Community justice and corrections, $91,000.

Total department, $475,000.

Thank you. NWT Housing Corporation, operations expenditures, not previously authorized, NWT Housing Corporation, $1 million.

Total department, $1 million. Mr. Braden.

Madam Chair, the detail we were provided with here says that the funding is required to ensure the corporation has the capacity needed to deliver new housing units through the three-year Affordable Housing Strategy and improve inspections and maintenance of new and existing housing stock. Could the Minister provide us with more detail on what is comprising this capacity valued at $957,000, Madam Chair?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Madam Chair. The request from the Housing Corporation in this area is based on the request for 16 new positions in the area of lands and technical positions. The technical officers, five in the districts; lands officers, five in the districts; headquarters, mechanical and electrical designer, one position; GIS mapping specialist, one position; senior lands development officer, one position; land negotiator, one position; lands administration clerk, one position; and, manager of lands, one position, for a total of six within headquarters.

The total amount on an ongoing basis would be $1.6 million on a full-year basis. The request at this time is for $957,000 for the remainder of this fiscal year.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Mr. Braden.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you, Mr. Minister, for the information. The bill says that this is a three-year strategy. Are we anticipating then that all of these positions will sunset after three years, Madam Chair?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Roland.

Madam Chair, at this time, the request is for the position so that the Housing Corporation can deal with a majority of land situations or problems they found in communities. They have a backlog of files, to date, that they need to deal with. For example, there are about 600 parcels out there that the Housing Corporation needs to deal with, never mind the ones going ahead. At this point, it's requested to proceed. They are not term positions. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Mr. Braden.

So we are taking on what will amount to a $1.6 million commitment in perpetuity here initiated by a three-year housing program and, Madam Chair, a chronic, almost constipated situation at the Housing Corporation with lands. This has been going on for years. The current Ministers needn't take total responsibility for this because we have heard about this for years now, just how bunged up things are at Housing Corporation with lands issues. I am anxious to find out here, Madam Chair, a three-year Affordable Housing Strategy, we are taking on how many lands officers here, five, six, seven, at least eight. At least half of these positions, Madam Chair, are to do with lands. Now, are all of these extra lands positions only going to be required to satisfy the Affordable Housing Strategy or are we actually finally going to get down and tackle the whole lands problem within the Housing Corporation? As the Minister referenced, Madam Chair, the Minister said something like 600 parcels still have problems. Just how limited or how broad is the scope of the assignment here, Madam Chair?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I have to correct a pretty fundamental thing here. I had referenced that these would be going forward. In fact, they are tied to a three-year strategy. So it isn't ongoing. A big correction there. Looking at our information here it is, in fact, tied to the program. So it would lapse at that time. If there are further programs that bring more dollars to the North, then that would be reviewed and brought back to this forum. So that is the situation that the request is going forward for. So it would be tied to the three-year strategy. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Mr. Braden still has the floor, but I have Mr. Menicoche, Mr. Ramsay, and Mr. Pokiak. So anything further, Mr. Braden?

Madam Chair, I'll give the floor over to my colleagues. I'm sure they're probably going to ask some of the questions I have on my plate.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Just with this particular line item on $957,000. The government indicates it's part of their Affordable Housing Strategy. The concern on this one is that, is it what we, will there be new money allocated towards the O and M for the next three years or does this money come from the $50 million part of the fund that's been discussed from the federal government? Just how does that impact? I know that the $50 million from the federal government with our $50 million is a $100 million strategy. So does that necessarily mean, Madam Chair, that new money from our government, from our own sources is half of this? What are the implications here, Madam Chair, on government funds?

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, in our work with, or the Housing Corporation's work I should say with the federal government on this program, it has been recognized and identified that the existing program the Housing Corporation is involved in would be our share towards that. The new money is the $50 million tied to the existing programs that the Housing Corporation is involved with. The request for this is O and M, salary and benefits, and O and M as well for the total, as I stated earlier, of $1.6 million, and this portion for this fiscal year is $957,000. It is more money that we would have to vote to help provide the successful completion of the additional housing units going up.