Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, this department is one that I have had a considerable amount of interest in since we came here and took part in this government. One of the big things that was brought to my attention shortly after I was elected, the town representatives made it known to me that one of Hay River's biggest problems was the level of funding through the block-funding agreement. I know the Minister stated he thought block-funding was a fairly new system in this government. I do not expect him to restate everything he just said, but I would be remiss if I did not give my feelings on this issue.
Hay River feels they did not agree with the block-funding formula when it was put in, simply because of the level they were at, with no capital projects on the go at that time. Other communities did have, and that was taken into consideration in the amount of money they received through the block-funding agreement. Hay River has always been under the impression that they were under-funded. They have stood by that all along, and they are still of that opinion. I am glad to see the department is taking steps to address that situation and go into some kind of study on the block-funding agreement.
On that one area, one question I would have, seeing as there has been a major problem with the funding cuts that have come along and at the time they have come along. The year-ends do not coincide with the municipalities. The block cuts are affecting the tax-based municipalities at this particular time.
In this review of the block-funding process, when does the department think they would have some answers and some indication as to what the block-funding levels are going to be for next year? Is it going to be another situation where tax-based municipalities will not know when they are setting their budgets how much money they are going to have, or that they are going to be looking at another cut? I would hope with the study, the department would be able to give some positive news to the municipality and do it in a timely fashion so it helps the municipalities plan for their upcoming year.
Before I go on, I would just like to get an indication from the department how they see that developing. How long is their strategy going to take to revisit the funding for the tax-based municipalities and what their funding amounts will be like?