Affordable housing advocate penalized for not registering as a lobbyist with City of Hamilton

One of Hamilton's most vocal affordable housing advocates is being penalized for not registering as a lobbyist with the city before contacting officials on dozens of occasions and in some instances requesting land or money for Indwell projects, according to a recent report. 

Graham Cubitt is not allowed to lobby with any city staff or elected officials for 30 days, decided lobbyist registrar David Boghosian, who's also the city's integrity commissioner. 

It's an advocacy role Cubitt has filled for years on behalf of Indwell, a major non-profit supportive and affordable housing provider in Hamilton. He is president of Indwell's non-profit consulting firm Flourish, which helps municipalities and other groups create affordable housing. 

Cubitt has never registered as a lobbyist under the city's bylaw passed in 2015, but an unnamed Hamilton resident made a complaint against him last spring, which Boghosian said prompted an inquiry.

Boghosian's office then reviewed 130 emails, recorded meetings and calendar entries between Cubitt and city staff, the mayor and councillors dating back to 2016. The registrar determined 46 of these communications met the bar of lobbying — making a request of a public office holder that will advance a business or financial interest. 

"In the case for Mr. Cubitt, there were definitely asks for land or money, and that's lobbying," Boghosian told council at a meeting Sept. 11. 

Cubitt didn't respond to a CBC Hamilton request for comment, but his response to Boghosian's findings were included in the report. 

"All communications were made in good faith with the intention of supporting the community as a whole in the face of a housing and encampment crisis," said Cubitt's response, which were submitted by his lawyers.

Cubitt's wife, Emma Cubitt, told CBC Hamilton he had "no idea" he should have registered and would have added his name to the online list sooner had he known. He wasn't given a warning by the lobbyist registrar before he was penalized, she said. 

Indwell CEO Jeff Naven said the Christian charity was "surprised and shocked" it was singled out by Boghosian, as most charitable organizations in the city are not required to register as lobbyists. 

Cubitt, who's been working for Indwell for 20 years, was acting not for personal gain, but rather to get the approval and resources necessary for Indwell to build more supportive and deeply affordable housing in a city that desperately needs it, Naven said.

"Graham's dedicated his life to creating affordable housing and new pathways for folks getting out of encampments and into stable, permanent affordable housing to rebuild their life in." 

He called the report "an unnecessary distraction" from the real housing issues Hamilton faces and added that the penalty as harsh. 

"We are firmly committed to helping our neighbours who sleep outside every night," said Naven. "The timing is really unfortunate and it seems to be intended to silence our voice."