Thank you again for those comments from the Minister. I had actually visited Good Hope about that time with a youth and elders conference. It was quite impressive. Of course, we’ve had some serious damage to schools from exceptional snow loads and so on. I think we’re gaining our own experience in that area.

I’d like to move on to another topic here. At one point I believe the Minister committed to determining what the cost would be to collect our own taxes in place of Ottawa collecting them for us, as is now the case through an agreement. I am still highly interested in that. I’m wondering if he has any perspective. This is continually held up to me as a reason why we cannot levy particular taxes: Ottawa would shrug their shoulders, the responsibility for collecting taxes would fall off, and we’d have to catch that cost. But I have a hard time objectively assessing what that really means without knowing what the costs would be and comparing it to the potential for raising revenue through our own customized taxes to this jurisdiction. I’d appreciate any comments the Minister can provide on that.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The issue of taxation collection and the cost to the Northwest Territories has been raised. I’ve raised it as a Minister myself when we look at different options of what we may do. I’d have to go back. If committee wants to do that work, we could look at doing that. We haven’t done it as of yet. I’d have to recall which meeting that may have come up at.

But we have looked at different tax relationships and the potential impact. Right now we find jurisdictions — in fact, I believe it’s Ontario that has just recently decided to work with the federal government and have the federal government collect their taxes. It will become effective if not this year coming, then the year after. That decision was made last year, I believe. So we’ve got even the

larger jurisdictions looking at trying to streamline their collection processes.

As we talked about earlier, we’re going to go out and go to committee first on potential revenue options and go to the public throughout the summer to get some input there and look at options. When we look at those options, that may trigger this other event of our own taxation collection process. We’ll have to have that discussion as we look at the old tax revenue option potential for the Northwest Territories.

Thank you for those remarks. Again, I guess I would ask the Premier: does he agree, thinking objectively here, that it would be very, very useful to know what the cost of that would be in order to compare it with what the potential revenues would be? If so, would he commit to determining what that cost might be?

As we look at our taxation pieces we have in place and potential new taxation options or revenue options, we definitely would have to look at that cost-benefit side of it and what would be created in that aspect. It is something we will have to come forward with as we have our discussions about revenue option potentials. I agree that if we’re going to look at this, we have to step back and look at the full parameters of a new tax policy in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Roland. We’re on page 3-17, Activity Summary, Treasury, Operations Expenditure Summary: $8.283 million. Are there any questions? Agreed?

Department of Finance, Activity Summary,

Treasury, Operations Expenditure Summary: $8.283 million, approved.

Moving along to page 3-20, information item, Treasury, Active Positions.

Department of Finance, Activity Summary,

Treasury, Active Positions, information item (page 3-20), approved.

3-21, information item, Treasury, Active Positions. Agreed?

Department of Finance, Activity Summary,

Treasury, Active Positions, information item (page 3-21), approved.

Page 3-23, Activity Summary, Fiscal Policy, Operations Expenditure Summary: $1.201 million. Are there any questions? Agreed?

Department of Finance, Activity Summary,

Fiscal Policy, Operations Expenditure Summary: $1.201 million, approved.

Page 3-24,

information item, Fiscal Policy, Active Positions. Agreed?

Department of Finance, Activity Summary,

Fiscal Policy, Active Positions, information item (page 3-24), approved.

Page 3-25,

information item, Fiscal Policy, Active Positions. Are we agreed?

Department of Finance, Activity Summary,

Fiscal Policy, Active Positions, information item (page 3-25), approved.

Page 3-26,

information item, Liquor Revolving Fund. Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I’ve got a committee motion here.

Thank you,

Mr. Menicoche. The motion is being distributed. The motion has been distributed. The motion is in order. To the motion. Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. As for our deliberations when we were talking about the Liquor Commission with the Minister in committee review, we talked about how the goals and objectives of the Liquor Commission should be looked at and reviewed. This motion will speak to that, Mr. Chair. Thank you.

Thank you,

Mr. Menicoche. To the motion. Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I didn’t attend the briefing for this particular committee, but I did notice that in the Minister’s opening remarks he stated that it’s an initiative of the department for this next fiscal year to finalize the regulations under the Liquor Act and bring the new act into force later on this year.

It seems to me that a functional review of the Liquor Commission and the Liquor Licensing Board is something that would dovetail nicely with finalizing the regulations for the Liquor Act.

So I fully support the motion. Thank you.

Thank you,

Ms. Bisaro. To the motion.

The question has been called.

Motion carried.

We’re on page 3-26, information item, Liquor Revolving Fund. Are there any questions? Agreed?

Department of Finance, Liquor Revolving

Fund, information item, approved.

Page 3-28,

information item, Liquor Revolving Fund, Active Positions by Region. Are we agreed?

Department of Finance, Liquor Revolving

Fund, Active Positions — By Region, information item, approved.

We’re on page 3-29, information item, Liquor Revolving Fund, Active Positions, Community Allocation. Are there any questions? Agreed?

Department of Finance, Liquor Revolving

Fund, Active Positions — Community Allocation, information item, approved.

We’re on page 3-30, information item, Work Performed on Behalf of Others. Agreed?

Department of Finance, Work Performed on

Behalf of Others, information item, approved.