Thank you,

Mr. Chairman. I’ll accept the comment in the good humour it was delivered in.

Delightful. Thank you. Infrastructure Acquisition Plan, Wildlife; we’re on page 10-8. Total Tangible Capital Assets — sorry. Apologies. Mr. Jacobson.

Accepted, Mr. Chair. For my new warehouse in Paulatuk: would materials be ordered already to start the project for this summer?

Mr. Chairman, it says here that the materials will be purchased, but I can’t tell the Member if they’re on the way or not. This was also approved in the interim appropriation.

Our last event is in August, so we have time.

Thank you,

Mr.

Jacobson. Have I missed anybody else?

Possibly moving forward here. So under Wildlife, Total Tangible Capital Assets: $485,000.

Department of Environment and Natural

Resources, Infrastructure Acquisition Plan, Wildlife, Total Tangible Capital Assets: $485,000, approved.

Total Activity: $485,000.

Department of Environment and Natural

Resources, Infrastructure Acquisition Plan, Wildlife, Total Activity: $485,000, approved.

Total department:

$1.765 million.

Department of Environment and Natural

Resources, Infrastructure Acquisition Plan, Total department: $1.765 million, approved.

Does the committee agree that that concludes the capital assets?

Thank you, Mr. Minister, and thank you to your officials. You may release your officials. Would the Sergeant-at-Arms escort them out of the Chamber.

Next we have, in order, the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs. Is committee agreed that we move on to that department?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I am pleased to present the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs’ Main Estimates for the fiscal year 2008–2009.

MACA has a very broad mandate, which focuses on community governments but also includes providing a range of programs and services to individuals and other sectors of society. MACA is responsible for administering 23 different pieces of legislation, many of which require departmental staff to carry out regulatory or statutory functions and to deliver specific functions and programs.

The department is requesting $114.782 million in operating expenses for the 2008–2009 fiscal year. This represents a slight increase of $126,000, or 0.11 per cent, from the department’s 2007–2008 operating expenses budget. This increase primarily reflects the net impact of increased funding of $4 million for forced growth and $830,000 associated with strategic initiatives offset by decreases associated with the scheduled sunset, as well as decreases related to program and position reductions.

Historically, MACA’s budget includes approximately 80 per cent in funding that is in the form of grants and contributions. The bulk of this funding flows directly to our key stakeholders — the community governments. Funding to communities is used to provide special services to every resident of the Northwest Territories.

Analysis done over the past few years has demonstrated that even with current funding levels, communities are challenged to meet all their obligations, especially in light of increased pressures posed by regulatory requirements, liability issues, competition for staff and inflation. Thus when considering how to meet budget targets for this fiscal year, MACA’s first consideration was to protect core funding to community governments.

As a result, I’m pleased that MACA has been able to maintain stable funding for community government operations and maintenance, water and sewer services funding, and capital formula funding. A total of $75 million is included in the budget to provide for these core funding programs.

The budget includes a small increase to the water and sewer services funding and includes $33.6 million in capital funding, an increase of $1.4 million from 2007–2008.

Twenty-eight million dollars will be provided to community government through the capital funding formula. This represents an increase of more than $5 million from 2007–2008, which will go directly to communities to provide for their own infrastructure priorities. The balance reflects projects cost shared through the Municipal and Rural Infrastructure Program, which remain on the department’s capital plan until they are completed.

Another priority in developing the budget was to maintain programs and services that support implementation of the New Deal for NWT community governments. While 2007–2008 was the first year of formal implementation of the New Deal, MACA and communities have been working in partnership for two years prior to that on the development of the initiative. Some communities are experiencing transition issues while others are adapting more quickly to their new responsibilities and accountabilities. We must ensure that the core funding and programs and services that support communities through this transition are maintained.

To meet assigned budget targets, the department has had to make difficult choices about where levels of services can be reduced and where we can look to alternate service-delivery approaches to address our mandate. Reductions have been posed to programs that support community governments in delivering their responsibilities in a range of areas including community development, planning, emergency management and financial management.

Positions are being eliminated where it has been determined that a function can be eliminated or changed, or that fewer resources can be dedicated to a program area. This budget contains a net reduction of 20 positions, when the full impact of strategic initiatives, forced-growth sunsets and reductions are taken into consideration.

MACA’s 2008–2009 budget includes funding to provide for one-time salary and severance costs of those employees whose positions have been proposed for elimination. As a result, while the department and stakeholders may feel the program impact of reduced staff in 2008–2009, the full financial impact will not fully be reflected in the department’s budget until 2009–2010 fiscal year.

As part of the budget-development process, funding has been made available from reductions and is being re-profiled to support strategic initiatives. The department’s 2008–2009 budget includes a total of $830,000 in funding for new investments as part of our Building our Future initiative.

MACA’s budget includes funding to support those community governments that are currently providing ground ambulance and highway rescue

services. Funding to continue the department’s activities related to implementation of the Drinking Water Quality Framework supports the Managing This Land Strategic Initiative.

Funding for two new School of Community Government positions will be located in regional offices to help support a new decentralized approach to capacity building and development activities of community governments.

In addition to the strategic initiative funding, MACA’s 2008–2009 budget also includes $4 million in forced-growth funding. This includes salary and northern allowance benefit increases related to the collective agreement and funding to allow the department to continue the Youth Centres Initiative, which was implemented in 2007.

Funding is also included to provide the general assessment and general taxation area that is required as per provision of the Property Assessment and Taxation Act.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for the opportunity both to discuss the context the department used to develop its 2008–2009 budget and also to highlight the major increases and decreases included. I would be very pleased to discuss the budget in further detail and to answer any questions you may have. Mahsi.

Thank you very much, Minister Michael McLeod. I’d like to call next on the Chair of the Standing Committee on Economic Development and Infrastructure, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. The committee met with the Minister and his officials on April 4, 2008, to consider the department’s Draft Main Estimates.

The committee noted that the total operating budget for the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs for 2008–2009 is $114.782 million. The budget also includes $33.6 million for capital expenditures, of which $28 million will be provided to community governments to use to support their own infrastructure priorities.

Committee members offer the following comments on issues arising out of the review of the 2008–2009 Draft Main Estimates.

Mr. Chairman, at this time, I’m going to pass the report off to my colleague from Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you,

Mr. Ramsay. Mr. Krutko.

Mr.

Chair, committee members

recognized that MACA’s primary mandate is to

support community governments in the delivery of central services to every resident of the NWT.

The committee was pleased that the department's 2008–2009 Draft Main Estimates did not include any reductions in community government operations and maintenance funding, water and sewer service funding, or capital formula funding. However, the committee is concerned with the level of reductions in contribution programs in support of community development, capacity building, community emergency response and the impact those cuts may have on communities successfully taking on the new responsibility under the New Deal.

Proposed reductions in this area are significant, and the overall effect is diminished support to community governments.

In Sport, Recreation and Youth and Volunteers, the committee is pleased to see that the regional recreation coordinator position will be maintained. Sport and recreation programs provide an effective vehicle through which personal and social development of young people can be positively affected. The regional recreation coordinators are an integral part of how government encourages youth and youth services and effective means to the support as part of the broad youth strategy.

Committee members were very disappointed by the lack of support to the volunteer sector. Members noted that the government reduced spending, particularly in the areas of health, justice, social services, youth services and community development. Communities rely more on volunteer efforts to weather the storm. Unfortunately, they have less capacity than ever to respond to the needs of our communities. There is a real need for more direct support in this sector. The committee recommends that the department, as part of the business planning process, identify actions including the necessary investments to provide meaningful support to the volunteer sector.

Mr. Chair, at this time, I pass it back to the Chair of the committee, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you, Mr. Krutko. That concludes the committee’s review of the Municipal and Community Affairs Draft Main Estimates, 2008–2009.

I’d like to thank Minister Michael McLeod and his staff for being with us to review the Draft Mains, as well as our committee researcher, Ms. Cate Sills, and our Committee Clerk, Ms. Patricia Russell. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay and your committee is…? What is the wish of the committee here? I’ll ask the Minister: does the Minister wish to bring in his witnesses?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Yes, Mr.

Chairman, I’d like to bring in the

witnesses.

Thank you, Minister. I’d ask you to bring your witnesses in and ask the Sergeant-at-Arms to seat them and ask the Minister…. Sorry.

Does the committee agree?