Thank you, Madam Chair. I am pleased to be here today to talk to you about Bill 63, An Act to Amend the Victims of Crime Act. I would like to thank the Standing Committee on Social Programs for its review of the bill.
In 2013 the federal government gave assent to Bill C-37, Increasing Offenders’ Accountability for Victims Act. As a result of those amendments, offenders are now allowed to use fine option programs to work off surcharges. In response, Bill 63 would amend the territorial Victims of Crime Act to allow offenders to resolve their surcharges by means of the NWT Fine Option Program.
These changes are especially important given that Bill C-37 doubled the existing federal surcharge and removed judicial discretion in applying the surcharge for each federal conviction an offender receives. The cumulative total owed could end up being quite significant in some cases, and many offenders have very little money. Without the ability to utilize the Fine Option Program, cumulative surcharges could be a burden.
Bill 63 will also allow the territorial victim surcharge amount or the calculation method for each offence to be set out in the Victims of Crime Regulations, allowing amounts to be updated as necessary in the future, after appropriate consultation prior to implementing any increase or decrease. This bill will also amend the Fine Option Act to permit an offender to use the Fine Option Program to discharge all or any part of the victim of crime surcharge.
I would be pleased to answer any questions that Members may have regarding the bill. Thank you.