Thank you, Minister. Ms. Green.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I appreciate that response. Is this an issue that is likely to be addressed in the life of this Assembly? Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Green. Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, we will have the research done during the life of this Assembly, and then we will make a determination of whether it is viable and if it is something that will work here in our jurisdiction but the research itself will be done. We will share that with Members and get some feedback from the Members as well. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister. Ms. Green.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just as a point of clarification, I felt that the deputy minister had said that the research was just finishing. If that is the case, then it seems like finishing the research in the life of the Assembly is just about a done deal. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Green. Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The research may be finishing, but there is still a bit of work that needs to be done. As I said before, once we get that work completed, we will share it with Members, and then we will determine next steps from there with the input from the Members. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister. Ms. Green.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. My next questions have to do with community governance. I understand that there were some financial operational reviews conducted in the last fiscal year. I am wondering what the findings are of those reviews and whether there are any other reviews planned for this year. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Green. Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, the Member is correct. The audits were done. We have a couple of communities that are facing some challenges. I am not sure if it is appropriate to speak to those particular communities in a public forum such as this. If we enter into a briefing with committee, I would be glad to share some of the information, some of the details.

Through the accountability framework, we are going to have the capacity now to pick up a lot of these issues soon. That will prevent a lot of our communities, as in the past, from getting into any financial difficulties. We will be able to identify sooner and then work with the communities and get them into a good financial position. If we provide a briefing to the Members or if the Member would like a conversation with myself, I can share some of the particulars. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister. Ms. Green.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I welcome both the proactive approach that the Minister is taking to helping communities before they get further into disarray. Certainly, I will talk to my colleagues on Government Operations to see if they would like a private briefing. My second question is: are there audits contemplated for this year as well? Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Green. Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The audits are done every year. Then we review the audits. We have conversations with the communities if we need to but the audits are done every year. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister. Ms. Green.

Thank you for that clarification. Those are all of my questions.

Mr. O'Reilly.

Thanks, Mr. Chair. I would like to follow up on my colleague's questions about changes to the Cities, Towns and Villages Act to enable the tax-based municipalities to use local improvement charges for energy retrofit purposes. I heard from the department that they are doing research. I understood this was a fairly simple amendment that is being requested. The NWTAC is on record as requesting this change. What is the scope of the research that is being undertaken? Why can't we get this done a lot quicker than four years? Thanks, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, we would like to try to get this in as quickly as possible. As I said before, we are doing our research. If that shows us that we are able to get this piece of legislation through or the amount of work that might be required to get this piece of legislation through, that is something that we will obviously consider. Let us finish the research, and then we will make a determination from there. I don't think we are that far from finishing. Let us do that. Then we will make a determination at that time if it is just a quick fix to make an amendment. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister. Mr. O'Reilly.

Thanks, Mr. Chair. I am just trying to understand the scope of this research. Is the department looking at a total review of the CTV Act or just this specific very small change that is being requested to allow the tax-based municipalities to have the authority to use local improvement charges for this very specific purpose? Thanks, Mr. Chair.