Debates of Feb. 21st, 2017

This is page numbers 1837 – 1882 of the Hansard for the 18th Assembly, 2nd Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was program.

Topics

Oral Questions

Prayer

Canada’s Top Employer Of Young People 2017

Small Community Employment Support Program

Electoral Reform

Naats'ihch'oh National Park Reserve

Aurora College Program Reductions

Coordination Of Anti-Poverty Initiatives

Recognition Of Jessie Loutit

Out-Migration From Small Communities

Maintenance Enforcement Collections

Air Quality Regulations

Lack Of Employment Opportunities In Mackenzie Delta Communities

Aurora College Teacher Education Program

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Support To Address Tragedies In Smaller Communities

Maintenance Enforcement Payments

Coordination Of Anti-Poverty Initiatives

Air Quality Regulations

Sahtu Land Use Planning

Aurora College Budget Reductions

Addressing Migration From Small Communities

Small Community Employment Fund

Reductions To Ferry Services On Peel And Mackenzie Rivers

Aurora College Performance Evaluation

Return To Written Question 15-18(2): Northwest Territories' Participation At The Association Of Mineral Exploration Bc Roundup In January 2017

Return To Written Question 16-18(2): Cabinet's November 2106 Trip To Ottawa

Petition 5-18(2): Funding To Aurora College

Tabled Document 288-18(2): Government Of The Northwest Territories Response To Motion 26-18(2): Junior Kindergarten

Tabled Document 291-18(2): List Of Northwest Territories Ministers And Staff Who Attended One Or More Events Associated With The Northwest Territories Mission To Ottawa, November 2016

Tabled Document 294-18(2): Letter From Chris Westwell, Regarding Proposed Budget Cuts To Aurora College

Tabled Document 296-18(2): Pension Administration Report - Retiring Allowances Act And Supplementary Retirement Allowances Act, Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly, March 31, 2016

Extended Adjournment Of The House To February 28, 2017

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Tabled Document 261-18(2): Main Estimates 2017-2018, Infrastructure, Deferral Of Corporate Management Activity

Tabled Document 261-18(2): Main Estimates 2017-2018, Infrastructure, Deferral Of Programs And Services Activity

Tabled Document 261-18(2): Main Estimates 2017-2018, Infrastructure, Deferral Of Regional Operations Activity

Tabled Document 261-18(2): Main Estimates 2017-2018, Infrastructure, Deferral Of Further Consideration Of The Estimates For The Department Of Infrastructure

Report of Committee of the Whole

Orders of the Day

Committee Motion 57-18(2): Tabled Document 261-18(2): Main Estimates 2017-2018, Infrastructure, Deferral Of Programs And Services Activity, Carried
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Minister. Mr. Nadli.

Michael Nadli Deh Cho

Thank you, Mr. Chair. No further questions.

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Nadli. Seeing nothing further from committee, I will call this activity. Infrastructure, regional operations, operations expenditure summary, total activity, $126,995,000. Does committee agree? Mr. Vanthuyne.

Committee Motion 58-18(2): Tabled Document 261-18(2): Main Estimates 2017-2018, Infrastructure, Deferral Of Regional Operations Activity, Carried
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Cory Vanthuyne Yellowknife North

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I move that this committee defer further consideration of the activity regional operations under the Department of Infrastructure, Main Estimates 2017-2018 on page 239 at this time. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Vanthuyne. There is a motion on the floor and it is being distributed. The motion is in order and is non-debatable. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.

---Carried

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, committee. Committee, we will move on to the series of information items beginning at page 241 and continuing on to page 248. This includes information items on the Technology Service Centre, Public Stores Revolving Fund, Petroleum Products Revolving Fund, lease commitments, and work performed on behalf of others. We can tackle these all at once. If committee has comments or questions on a particular activity, please let us know which page you are speaking to. Comments or questions on any of the information items, pages 241 to 248. I'll give committee a moment. Mr. O'Reilly.

February 21st, 2017

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Thanks, Mr. Chair. I'm looking at page 244, which is the Petroleum Products Revolving Fund. I see that there will be a deficit in this revolving fund at the end of 2017-18. Can someone from the department explain how we're going from a surplus of $115,000 in the current year to a deficit of $100,000 in this year or the year to come? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. Mr. Guy.

Guy

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So the Stabilization Fund is really the positive or negative revenue we get through the sales of fuel. So once we determine our pricing and sell the fuel to the residents and consumers that we buy it from, we have to offset that with our operating costs. Our costs are based on the salary, the transportation costs, the cost of purchasing the fuel, and all those things. In any given particular year we could have lower than anticipated costs, so we'll end up with an excess in the Stabilization Fund, so that would be that we collected more money from our customers than we needed to deliver the program.

Conversely, if we have a situation where our winter roads are in poor condition so we have to take lighter loads and we have higher transportation costs, we may be selling fuel at a loss until such time we get the price change in effect.

So the Stabilization Fund, we're permitted by legislation to be plus or minus $1 million. We like to keep that fund at around plus $500,000. As you can see it's been creeping up a little bit, so the proposed deficit is really just to bring it back down into a range that's more comfortable for us, around that $500,000 range.

Again, that's a forecast; it's based on how much we think we're going to sell the fuel, how much we think it's going to cost to buy it. It's also forecast based on what our operating costs will be and a number of other factors. So it's a very conceptual number, if you like, when you get that far down. The only actual number in there, I think, is the closing balance of 2015-16. We have not yet finished this fiscal year so we don't even know what the 2016-17 closing balance in the fund will be. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, deputy minister. Mr. O'Reilly.

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Thanks, Mr. Chair; it's a helpful explanation. So with the GNWT taking on the operations of former NTCL, will that have any impact on the revolving fund? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. Deputy Minister Guy.

Guy

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The thinking right now is no. If we were to set up that service through a revolving fund it would likely be a separate revolving fund. So the marine transportation that was purchased from the private sector is shown in here in this fund, that would then just be a purchase out of the other revolving fund.

So we're not proposing at this time to combine them into this fund. So the short answer to that question is no, there's no impact on this revolving fund; we would be just be purchasing from another internal service. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Guy. Mr. O'Reilly.

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Thanks, Mr. Chair. Maybe I'm not quite understanding the response there. I understand that we're going to do the shipping or try to contract the shipping of petroleum products to at least four communities. The fact that we're doing it now rather than NTCL, can we expect to see any impact on this revolving fund as a result of us doing the work in terms of the shipping? Thanks, Mr. Chair.

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. Deputy Minister Guy.

Guy

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Because we'll be operating a marine transportation service on a cost-recover basis, we're hoping that we'll keep costs consistent with what they have been prior to the service going out of business. So if you turn back to what we were paying two or three years ago, that's the range we're looking to be in.

The purchase of marine transportation services would fall under "costs of goods sold" on this page. I think last year was in the $3 to $4 million range; it can be as high as $5 or $6 million depending on how much particular fuel we're transporting. We don't see any impact for this fiscal year going on that part of this page. We think it will be business as usual for the Petroleum Products Fund. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Guy. Mr. O'Reilly.

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Thanks, Mr. Chair. Okay, I'll continue to watch the balance in this fund closely. Thank you.

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. Do we have anything further on these information items? Technology Service Centre, Public Stores Revolving Fund, Petroleum Products Revolving Fund, these commitments and work performed on behalf of others.

I see no further comments or questions. Committee, please return back to the departmental total found on page 221. Feel free to discuss any of the items on pages starting at 216 to 223. Mr. Vanthuyne.

Cory Vanthuyne Yellowknife North

Thank you, Mr. Chair. If we go over to page 222 in the revenue summary under the general lease, airports lease rental revenues. Can the department explain how much of the $3,229,000 is Yellowknife Airport, please? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Vanthuyne. Minister.

Wally Schumann Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I will turn it over to the deputy of Transportation, Mr. Neudorf.

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Minister. Mr. Neudorf.

Neudorf

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The majority of the money reported underneath that line item is actually from the Yellowknife Airport, so about $2.5 million of the $3.2 million would be generated at Yellowknife Airport. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Debates of Feb. 21st, 2017

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