By Rebel News | Created at 2024-11-15 18:06:57 | Updated at 2024-11-22 19:41:54
1 week ago
Canadian taxpayers are footing a hefty bill so federal bureaucrats can decorate their offices with artwork – artwork taxpayers have already purchased.
Documents obtained by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) reveal that federal departments and agencies have spent $7.8 million on art rentals from the Canada Council for the Arts’ (CCA) Art Bank since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took office.
That averages to $76,000 per month, far exceeding what the average Canadian earns annually.
“Can someone in government explain why taxpayers are being sent a bill so bureaucrats can decorate their offices with artwork that taxpayers have already bought and paid for?” asked Franco Terrazzano, CTF Federal Director. “This is an outrageous waste of money and, to add insult to injury, the government is double-billing taxpayers for artwork we’ll never see.”
The CCA’s Art Bank houses over 17,000 pieces of Canadian art, acquired through taxpayer funding. Despite this, federal departments and agencies have rented 1,445 pieces of artwork from the collection since 2016, with the most expensive single rental costing $120,240 in April 2020.
“Every month, federal bureaucrats spend more money renting art than what the average Canadian earns in an entire year,” Terrazzano said. “Maybe these bureaucrats could ease up at the taxpayer-funded Art Bank when record numbers of Canadians are lined up at food banks.”
Statistics Canada reports that the average Canadian worker earned less than $70,000 last year, while Food Banks Canada noted a record two million visits to food banks in March 2024.
The Art Bank is managed by the CCA, a Crown corporation that received $423 million in federal funding in 2022-23, accounting for 90% of its revenue. In addition to these parliamentary appropriations, taxpayers face secondary expenses when federal agencies rent artwork from the collection.
In Budget 2023, the federal government pledged to reduce spending in Crown corporations by $1.3 billion over four years. However, Terrazzano argued that defunding the CCA should be a priority.
“Bureaucrats billing taxpayers $76,000 a month in art rentals is outrageous at the best of times, but with the government more than $1 trillion in debt and so many Canadians struggling, it’s utterly inexcusable,” he said.
This isn’t the first time taxpayers have been hit with art-related expenses from government officials. In July 2023, the CTF reported that 52 Canadian Senators expensed $514,616 in art rentals since 2016.
With the government promising to find savings and Canadians facing financial hardships, the double-billing for art rentals is reigniting calls for more accountability and a reassessment of public spending priorities.
Sheila Gunn Reid
Chief Reporter
Sheila Gunn Reid is the Alberta Bureau Chief for Rebel News and host of the weekly The Gunn Show with Sheila Gunn Reid. She's a mother of three, conservative activist, and the author of best-selling books including Stop Notley.
