Departing MLAS to get nearly $15 million
Three months’ salary for each year of service
Thirty-five defeated and retiring MLAS will walk away with nearly $15 million in a controversial transition allowance the premier has vowed to suspend when she resumes the next session of the legislature this spring.
The departing MLAS — 23 retired and 12 defeated — also will take a further $2.7 million in RRSP contributions for a total of $16.5 million of taxpayers’ money, according to an analysis by the Canadian Taxpayer’s Federation.
Newly re-elected Premier Alison Redford said Tuesday after her government’s stunning election victory to address the issues she vowed to resolve when she became Progressive Conservative leader last fall.
Redford has pledged to implement the recommendations of a retired Supreme Court judge she appointed to review all MLA compensation and has promised to kill the lucrative transition allowance that pays departing MLAS three months salary for every year of service.
“We’ve already introduced steps to make that change and we’re not going to do it because there are 17 members of the opposition who think we should,” she told reporters at Mcdougall Centre.
“We’re going to do it because it’s the right thing for Albertans. It’s what I believe we should do.”
Justice Jack Major must deliver his report on MLA pay to the Legislature Speaker by May 3. Ken Kowalski, who is retiring but remains speaker until the next session of the legislature begins, has promised to release the report immediately.
Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith said Tuesday her party will keep the government’s feet to the fire on the issue, but she is nervous about what Major’s report will recommend.
“What I am worried about is a pay increase being proposed by Justice Major. If that is what is proposed, I would say he had a pretty tin ear because that is not what we heard as we were travelling the province.”
Scott Hennig, the federation’s Alberta director, said the payout of the allowances this el ection is nearly double the amount paid following the 2008 election, when 33 MLAS left with a package totalling about $8 million.
He said the allowance is excessive compared to most private and public severance packages, which pay between two weeks to one month for every year of service, and usually only if the employee is dismissed without cause.
MLAS also are provided with a RRSP allowance equal to 50 per cent of the maximum RRSP contribution limit, which would be about $11,500 this year.
Defeated and retired MLAS under the age of 70 also are eligible to stay on an extended benefits plan, with taxpayers continuing to pay a portion of their health-benefit premiums for up to five years, Hennig said. He’s been unable to determine how many departed MLAS are on the plan and how much it is costing taxpayers. While Redford can’t unilaterally suspend the transition allowance, her government controls the allparty legislature committee that can make the decision, Hennig said. He hopes she moves swiftly to address the issue.
“I don’t expect revolutionary change but I hope we can push the ball forward a little bit,” he said.
A number of government MLAS have criticized the plan as being overly generous.
In a submission to Major, Calgary-nose Hill MLA Neil Brown said he would like to see the plan substantially reduced.
“No other aspect of MLA compensation attracts so much adverse comment as this allowance — quite deservedly so in my view.”
Former cabinet minister Iris Evans, who decided not to run for re-election, said while she favours some sort of pension plan, the transition allowance is too generous.
“Fifteen years ago I knew that the transition allowance would be excessively unpopular,” she wrote to Major.
“It would be judged to be too much for too many for too little.”
In response to public outrage, Redford also directed her MLAS to return the $1,000 a month they received for serving on an all-party legislature committee that hasn’t met since 2008.
“I think all the MLAS who were on that committee, who want to be part of our caucus, have made those arrangements with the speaker and we’ll certainly make sure today that’s the case,” she said Tuesday.
Hennig said the public has a right to know who paid back the money and who didn’t.
“I’m expecting we’ll see a tabling of cheques so we’ll know which MLAS will be sitting in caucus and which will be sitting as independents,” he said.
He doubted many of the defeated and retiring MLAS will return the committee pay.
Smith said her MLAS, including Guy Boutilier and Paul Hinman, who were defeated, have paid the money back, but she also wasn’t optimistic departing government MLAS will follow suit.
“They are walking away with a pretty rich severance package so they should be able to pay it back.”