Madam Speaker, I wish to present to the House Bill 60, An Act to Amend the Petroleum Products and Carbon Tax Act, to be read for the first time. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Pursuant to the Rule 8.2(3), Bill 60, an Act to Amend the Petroleum Products and Carbon Tax Act is deemed read for a first time and is now ready for second reading.

First reading of bills. Second reading of bills. Consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters. Bill 23, Bill 29, Bill 58, Bill 59, Tabled Document 723-19(2), Tabled Document 748-19(2), Tabled Document 748-19(2), with Member for Deh Cho in the chair.

Merci, Mr. Chair. Committee wishes to deal with Bill 58 and Bill 59.

Mahsi, committee. We will take a short recess and resume with the first item. Mahsi.

---SHORT RECESS

Committee, we have agreed to consider Bill 58, An Act to amend the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act. I will ask the sponsor of the bill, the Member for Hay River South, to introduce the bill.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm pleased to provide opening remarks on Bill 58, An Act to Amend the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act. This law is usually changed in the last year of every Assembly to update MLAs' pay and benefits and the names and borders of the NWT'S election ridings. These changes were suggested by independent commissions appointed by this Assembly. The bill also makes changes to how complaints against MLAs are handled and who sits on the Assembly's board of management. It also makes it clear who the employees of the Legislative Assembly work for.

If approved, the changes to how complaints against MLAs are handled will start right away. The other changes will start at the beginning of the next Legislative Assembly.

MLA pay is cut by $4,000 a year. Members could earn this $4,000 back by serving as the Premier, Speaker, or a Minister, or by serving on one or more committees. Regular Members who choose not to sit on any committees will be paid $4,000 less each year.

The transition allowance that Members get when they leave office is not changed. These changes will start after the next election.

The name of the Deh Cho riding is changed to Dehcho for the next election.

Right now, when a complaint about an MLA is made, the Assembly's Integrity Commissioner can either dismiss it or send it to a public inquiry. Because a public inquiry can be expensive and take a lot of time, the bill gives the Integrity Commissioner two new options:

The Integrity Commissioner can try to resolve the complaint through mediation or other forms of alternative dispute resolution or decide that the Member has done something wrong and suggest a punishment to the Assembly without the need for a public inquiry.

Finally, the Integrity Commissioner will be able to fine a Member who does not fill out their conflict of interest paperwork on time each year.

These changes will start as soon as the bill is passed.

The Minister of Finance will automatically be one of the two Ministers who serve on the Assembly's board of management. If the Speaker can't make a meeting, the deputy speaker will no longer be called on to chair the meeting. Instead, the board will pick one if its Members who is at the meeting to chair it.

The bill makes it clear that the employees of the Legislative Assembly work for the Speaker, not the Premier or Minister of Finance. This is to make sure that the Legislative Assembly employees can help MLAs and committees do their jobs, which include monitoring and sometimes criticizing the work of Cabinet and Ministers.

Finally, the bill replaces some outdated words and phrases with new ones that are easier to understand, without changing what they mean. In other words, they are housekeeping changes.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This concludes my opening remarks on Bill 58. I am pleased to hear comments and to respond to any questions from committee. Thank you.

Mahsi. Member for Hay River South, would you like to bring witnesses into the Chamber?

Yes, Mr. Chair.

Sergeant-at-arms, please escort the witnesses into the Chamber.

Member for Hay River South, please introduce your witnesses.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. To my left is Stephen Flanagan, legislative division, Department of Justice; and, to my right is Tim Mercer, clerk of the Legislative Assembly.

Mahsi. I will now open the floor to general comments on Bill 58, An Act to amend the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act. Mr. Johnson.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm supportive of this legislation except for perhaps one section, which I'll comment to when we get there. But I wanted to talk about what I'm happy with the changes made to the Integrity Commissioner, and I just want to kind of summarize them for the public's notice.

So we used to have a process where when a complaint was referred to the Integrity Commissioner, and there's been a few this Assembly, he was forced to either, you know, find that there was grounds and order a public hearing, which we had and which cost us a few hundred thousand dollars and was very lengthy and complicated, or dismiss the complaint. There was kind of no middle ground, and I think many of us and the public and lots of people would have liked some sort of off-ramp. And so now we've amended it to give our Integrity Commissioner a few options. You know, he can refer the matter to some sort of alternative dispute resolution if that is appropriate; he can still order that public hearing if there are more facts and it's warranted; or he can right away, you know, after conducting an investigation, come out with a recommended penalty; or dismiss the complaint. So I think, you know, this is the way it's done in many other, if not all, jurisdictions, and I think giving that Integrity Commissioner a bit more authority of how to deal with complaints is a good step and is something I wish we had during this Assembly. But it's a good change. So I'm supportive of that. And I would like to thank all of our Members for the work that has gone into making these changes. Thank you.

Mahsi, Mr. Johnson. Are there any further comments? No more questions from the Member? Any further comments from committee?

Seeing none, does committee agree that there are no further general comments?

Agreed. Can we proceed to a clause by clause review of the bill?

Agreed? Committee, we will defer the bill number and title until after consideration of the clauses. I will call the clauses in groups. Please turn to page 1 of the bill.

Clause 1, does committee agree?

---Clauses 1 through 28 inclusive approved

Clause 29, does committee agree? Mr. Johnson.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I actually -- oh 29, sorry.

Yes, you may proceed.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I wasn't aware 29 would be in here. This is the clause that is now changing all Members to be -- before they can sit in this House instead of swearing allegiance to Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada, her heirs and successors must now swear allegiance to His Majesty Charles III, King of Canada, his heirs and successors.

As I've stated before, I think this is an outdated oath and if people want to serve their government without swearing oath to the heirs and successors of our King, they should be able to do so. I will not be in support of this. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Mahsi. Did the Member for Hay River South have any comments on this?

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I will take that as a comment from the Member. Thank you.