Debates of March 2nd, 2001

This is page numbers 1459 - 1499 of the Hansard for the 14th Assembly, 3rd Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was community.

Topics

Members Present

Item 1: Prayer

Non-renewable Resource Development Strategy

Impacts On Fish Stocks In Deh Cho Lakes

Federal Fuel Subsidy Clawback

Supplying North Slave Communities

A Tale Of A National Energy Program

Proposed Fuel Rebate Program

Programs And Services For Seniors

Municipal Insurance Premiums

Proposed Fuel Rebate Program

Concerns With The Proposed Fuel Rebate Program

Comments On The Proposed Fuel Rebate Program

Inuvialuit Regional Corporation Hockey Tournament

Workshop On Alcohol And Drug Awareness Education

Comments On The Proposed Fuel Rebate Program

Item 4: Returns To Oral Questions

Item 5: Recognition Of Visitors In The Gallery

Fish Stocks At Kakisa Lake

Fuel Rebate Program

Federal Fuel Subsidy Recovery

All-land Winter Road To Rae Lakes And Wha Ti

Proposed Fuel Rebate Program

Seniors' Tax Rebate Program

Calculation Of Income Thresholds

Fuel Rebate Inequities

Fuel Rebate Guidelines

Fuel Rebate Administration

Calculation Of Household Income

Revert To Item 5: Recognition Of Visitors In The Gallery

Revert To Item 4: Returns To Oral Questions

Tabled Document 112-14(3): Non-renewable Resource Development Strategy

Tabled Document 113-14(3): Reports And Recommendations Of The 2000 Judicial Remuneration Commission, February 1, 2001

Tabled Document 114-14(3): Comparison Of Cost Of Heating Fuel With Income Thresholds And Living Cost Differentials

Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

Sports And Recreation

Volunteerism

Community Governance Capacity

Capital Planning Process

Extraordinary Funding V. Supplementary Appropriation

Taxation

Item 20: Report Of The Committee Of The Whole

Item 22: Orders Of The Day

Taxation
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Michael McLeod Deh Cho

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. When the deputy minister mentioned the program, I was expecting a lot of things, but I guess we will have to settle for $1,000. I still have a concern regarding the $1,000. I have experienced it through my term in the community politics in that the communities are very hesitant to go ahead and spend their money without getting confirmation from the department that they will be receiving the $1,000 from MACA.

What is the turnaround from the time that they are contacted? Does there have to be an official meeting in the community with all of the formalities that come with it, and then the documentation is forwarded to Yellowknife before there is a commitment on this $1,000?

If there is an accident on the weekend, some of the communities are reluctant to spend dollars before they get confirmation from the department. What happens then? Is there any comfort that the communities can have that they will be reimbursed?

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Mr. Murray.

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Murray

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. My understanding is what happens is the community goes out and does their search. When they come back, they submit their extra fuel bills and get reimbursed. Since I have been deputy in the last year, no one has come and asked for their $1,000 up front before they went looking for a missing person who was out on the land.

To my knowledge, the $1,000 is more of an issue after the fact, after the search has started as opposed to being an upfront issue of whether or not they start the search or do not start the search.

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Murray. Mr. McLeod.

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Michael McLeod Deh Cho

I do not know if I agree with those comments. As a former mayor, I know that some searches have been cut short because they could not get confirmation that they would receive the money if it happened on the weekend. Would the Minister then commit to writing a letter to the communities and let them know exactly what the deputy minister has just stated here? I think we need to be reassured that they can go ahead and search for someone who has been lost.

If someone was missing for six or seven hours, does that qualify? I do not know if there are any standards there. I think there needs to be something in place that the communities can count on. I know $1,000 is not a lot of money. A couple of hours in a plane or helicopter would gobble that up. At the rate that our communities are being cut, I think they want to be comfortable that if they are going to go ahead and spend money, they will be reimbursed.

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Mr. Minister.

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Roger Allen Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It is certainly important. I have experienced that myself as a previous hunter. Yes, we will provide some direction to staff to set up some procedural guidelines and we will work with the communities to establish that.

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Mr. Braden.

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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Bill Braden Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, under the area of emergency services, the proposed budget suggests a drop of about 25 percent in funding programs, from $993,000 to $722,000. I am wondering if the Minister or the department could give us a bit more detail on what is going on here with the delivery of emergency services to the communities. Thank you.

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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Murray.

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Murray

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Part of this is reduction of the one position within the shop. As well, there is a reduction in travel for the staff at headquarters. What we are intending to do is allow for and have a higher range of involvement of our regional staff in this program, instead of having a lot of this work run out of Yellowknife. We want to have the regional offices and regional staff involved in that.

I might also add that there is a program called the Joint Emergency Preparedness Program, which is a federally funded program that usually comes to us during the year. What happens is that gets voted on as a supp and gets spent later on. It ends up actually coming into our budget as a Vote 1 item. That cannot show up in here until I actually get an agreement from the federal government.

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Murray. Mr. Braden.

Taxation
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

March 1st, 2001

Page 1487

Bill Braden Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for that explanation. I guess another way to put it would be are communities, at the end of the day, going to see any reduction or any impact in the level of service they get in the area of emergencies because of these cuts? Thank you.

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Murray.

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Murray

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It is certainly our plan that the actual level of service will increase, mainly with regional field staff having the ability, because they are in the communities more often than people out of Yellowknife can get into those communities. They can provide the training and the kinds of information that Mr. McLeod was asking about. I was not aware there was a problem in Fort Providence. By getting that information out through our field people, then we can get that into the communities faster and I think, hopefully, improve the level of service. That is certainly the intent.

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Murray. Mr. Braden.

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Bill Braden Great Slave

Thank you. One more question in this area. While devolving services to communities is absolutely the right thing to do, in that transition we have to make sure that the resources, the dollars and the capacity is there so that we are not seeing a reduction in the calibre of service in that transfer, even at headquarters. The terrible headquarters still needs to have some resources to coordinate, to pull all of these things together, to be able to report and account for the quality and the value of the calibre of services that are delivered.

My question then is, as things are being devolved, a position has been taken out of headquarters, that is great. Are we still seeing some kind of an overall coordinating capacity within the overall system? Thank you.

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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Murray.

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Murray

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Yes, there will still be a position from a program management responsibility for both emergency measures as well as coordinating regional activities in search and rescue. What I want to see happen though is the training elements that were being done at headquarters no longer being done out of headquarters. Those should be done and coordinated through the regional offices. The program itself, the planning and that sort of strategic thinking you need to go on programs should be happening out of Yellowknife. The delivery happens out in the field. That is the intent.

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Murray. We are on page 4-17, emergency service, budget summary, operations expense, total operations expense, $722,000.

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Some Hon. Members

Agreed.

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Page 4-19, emergency service, grants and contributions, grants, total grants, $50,000.

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Some Hon. Members

Agreed.

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The Chair Paul Delorey

Total grants and contributions, $50,000.

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Some Hon. Members

Agreed.

Debates of March 2nd, 2001

Topics

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