Re: Sunshine List

Nicole Guerrero | Apr 19, 2023

I thought your editorial regarding Ontario’s Sunshine List (April 13, 2023) offered a strong argument for adapting the Sunshine List to maintain its relevance by better reflecting those positions in the public service that receive the highest salaries.

As you note, the list was supposed to inform the public about the people “getting rich on our collective dime”, which, I think, remains a worthy objective because it offers us—citizens, tax-payers—information about how public funds are spent, and the different values we place on public goods and services, and those who deliver them. You also point out, with compelling examples, that the usefulness of the Sunshine List is waning because the threshold of $100,000 is no longer a meaningful or current indicator of potential excess and waste in government spending.

If, however, the Sunshine List started with a new base salary, say $400,000, might that generate greater public scrutiny of the province’s highest earners and help to focus public discussion on service standards, competitiveness, and sustainability of our public goods and services? Maybe, maybe not…

In any case, the Sunshine List has the potential to be a public asset that supports informed discussion about public spending. It would be a shame to waste something that could just as easily be modified and modernized to reflect today’s realities.