Mr. Chairman, that would be the deputy minister and that person's staff. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Community governance, not previously authorized, negative $20,000.

Lands administration, not previously authorized, $186,000.

Regional operations, not previously authorized, $3.004 million. Ms. Lee.

Mr. Chairman, I had my hand up under school of community governance. Oh, okay, sorry. I will ask a question when we are in that section. Thank you.

Regional operations, not previously authorized, $3.004 million. Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Under the regional operations, there's an item that has come up several times through supplementary appropriation that's in regard to the hamlet road, Tuktoyaktuk, $123,000. My understanding is that there was $1.3 million given to the community of Tuktoyaktuk through a supplementary last year about this time. At that time, the argument was that the money was needed immediately if the hamlet wanted to take advantage of the winter months hauling period and that the tender had to go so the project would be completed by this time last year. I would like to ask the Minister exactly why is it that this supplementary continues to be carried over? At the time the argument was that this was an emergency. It came by way of a special warrant, and it was needed because the damage to the road in the community was not there. So I would like to ask the Minister why is it that this project did not show up through the main estimates, and it's again on the supplementary appropriation table and there's no public record of this expenditure being made through the main estimates or through any public documentation?

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Mr. Handley.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'll refer that to the Minister of MACA.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Mr. Steen.

Thank you, Mr. Steen. Mr. Krutko.

Mr. Chairman, my concern is that the whole reason for special warrants is either it has to fall within the classification of being an essential emergency or basically that a building is falling over or the road has been washed out by a flood. It fits within a classification of an emergency. But in this case, I can't see where the emergency was. Yet we're here again and there's still money showing up through a supplementary, which in no way, shape or form was this item even addressed in the main estimates that we approved here in the House two months ago. I would just like to know how is it that a project of this size does not show up on paper in the main estimates for $1.3 million? Yet it comes up by way of a supplementary to extend the project where there are still dollars being expended on this project to the tune of $123,000. I'd just like to know where there's the fairness to the other communities that have to go through the five-year capital planning process, and also looking at the process that we all have to follow, where we have people go into our communities, sitting down, looking at the five-year capital plan, determining what's an essential capital item that's going to go into your community. In this case, $1.3 million did not even go through that process or require scrutiny from a committee of this legislature when we go through our business plan. So for me the question is exactly where is the accountability when FMBS approves $1.3 million and hides it in regard to a piece of paper that says it's a special warrant?

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Mr. Steen.

Mr. Chairman, as we explained when we went through the supplementary on the special warrant for $1.3 million, we informed the Legislative Assembly that it would not be possible to haul this gravel after the main estimates were approved. It wouldn't have been possible to do this work this year. Without the ability to do the work this year, the road would not have... What's wrong? Mr. Chairman, maybe you should call for some order, because I don't know what's going on in here.

You're right, Mr. Steen. Could we have some order in here? Mr. Steen, you do have the floor.

Mr. Chairman, I'm trying to explain that without the ability for the hamlet to do that work this year after the main estimates were approved, the road would not have made it through another summer. That was the reason for the emergency. That was the justification for the emergency. The hamlet went through the whole process of hauling the gravel that they needed, including what they borrowed from Transportation. What's left is $123,000 worth of work that has to be done now that the road is thawing out. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Steen. Regional operations, not previously authorized, $3.4 million. Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The detailed information I have here on the regional operations shows a reduction mostly in travel, of $230,000. There is $45,000 for North Slave; $40,000 for South Slave; $40,000 for Deh Cho; $10,000 for Sahtu; $40,000 for Inuvik. That has to mean a lot in communities, and I don't believe we've seen this big a number of reduction in travel in any other section, other than Ministers who we know travel a lot, the Premier and some of the deputy ministers and different departments. We've not seen this kind of reduction on travel. One has to ask -- which is one that I've been asking all night long -- is what percentage is $230,000 of the total budget? You have to beg the question if it's 10 percent of something, that's $2.3 million in travel. Also, I guess you can't really make a judgment about the value of travel, it depends on what's required of work. But I can't help but notice that the reduction here is bigger than I've seen anywhere else, and why is it that we're getting it all out of the regional operations? Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Handley.

Mr. Chairman, regional operations in MACA, because of the nature of its work, would have a fairly large travel budget. So the amounts that they've put forward are things that they feel they can manage. As the impact statement says, they make more effective use of teleconference and videoconferencing, which many sections of the government are doing now. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Ms. Lee.