Thanks, Madam Chair. I just don't consider this to be resolved. I would like to know whether the Minister is prepared to ensure that there's monthly reporting of the expenditures of this $5 million similar to what's happening for the COVID Secretariat. Thanks, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Member. Minister.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'd be happy to make that commitment.

Thank you. Member.

Thanks, Madam Chair. I appreciate that work's been done through income assistance to get some funding in to people's pockets. Is that a onetime payment, or is that going to continue on a monthly basis as long as people need it? Thanks, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Minister.

Minister of ECE, please.

ECE.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Under the income assistance regulations, the director has discretion to allocate an emergency allowance in situations that are deemed an emergency. So this onetime emergency allowance has been allocated to income assistance clients in Fort Simpson, in Fort Good Hope, and -- or rather in zones 1, 2, 3, to Fort Good Hope and other affected residents. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Minister. Member for Great Slave.

Thank you, Madam Chair. So I'm just -- this is, again, sort of not maybe necessarily about the numbers but while I've got some -- somebody here to answer a little bit more about this flooding.

So my understanding is that the assessors and the assessor group or company will be in the communities; they're going to be looking at damage. Will the assessors be the determinant or the people making the determination of the award amount? Are they sort of the judicial panel, so to speak, for the relief funding? Thank you.

Thank you. Minister.

Thank you, Madam Chair. My understanding of the system is that it's the disaster assistance committee that has the ability to make the final decisions on that. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Member.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yeah okay, that's good I guess; there's at least two sort of arm's lengths there.

Can the Minister speak a little bit to -- well, I've got a few things here, I guess. Will the -- is there a dispute mechanism built in to the process? If there's only one sort of small group making a determination of assessment of value, I'm concerned that, you know, there may not be a process for people, or a timely process, for people to appeal that decision. As well, too, will local knowledge be incorporated into that decision making process? I think people situated within the communities are probably better assessors or judgers -- judgment of maybe what a property was like prior than, say, a senior bureaucrat sitting in Yellowknife who doesn't know Fort Simpson. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Minister.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, the disaster assistance committee is made up both of ADMs, who are largely based in Yellowknife, as well as regional presentation from all of the affected communities and regions. So although I do certainly appreciate the comment, and I recognize that.

With respect to whether or not there's an appeal community, or an appeal process, Madam Chair, I am not certain about that although there -- typically with a system of this nature, when it's at an ADM or director level, it does have some final appeal to a Minister. I expect this is the same here. If I'm wrong, I will bring that response and that correction back to the House tomorrow.

Member.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm just going to ask that the Minister commit that she do everything she can to make that appeal process as timely as possible. And if perhaps we have one-offs that we have to come to her or her colleague and ask for that, that we would get responded to in a timely manner. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Minister.

Yes.

Member.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I have some concerns around, as the Minister had mentioned, the navigator positions. It's my understanding that those are two senior management employees. While I do recognize that people can go to others and other senior managers and people in different departments, which I do appreciate and I think that always happens in our small communities anyway, I'm sure we'll also be helpful to people helping out forms over here, and I hope -- and I know that the Northwest Territories will step up.

I did ask, in House and I don't believe I got an answer from the Minister of MACA, about whether there was a commitment to potentially hire a local individual in each community to help facilitate this process, and this would then go further to my colleague's questions around helping elders in those communities. I think this is a great opportunity to hire a local person for a short-term contract in order to help them facilitate. I don't imagine that amount of money is going to be that large, given the amount of time that they would save bureaucrats in having to answer all these questions. Thank you.

Thank you. Minister.