Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.

---Carried

Bill 9 has had second reading and accordingly the bill stands referred to a committee. Item 18, second reading of bills. The honourable Minister of Finance, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Thebacha, that Bill 10, Forgiveness of Debts Act, 2004-2005, be read for the second time.

Mr. Speaker, this bill authorizes the forgiveness of debts in accordance with section 25 of the Financial Administration Act. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The motion is in order. To the principle of the bill.

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.

---Carried

Bill 10 has had second reading and accordingly the bill stands referred to a committee. Item 18, second reading of bills. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, that Bill 12, An Act to Amend the Education Act, be read for the second time.

Mr. Speaker, this bill amends the Education Act to provide that persons who are employed as superintendents are not employed in the public service. Amendments are also made to the Public Service Act. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. The motion is in order. To the principle of the bill.

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.

---Carried

Bill 12 has had second reading and accordingly the bill stands referred to a committee. Item 18, second reading of bills. Item 19, consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters: Bill 5, Tlicho Community Government Act; Bill 11, Supplementary Appropriation No. 1, 2004-2005; and, Committee Report 4-15(3), Report on the Review of Bill 5, Tlicho Community Government Act. By the authority given to me as Speaker by Motion 2-15(3), I hereby resolve the House into Committee of the Whole to sit beyond the hour of adjournment until such time as the committee is ready to report progress, with Mrs. Groenewegen in the chair.

I'll call Committee of the Whole to order. Before us today is Bill 5, Tlicho Community Government Act; Bill 11, Supplementary Appropriation No. 1, 2004-2005; and, Committee Report 4-15(3), Report on the Review of Bill 5, Tlicho Community Government Act. What is the wish of the committee? Mr. Menicoche.

Madam Chair, the committee wishes to consider Bill 5 concurrently with Committee Report 4-15(3), as well as Bill 11. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Is the committee agreed?

Thank you. Then I will ask the Minister if he would like to provide opening remarks to the bill at this time. Mr. Handley, please.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you for the opportunity to provide opening remarks on the Tlicho Community Government Act. Given the importance of this piece of legislation, I want to take a few moments to speak about where this bill came from, how it was drafted, and why it was drafted the way it is.

I would also like to outline for Members how this bill is similar to the other legislation establishing community governments, specifically the Cities, Towns and Villages Act, the Charter Communities Act, and the Hamlets Act. But I will also address how it is different and why it is different. My opening comments are lengthy, but I believe it is important to provide Members with the background to how this bill came to be.

As Members of this Assembly are aware, the Tlicho Community Government Act is one of the last major steps in a process that started in 1921 with the signing of Treaty 11. The Tlicho Land Claim and Self-Government Agreement was signed by DIAND Minister Nault, Minister Antoine and Grand Chief Rabesca on August 25, 2003. Prime Minister Chr‚tien and Premier Kakfwi also attended and witnessed this historic event.

In order to begin meeting our government's obligations under that agreement, the Tlicho Land Claims and Self-Government Agreement Act was approved by the 14th Legislative Assembly on October 11, 2003. That act confirmed that the Government of the Northwest Territories supported the agreement and agreed to take the necessary steps to implement it.

The Tlicho Land Claim and Self-Government Agreement Act was the first of three pieces of legislation the agreement required our government to implement. This bill deals with the implementation of the new community governments for the Tlicho, and the final bill yet to be introduced concerns the establishment of the intergovernmental services agency.

The Tlicho people are implementing their inherent right at the community level through a system that allows all residents in the communities to have a say in how things are run. This approach is unprecedented in land claims and self-government agreements.

Officials from the Government of the Northwest Territories worked very closely with representatives of the Dogrib Treaty 11 Council to develop the Tlicho Community Government Act. There were many meetings where the agreement was reviewed, other laws were reviewed, and community perspectives were incorporated.

The key principle to keep in mind is that we are implementing a self-government agreement. As a result, a new form of government is being created in the four Tlicho communities, one that brings together aboriginal and public governments. We are taking elements of the agreement negotiated by the Tlicho to protect their rights and culture and melding it with the rights all citizens enjoy in our communities.

One of the things the agreement states is that once this bill is passed, the Legislative Assembly will not be able to change it without the consent of the Tlicho people. There were some initial concerns raised, questioning why this assembly would limit its ability to act. Implementing self-government is new for all of us and, as such, requires collaboration in sharing power. Given the Tlicho's precedent-setting agreement to realize their right of self-government through public community governments, we in turn provide them with the assurance that the model of governance they have established will not be changed without their input.

It is important to point out the close relationship between these new community governments and the new Tlicho government. The Tlicho have set up a government that is closely based in the communities. Only the chiefs will be elected by Tlicho citizens alone. The rest of the Tlicho government will be made up of members of the community governments, where everyone may run and vote for council members.

Questions have also been raised about the size of councils, the longer terms of office, and different eligibility requirements for voters. The Tlicho wanted these provisions in their agreement and Canada and the Northwest Territories agreed.

During review by the Standing Committee on Governance and Economic Development, some Members asked about the restrictions on the sale of land in the communities. The bill states that communities cannot sell the land for 20 years and, after that, only if the voters approve the sale. Once again, this is in the agreement and, therefore, it has to be in the act.

In this case, it is also worth noting that this is similar to restrictions set up by the Inuit in the Nunavut Agreement. It is designed to give the communities a little breathing room to get their new government up and running before they have to consider questions like, "should land be sold to individuals or should it be managed collectively for the whole community?"

In the meantime, land is still available for development, just as it is today. The new community governments will have land administration bylaws under which they will lease land to the public and it will be under the same terms and conditions for all citizens.

In summary, many of the features of this legislation come directly from the agreement. Having said that, it is also important to note that much of this legislation is based on the municipal legislation that the Government of the Northwest Territories recently updated. This bill is very similar to the new Hamlets Act and the Charter Communities Act which came into effect on April 1, 2004.

Some Members have asked questions during the standing committee review about delegations, about the ability to set up boards and commissions, about the ability to borrow money and make investments. These are all new features that were added to the new municipal legislation and, as such, are available to all municipal governments throughout the Northwest Territories. The Tlicho Community Government Act also provides these provisions.

There are some unique features in the bill before you that differ from existing legislation and are not rooted in the Tlicho agreement. This bill raises the level of indebtedness required to prevent someone from running for office. It updates the numbers from the 1980s -- the last time limits were set -- to numbers that reflect today's dollar and the type of business that a citizen might have with the community, especially for land leases.

It also proposes some unique provisions as to who can run for elected office. First, communities can decide that certain employees of the community government may run. The exception would be employees who are in management or who are appointed as officers of the community government. Employees are restricted from running for office elsewhere because community governments felt there was potential for conflicting roles. The Tlicho were emphatic in wanting this provision within the act, partly because these communities are very small, but mostly because in order to be on the Tlicho government you have to be on the community government first. Preventing community government employees from running for elected office would prevent them from ever participating in the Tlicho government. There are a number of other minor differences resulting from consultation with the Tlicho, dealing with terms of office and election cycles.

The last item I want to speak to in this area concerns the limited authority that the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs will have over these communities compared to others. Under municipal legislation, the Minister has the authority to remove the council and replace them with an appointed municipal administrator if there is valid reason to do so. While this is a rare occurrence and only happens if the community government is in real trouble and refuses to work in partnership with my department to solve the problem, the Tlicho didn't want the Government of the Northwest Territories to have that kind of power. It was agreed to limit the Minister's power to appoint a municipal supervisor to work with a community government for only very specific things, such as serious financial difficulty, and even then to only allow that in consultation with the grand chief. If a plan of action cannot be agreed to or if the supervisor thinks the council can't do what needs to be done, then the Minister can call an election. When considering this difference, it is important to remember that the Tlicho community councils are also the Tlicho government and it wouldn't be right for a GNWT Minister to have the authority to fire all or even some of them.

To summarize, the bill has its origins in three places: in the Tlicho agreement itself, in the existing GNWT legislation, and from negotiations and consultations with the Tlicho. The Government of the Northwest Territories is required, under the terms of the agreement, to consult with the Tlicho on this legislation. We have worked in cooperation with the Tlicho to develop the bill and if the Legislative Assembly should propose changes as a result of our discussions here today it will be appropriate to consult the Tlicho before giving final approval.

The final issue I want to address has to do with the Government of the Northwest Territories' authority to pass this legislation. Given the timing issues with the federal enabling legislation, this question has been raised by some Members. The answer is that the federal bill will give our government that authority. It says the authority is retroactive. This is how the Yukon Agreement was approved and implemented. There is a coming into force provision in the bill that authorizes our government to conduct the first elections prior to the effective date when the rest of the bill comes into effect. We have asked Canada to make sure there is sufficient time between when they pass the bill and the effective date so that this can happen.

The importance of this legislation cannot be understated. It is historic in its own right, and it is a demonstration of this assembly's willingness to move ahead in working with aboriginal governments as new powers and responsibilities are negotiated, agreed and shared.

Madam Chair, I would be pleased to answer questions on the bill. Thank you.

Thank you, Premier Handley. At this time I'll ask Mr. Villeneuve, as the deputy chair of the Governance and Economic Development committee, if he would provide the committee's review of the bill. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. The Standing Committee on Governance and Economic Development conducted a public review of Bill 5 and our findings were reported to the House in Committee Report 4-15(3). For the record, I would like to thank once again all of those who contributed to our review through presentations to our committee and written submissions. Committee Report 4-15(3) is a matter of record, Madam Chair, however, Members of the standing committee may have additional comments on Bill 5 as we proceed here in Committee of the Whole. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Villeneuve. At this time I will ask the Minister if he would like to bring witnesses while we consider the bill.

Yes, I would. Thank you.

Thank you, Premier Handley. Is the committee agreed?

Agreed. Thank you. Then I will ask the Sergeant-at-Arms if she will escort the witnesses in for Premier Handley.

Thank you. Premier Handley, for the record, would you please introduce your witnesses?

Thank you, Madam Chair. With me are Debbie DeLancey, deputy minister of Municipal and Community Affairs; Mike Kalnay, director of community governance, Municipal and Community Affairs; and Mark Aitken, director of the legislation division, Department of Justice.

Thank you, Premier Handley. At this time I'll ask the Members of the committee if they have any general comments on Bill 5. General comments. Mr. Braden.