CRTC launches internal review into rewarding funds in wake of Marouf controversy

The CRTC has been criticized after a group aligned with Laith Marouf, who has been accused of antisemitism, recovered costs for participating in hearings.

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The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) is launching an internal review into how it rewards costs incurred by hearing participants as it distances itself from a taxpayer-funded group whose senior consultant has been accused of antisemitism.

The review comes as Jewish advocates call for Crown corporations and regulatory agencies to align with federal government promises to strengthen the process for funding projects going forward, after Ottawa cut funding this summer to Laith Marouf’s Community Media Advocacy Centre (CMAC) in light of his tweets about “Jewish white supremacists.”

Public records show that CMAC has received about $500,000 in payments from the independent Broadcast Participation Fund since 2016 after appearing as a public interest group in CRTC proceedings. The CRTC has said the payments were meant to cover CMAC’s costs for their participation, and were granted after a request was approved by the fund.

“In light of the current situation, we have launched an internal review of our criteria for costs awards,” said CRTC chairperson and CEO Ian Scott in a statement Thursday, promising a public consultation if the review determines that changes are needed.

Scott went on to emphasize that the CRTC has never hired CMAC or its consultants, and has not provided any funding from its budget to the organization for any services.

The costs paid out by the Broadcast Participation Fund “are a tool set up by the CRTC to encourage public participation in our processes, and to provide support for independent research and views,” Scott said. The costs are paid by telecommunications companies involved in the hearings, he added, not by the CRTC or through taxpayer funds.

Any group that participates in hearings can apply to the independent fund to recover those costs, he explained, which can be approved or denied after a review.