Debates of Feb. 21st, 2018

This is page numbers 3305 – 3346 of the Hansard for the 18th Assembly, 3rd 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 going.

Topics

Oral Questions

Prayer

Mental Health And In Home And Community Care

Strengthening Supports For Educators

Inuvik Satellite Facilities

Medical Travel Issues

Remote Sensing Satellite Licensing

Deh Cho / Mackenzie River Signage

Alternate Fuel Sources For Small Communities

Waste Resource Management Strategy

Arctic Policy Framework

Rental Office Wait Times

Early Childhood Development

Hazardous Conditions On Inuvik To Tuktoyaktuk Highway

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Licensing Delays For Inuvik Satellite Facilities

Inuvik To Tuktoyaktuk Highway Maintenance And Signage

Inuvik Satellite Facilities

Question137-18(3): Medical Travel Services In Hay River

Rental Office Wait Times

Waste Resource Management Strategy

Alternate Fuel Sources For Small Communities

Arctic Policy Framework

Early Childhood Development Best Practices

Deh Cho / Mackenzie River Tourism Opportunities

Rental Office Wait Times

Petition 1-18(3): Using Lottery Money To Fund The Arts

Tabled Document 90-18(3): NWT Legislative Assembly Pension Administration Report – Retiring Allowances Act And Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act, At March 31, 2017

Bill 5: An Act To Amend The Summary Conviction Procedures Act

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Report of Committee of the Whole

Orders of the Day

Tabled Document 90-18(3): NWT Legislative Assembly Pension Administration Report – Retiring Allowances Act And Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act, At March 31, 2017
Tabling of Documents

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Members, pursuant to section 21(1) of the Legislative Assembly Retirement Allowance Act and section 11.1 of the Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act, I wish to table the "Annual Report, NWT Legislative Assembly Pension Plans, at March 31, 2017."

In accordance to section 21(1) of the Retiring Allowances Act and section 11.1 of the Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act, I hereby table the "NWT Legislative Assembly Pension Administration Report, Retiring Allowances Act and Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act, at March 31, 2017."

Item 15, notices of motion. Item 16, notices of motion for first reading of bills. Item 17, motions. Item 18, first reading of bills. Minister of Justice.

Bill 5: An Act To Amend The Summary Conviction Procedures Act
First Reading of Bills

February 20th, 2018

Louis Sebert Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Hay River South, that Bill 5, An Act to Amend the Summary Conviction Procedures Act, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Bill 5: An Act To Amend The Summary Conviction Procedures Act
First Reading of Bills

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. The motion is in order. To the motion. All those in support? All those opposed? The motion is carried.

---Carried

Bill 5 has had its first reading. First reading of bills. Item 19, second reading of bills. Item 20, consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters: Minister's Statement 1-18(3), North Slave Correctional Complex Inmate Concerns; Minister's Statement 19-18(3), Aurora College Foundational Review Process; Tabled Document 63-18(3), Main Estimates 2018-2019, with the Member for Hay River North in the chair.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

I will now call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of committee? Mr. Beaulieu.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, committee would like to consider Tabled Document 63-18(3), Main Estimates 2018-2019, and continuing on with the Department of Education, Culture and Employment, followed by the continuation of the Department of Executive and Indigenous Affairs, time permitting. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Does committee agree?

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Some Hon. Members

Agreed.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, committee. First, a short recess.

---SHORT RECESS

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

I will now call Committee of the Whole back to order. Committee, we have agreed to continue our deliberation of Tabled Document 63-18(3), Main Estimates 2018-2019, and we will pick up where we left off yesterday, which is Education, Culture and Employment, early childhood and school services, on page 41. Minister, do you have witnesses you wish to bring into the Chamber?

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Alfred Moses Inuvik Boot Lake

Yes, I do, Mr. Chair. Thank you.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Minister. Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witnesses into the Chamber. Minister, would you please introduce your witnesses for the record.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Alfred Moses Inuvik Boot Lake

Thank you, Mr. Chair. On my right is Sylvia Haener, my deputy minister of Education, Culture and Employment, and to my left is Mr. Olin Lovely, assistant deputy minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Minister. When we left off yesterday, there was a bit of confusion, and I was wondering if the Minister or his witnesses would like to address the issue that we were discussing yesterday and perhaps try to clear some of that up. Minister.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Alfred Moses Inuvik Boot Lake

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Yes, it was in terms of the internal reallocation of the inclusive schooling dollars for junior kindergarten, and I will ask my assistant deputy minister, Mr. Olin Lovely, to go into detail for a little bit of an explanation. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Minister. Mr. Lovely.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Lovely

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just to clarify, in any given year, enrolments will go up and down. The funding formula will go up and down based on that because enrolments are a major component of that framework.

This past year, we saw enrolments go down by 1.8 per cent, resulting in money that would normally go back to the Department of Finance. Rather than do that, we sought direction and received approval to reallocate that money internally and put it towards including junior kindergarten students in the inclusive schooling formula.

The number of students in junior kindergarten in 2018-2019 amounts to $881,000. As we progress further down the years, if the complement of students in inclusive schooling goes up, the funding will go up. If the complement of students in inclusive schooling goes down, that funding will go down.

We have provided that information to education authorities. They are budgeting based on including junior kindergarten students as part of their ongoing operations for inclusive schooling. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Lovely. Part of the issue was that the Minister said that the mains were printed before the change was known about. Could the department elaborate on some of the timelines so we have the dates of when the number of students was known, when the Mains were printed, and so on, just for clarification? Thank you.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Alfred Moses Inuvik Boot Lake

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I know Members were looking for the hard-line item in the main estimates here. Maybe I will go back to the assistant deputy minister to show you where the money came from, from the program detail lines, for a little bit more clarity. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Minister. Mr. Lovely.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Lovely

Thank you, Mr. Chair. If we turn to page 41, the total amount that we give to the education authorities is comprised of the schools line item for $128,822, the inclusive schooling component for $26,724, and we also have money in the previous activity for Indigenous languages of around $8 to $9 million. Sorry, it's right here on this page; $9.5 million will go to the education authorities, plus the minority-language education and Instruction of $2.6 million.

Each one of these items that I have mentioned will fluctuate based on the enrolments in the schools, and what we ended up doing is that we took the funding from schools of 128. We took the $881,000 out of there, and it will be moving down to inclusive schooling so that that money will now be about $27.5 million.

The reason for it not showing up was the main estimates were printed in December. The approval for the junior kindergarten funding reallocation was done later in January. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Lovely. Since this is new information, I will allow committee Members to speak twice to this activity if they wish. First, I have Mr. McNeely on my list.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Daniel McNeely Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Chair. When adjustments are made, such as the 881 after the print shop is done, is it the department's standard practice to have an amendment to the numbers presented in the printed mains? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. McNeely. Minister.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Alfred Moses Inuvik Boot Lake

Thank you, Mr. Chair. No, we couldn't do the amendments, because they were printed in December and the decision was made in January. The process of when there were internal reallocations does have to go through a process and have an FMB submission. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Minister. Nothing further from Mr. McNeely. Next, I have Mr. Nakimayak on the list, to carry over from yesterday. Mr. Nakimayak.

Debates of Feb. 21st, 2018

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