Agreed.

---Agreed

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to address the committee today on Bill 24, Community Employees' Benefits Act, which has been written to replace the Municipal Employees' Benefits Act (MEBA).

The Community Employees' Benefits Act provides the legal basis for a program of pension and group insurance plans currently made available to approximately 80 participating employers and 1,080 participating employees, mostly of municipalities and housing associations. Both participating employers and participating employees contribute to the pension and group insurance plans.

Included in the Community Employees' Benefits Act is an enhanced pension plan that provides pension benefits equivalent to those in the Public Service Superannuation Act (PSSA). The group insurance plan provides life insurance and long-term disability benefits, dependant life insurance and accidental life insurance. Optional insurance program include weekly indemnity, extended health care, and dental benefits.

Mr. Chairman, the purposes of the proposed act are to expand the accessibility of the benefit programs under the act to other participants, including Indian bands, entities established under land claims, and other not-for-profit entities, such as the Nunavut Implementation Commission, drug and alcohol centre workers, native court workers, and other entities that perform public functions and are established under an enactment.

The new act lays the groundwork for communities to more effectively assume GNWT responsibilities under the community transfer initiative by establishing portability and commonality of employee benefits among community bodies and agencies.

Mr. Chairman, another purpose of the act is to modernize the composition of the board and to establish the financial and program management authority of the board. In the present Municipal Employees and Benefits Act, there are no provisions setting out the size of the board, board membership, terms of office, appointment of chairperson, payment of honoraria and expenses. These shortcomings have been addressed in the act before you.

Program authority to administer the benefits program has been added to the proposed act to permit the board, in times of dynamic economic change, to establish pension and group insurance benefit plans competitive with those in the pension plan and insurance industries. Under these circumstances, the board requires flexibility to alter contribution levels and to introduce pension and group insurance schemes to meet new contract and employee requirements. Changes have been incorporated in the proposed act to introduce the necessary powers to meet this need.

Mr. Chairman, provisions have been added to provide the board and chairperson with financial authorities similar to those of other GNWT public boards. These powers include the ability and capacity to contract and to expend and invest money consistent with current board practice. The corporate status of the board is established in this act to enable the board to exercise their power more effectively.

To improve financial disclosure, the board will be required to publish an annual report on its activities to participating employers and to those participating employees requesting a copy of the report. Financial accountability provisions have been added, combined with adequate regulatory controls specified in the Pension Benefits Standards Act and the Income Tax Act, both of which are federal legislation. There is a requirement to perform an evaluation of pension plan liabilities every three years and, if required, to make the adjustments to ensure the pension and group insurance plans remain fully funded.

The change from "municipal" to "community" more accurately reflects the expanded scope of the new act, applying as it does to a number of community entities, in addition to municipal corporations. Various community-based organizations have requested MEBA membership, but the restrictive criteria under the present act has prevented this from occurring.

Mr. Chairman, I believe the proposed Community Employees' Benefits Act will provide expanded access to benefits programs for a wide variety of community-based organizations and their employees. In addition, it will modernize and further specify the financial and program authorities of the board and establish the government's authorities relative to the board.

I am now prepared to answer any questions that you or your Members may have on the proposed bill. If I may, I can ask for my witness to come in to take the witness stand.

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The standing committee has completed its review of Bill 24, Community Employees' Benefits Act. Although the committee did not receive formal presentations from the public, the Association of Municipalities did convey their support of the bill in a letter to the committee.

The purpose of the bill is to repeal the Municipal Employees' Benefits Act and replace it with the Community Employees' Benefits Act. The bill proposes to transfer responsibility for employees' benefits to community bodies and to expand the accessibility of the benefits programs to more organizations, including aboriginal bands, the Nunavut Implementation Commission and other not-for-profit organizations.

These amendments are in line with the NWT community transfer initiative. The benefits enjoyed by current GNWT employees who may be affected by the transfer initiative will be protected.

The standing committee did enquire as to the possible cost implications to municipal corporations and the Government of the Northwest Territories. The committee was assured by the Minister that there are no financial implications anticipated.

Further, the Minister affirmed that contributions currently made by employers and employees under the Municipal Employees' Benefits Act would not change in the immediate future.

The standing committee fully supports the principles of Bill 24, Community Employees' Benefits Act, and passed a motion on March 29, 1995, that Bill 24, Community Employees' Benefits Act, was ready for consideration in committee of the whole. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Agreed.

---Agreed

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. To my right is Mr. Ramsden, the deputy minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. To the far right is Jim France, director of finance and administration, and to my immediate left, Mr. Chairman, is Mark Aitken, legislative counsel with the Department of Justice. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Currently, the Association of Municipalities administers the group insurance plan on behalf of the MEBA board.

Sorry, Mr. Chairman. I hadn't concluded but I wasn't paying full attention. The intent is not to change the administration of the plan once it goes from MEBA to CEBA.

Agreed.

---Agreed

Clause By Clause

Agreed.

---Agreed