I am pleased to present the Department of Public Works and Services’ main estimates for the fiscal year 2013-14.

The department’s main estimates propose an operations expenditure budget of $104.5 million for 2013-14, an increase of 11.5 percent over the

2012-13 Main Estimates. This increase can be primarily attributed to the following activities:

• one-time funding for the demolition of the Sir

Alexander Mackenzie School and Samuel Hearne Secondary School in Inuvik; and

• ongoing funding for the transfer of responsibility

and funding for the administration of Health and Social Services leased space to the Department of Public Works and Services.

The demolition and removal of the old school buildings in Inuvik also represent an important part in the department’s Risk Management and Safety Program by helping the GNWT address its aging infrastructure problem while reducing our deferred maintenance deficit.

Our building infrastructure continues to age and requires ongoing investment to ensure continuity in the delivery of government programs and services in all of our northern communities. As in past years, Public Works and Services’ Deferred Maintenance Program is an essential part of our overall strategy to address our building infrastructure needs and is coordinated with capital planning, energy investments and regular preventative maintenance programs to maximize its effectiveness. For 2013-14 this department will have $3 million in operations and expenditure funding and another $5 million in capital expenditure funding, for a combined total of $8 million to spend towards reducing our government’s deferred maintenance deficit. By the end of 2013-14, through a combination of direct program expenditures, reductions from building demolitions and integrating deferred maintenance with the corporate capital planning process for major and minor capital projects, we are projecting the deficit to reduce to $290 million.

The transfer of responsibility and funding for the administration of leases from the Department of Health and Social Services to Public Works and Services is a significant change for this department in 2013-14. This transfer represents an increase of 46 percent for the number of leases managed by Public Works and Services and a further increase of 20 percent in its base lease funding for 2013-14 and beyond.

To effectively and efficiently manage this initiative, the department has created a new leased property administration position based in Hay River to support and coordinate the management of the health leases with the department’s overall property and accommodations portfolio.

I’d like to focus now on some of the other activities that the Department of Public Works and Services has planned for 2013-14.

With the implementation of the new digital communications network, or DCN, now complete, the department is actively monitoring its performance to ensure effective and efficient

communication services are provided to all communities throughout the Northwest Territories. The new DCN was a key part of the 2008-2012 Enterprise Network Strategy, and the Technology Service Centre is now engaged in developing its next five-year strategy to ensure there is continued support for the government programs of today and the e-government requirements of tomorrow with a particular focus on health care and education applications.

A new initiative for the Technology Service Centre in 2013-14 will see its services to government expanded by assuming desktop support services for the Stanton Territorial Health Authority and its approximately 325 employees, joining the Sahtu and Deh Cho Health and Social Services authorities already supported by the Technology Service Centre. While support for the Stanton Territorial Health Authority will increase operational costs to the Technology Service Centre, those costs will be offset by the equivalent recoveries provided through the current chargeback model without an increase in rates.

In support of this government’s ongoing priority to increase employment opportunities where they are most needed, Public Works and Services continues to use a combination of in-house resources, including settlement maintainers and apprentices and locally contracted services, to assist in delivering its ongoing preventative and deferred maintenance programs for government facilities in every NWT community. These front-line positions enable the department to better manage maintenance activities and the availability of resources at the community level, while promoting and strengthening the economy and our northern workforce.

The Capital Asset Retrofit Fund program continues to be an important initiative for this department, and our government in 2013-14. It represents a multi-outcome Energy Management Program that aims to improve performance and reduce the costs associated with operating government infrastructure while supporting this government’s objectives in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and our reliance on fossil fuels.

Assessing GNWT facilities to prioritize and target program funding to achieve the greatest return on investment remains key to this program’s overall effectiveness. The Capital Asset Retrofit Fund program together with other energy conservation initiatives implemented by the department, have helped reduce government greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 25,000 tonnes since 2007-08. Up to the end of 2012, the department is estimating the cumulative energy savings since 2007-08 have reached $3.9 million while displacing 9.2 million litres of fuel oil over this six-year period. This program is producing positive results which

have allowed this government to re-profile ongoing savings back into the Capital Asset Retrofit Fund to support additional investment in energy conservation and alternative energy projects in many communities.

Finally, in keeping with this Assembly’s commitment to be effective and as efficient as possible, Public Works and Services is moving ahead with implementation of a Procurement Shared Services Centre during 2013-14 and we will continue to support the Department of Finance in their efforts towards completing implementation of financial shared service centres throughout government.

Through these and other programs and activities, Public Works and Services will continue to provide the high-quality services that support the public infrastructure our clients and the public rely upon in delivering our government’s much needed programs and services.

Thank you for providing an opportunity for this overview of the department’s 2013-14 Main Estimates. I look forward to discussing them with you in further detail.