Thank you. Throughout the territories, the rent paid by staff will increase to the equivalent of Yellowknife market rates.
The increases will be phased in over a two year period for employees whose monthly rental increase would be more than 25 per cent of what they are already paying. The first adjustment is scheduled to take place April 1, 1993. Affected employees will be eligible for the full standard accommodation allowance when their rents reach market level.
Some employees with low incomes will find the transition to market rental rates difficult. Because of this, a hardship allowance will be available for situations in which the shelter costs exceed 30 per cent of the gross household income. This is consistent with the subsidies available to tenants in public housing in the Northwest Territories and all other jurisdictions in Canada.
Mr. Speaker, the use of energy resources is another important feature of the new staff housing strategy.
To promote energy conservation, a user pay program for utilities will be implemented over a period of two years. Employees will be provided with copies of utility billings for the January 1, 1993, billing period to make them aware of the actual costs of operating their units.
User pay electricity will begin on April 1, 1993, followed by user pay water and sewer by September 1, 1993. The final phase of this program will take effect on April 1, 1994, with the user pay heating fuel program.
Employees will be eligible, along with all other residents of the Northwest Territories, to take advantage of the subsidies available through the territorial power support program and the Water/Sewer Subsidy Program.
With the availability of these subsidies for electricity, water and sewer, there will no longer be a need for household allowances being paid to employees who own their housing in locations where utility costs are significantly higher than in Yellowknife. These allowances will be discontinued on April 1, 1993.
In conclusion, Mr. Speaker, the housing strategy has been needed for many years.
The government believes that the changes are positive, that they promote equity amongst all territorial residents and eliminate the conflicting policies currently in place in the public and staff housing programs.
We are also confident that these changes will generate more housing starts by developers and improve the overall housing inventory in the territories. Combined with the home ownership incentives announced by the Housing Corporation, the new approach to staff housing should bring affordable shelter within reach of all residents.
Finally, these changes have been structured in a manner that will make housing programs much easier for communities to consider should they wish to assume responsibility for them as quickly as possible under our Community Transfer Initiative.
Mr. Speaker, the Members should know that many communities have already identified housing as one of the programs they wish to assume in the near future and I am committed to making this transfer a priority. I will be tabling the long-term staff housing strategy at the appropriate time later today. Thank you.
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