Commissioner for Modern Treaty Implementation Act

Bill C-10 creates a new independent watchdog position called the Commissioner for Modern Treaty Implementation, along with a supporting office to help the Commissioner do their job. Modern treaties are land claims and self-government agreements signed between the Crown and Indigenous peoples since 1974; this bill sets up a mechanism to check whether federal government departments are actually living up to their commitments under these treaties. The Commissioner is appointed by the Governor in Council for up to seven years, following consultation with Indigenous modern treaty partners and parliamentary leaders, and approval by resolution of both the Senate and House of Commons.

The Commissioner's job is to review and audit how federal institutions are implementing modern treaties, and to assess whether their activities are strengthening relationships with Indigenous treaty partners, meeting Canada's treaty obligations, and upholding the honour of the Crown. The Commissioner can launch reviews on their own initiative or at the request of a minister or an Indigenous treaty partner, and must report findings and recommendations, first in draft form (giving affected government institutions and Indigenous partners a chance to respond), and then in a final report tabled in Parliament. The Commissioner also produces annual reports and can issue special reports on urgent matters, all of which go to Parliament rather than just to the government.

The bill gives the Commissioner strong tools to do this work: guaranteed access to information from federal institutions, legal immunity for good-faith actions and statements, and confidentiality obligations for sensitive information they receive. It also requires periodic parliamentary and independent reviews of how the law itself is working, and lets the government add or remove Indigenous treaty partners from the official schedule attached to the bill through a consultation process. Finally, the bill makes small conforming changes to other federal laws (such as the Access to Information Act, the Financial Administration Act, the Privacy Act, the Public Service Superannuation Act, and the Official Languages Act) to formally recognize this new Commissioner and Office within the federal government structure.

This bill creates the position of Commissioner for Modern Treaty Implementation and the Office of the Commissioner for Modern Treaty Implementation, and gives the Commissioner powers to review and audit federal institutions' handling of modern treaties.

• Appointment and tenure — the Commissioner is appointed by the Governor in Council (Cabinet) on the Minister's recommendation, after consultation with Indigenous modern treaty partners and Senate/House leaders, and after approval by resolution of both Houses; the Commissioner serves up to seven years, removable only for cause, and is eligible for one reappointment.
• Investigative powers — the Commissioner may conduct reviews and performance audits of any government institution's activities related to modern treaty implementation, at their own discretion or when referred by the Minister, another minister, or an Indigenous modern treaty partner; the Commissioner sets their own priorities, procedures, and methodology, with no numeric limit stated on how many reviews may be conducted.
• Access to information — the Commissioner has a right of free access to information from government institutions relevant to their mandate, and may require institutions to provide reports and explanations "that the Commissioner considers necessary," subject only to other federal laws that expressly override this section.
• Delegation and staffing — the Commissioner may delegate most of their powers to other qualified persons (except delegation itself and certain reporting duties), and may hire staff and temporary experts, with expert compensation requiring Treasury Board approval.
• Legal immunity — the Commissioner and anyone acting under their direction cannot be summoned as a witness, cannot be sued or prosecuted for acts done in good faith under the Act, and cannot be held liable for defamation over statements or reports made in good faith in the course of their duties.
• Reporting and review — the Commissioner must submit reports to Parliament (tabled by the Speakers) and an annual report to the Minister (tabled within 15 sitting days); a parliamentary committee must review the Act within 10 years and every 10 years after; an independent review by a person or body chosen by the Minister must occur within 5 years and every 7 years after; none of these reviews carries a sunset clause ending the Act or the Office.
• Future rule-making — the Governor in Council may make regulations to designate bodies for information-sharing purposes and more generally "for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Act," leaving some operational details to be set later rather than in the bill itself; the schedule of Indigenous modern treaty partners can also be amended by order without a full legislative amendment.