I do, Mr. Chairman. I am here to present the Department of Finance’s Main Estimates for the 2013-14 fiscal year.
For 2013-14, the department has identified a total operations budget of approximately $156.3 million, which represents a 10 percent increase over the current fiscal year.
The operations budget is comprised of:
• A $67.5 million contribution to the NWT Housing
Corporation to provide the Corporation with its operating cash flow for the fiscal period.
• The remaining $80.8 million for department
operations represents a 10 percent increase from the 2012-13 Main Estimates. This is primarily the result of:
o $7 million to continue to advance the
Mackenzie Valley Fibre Optic Link Project. This project will provide a high-speed data link up the valley and will have significant positive impacts for economic and community development and the delivery of government services;
o $8.2 million resulting from the transfer of
funding from the Department of Transportation for the semi-annual debt service payments on the Deh Cho Bridge debt;
o These increases are partially offset by a
$6.2 million decrease to the contribution made to the NWT Power Corporation to help mitigate the impacts of increased power rates resulting from the corporation’s general rate application.
As the government’s lead revenue department, the revenues managed by the department are projected to total approximately $1.48 billion, or about 92 percent of the total GNWT revenues of $1.61 billion being forecast for the 2013-14 fiscal year. This represents a 5 percent increase from the 2012-13 Main Estimates. This is attributable to a projected increase of $51 million in federal transfers, and a projected increase of $13 million in
corporate income tax revenues and $7.5 million in personal income tax revenue forecasts.
Each of the business activities of the department provides a foundation for all other activities of government, through assessing new revenue sources, managing expenditure growth, protecting assets, providing critical fiscal, financial and economic information, and promoting accountability.
The department’s 2013-14 Main Estimates continue to support the priorities of the 17th Assembly, and
continuing initiatives that will support the sustainability of our territory for future generations. As Members are aware, the Premier has issued specific mandates to each Minister to support these priorities. Specific activities in the department’s 2013-14 Main Estimates include:
• the continuation of several modern management initiatives such as the renewal of the Financial Administration Act, the planning and implementation of financial shared services across the GNWT, and finalizing the Service Innovation Strategy, formerly the Knowledge Management Strategy;
• advancing the Mackenzie Valley Fibre Optic
Link Project;
• supporting the efforts to ensure a successful
completion of a Devolution Final Agreement and the implementation of the agreement;
• supporting the development and implementation
of a GNWT approach to decentralization;
• a fiscal strategy that supports the priorities of
this Assembly but also recognizes the GNWT has finite resources, and we need to continue our plan to reduce overall short-term debt;
• developing a strategy that recognizes the
volatility of our revenues and plans to ensure stable revenues for planning and budgetary purposes.
That concludes my opening remarks. Thank you.