigenous people, and point to discretionary nature of the FNIPP as a key factor and indicator of the inequity.
Budget 2021 provided $540.3 million over five years and $126.8 million ongoing, to support communities currently served by the FNIPP and to expand the program into new communities. Public Safety Canada will provide federal funding, as per the cost-share arrangement of the FNIPP, to expand the footprint of the FNIPP and better support communities’ policing and community safety priorities, primarily focusing on Self-Administered police services to provide additional support through new officers and increased operational budgets.
As Budget 2021 investments continue to be rolled out, the recent Budget 2024 announcement proposed:
- $267.5 million over five years, starting in 2024-25, and $92.5 million per year ongoing to Public Safety Canada for the First Nations and Inuit Policing Program and to support the work of Public Safety Canada’s Indigenous Secretariat; and
- $200 million over five years, starting in 2024-25, to repair, renovate and replace policing facilities in First Nations and Inuit communities.
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