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information as possible to the Mi’kmaqcommunities, including scope, location, andpotential impacts of the project; meetingwith the affected Mi’kmaq communities;completing a “Mi’kmaq EcologicalKnowledge Study” [“MEKS”] if the provincerequires, in accordance with the Assemblyof Nova Scotia Mi’kmaq Chiefs’ MEKSProtocol; addressing potential impacts,which may include providing funding to theMi’kmaq community to assist with theirreview of the proposal, and developingstrategies to minimize potential adverseeffects; and, finally, documenting theengagement process and updating theprovince on same. Proponents are advisedthat Benefit Agreements with Aboriginalgroups are considered a “best practice.”As of publication, all of these documentswere available on the Province of NovaScotia’s Aboriginal Affairs website[http://novascotia.ca/abor/]In Prince Edward Island, the provincialgovernment developed the Provincial Policyon Consultation with the Mi’kmaq in 2009,with the guiding principle that “policies orguidelines for consultations with Aboriginalpeoples must ensure that the duty to consultis fulfilled in a way that is consistent withcurrent legal decisions and will considerindividual communities' traditions andconsultation requirements”. A landmarkConsultation Agreement was signed by theMi’kmaq, the Prince Edward Islandprovincial government and the federalgovernment in August 2012, whichestablished a consultation process withPrince Edward Island’s Mi’kmaq.CONDUCTING BUSINESS ONRESERVESVarious differences exist when conductingbusiness in relation to Aboriginal reservesand Aboriginal groups as opposed to privateland and private land owners. The keydifferences relate to taxation and financing.TaxationDespite what many Canadians may believe,Aboriginal people are not generally exemptfrom taxation. Exemptions which do existextend only to status Indians as defined inthe Indian Act. In addition, exemptions onlyapply in relation to reserve lands andpersonal property of Indians situated on areserve. The relevant federal exemptionsare provided for in the Indian Act.Some provincial statutes make specialprovision for the exemption of Indians andIndian lands with regard to various types ofprovincial taxation. Provincial taxation lawsmust always be measured against theIndian Act, as any provincial law whichimposes a tax where the federal actprovides an exemption is invalid.The tax treatment of status Indians hasbeen somewhat fragmented. One of themore disputed issues with respect totaxation includes the treatment ofemployment income. Section 87 of theIndian Act generally exempts personalproperty of an Indian situated on a reserveand the courts have held that employmentincome of status Indians is property for thepurposes of section 87. As such,employment income earned on-reserve maynot be subject to income tax if the employeeis a status Indian. Generally speaking,where pension or other benefits areassociated with exempt employmentAboriginal Law 157