Colleagues, before we begin, I would like to recognize former president of the Nihtat Gwich'in Council, Mr. Jozef Carnogursky. Welcome to the Chamber.

Good afternoon, colleagues. February is Indigenous Languages Month in the Northwest Territories. It is a time to acknowledge the importance of language and culture to the well-being and resilience of Indigenous peoples around the North. It's also a day to recognize the many language champions working to address the language crisis facing Indigenous peoples. To our interpreters, thank you for the invaluable services you provide every day. Mahsi.

Colleagues, today I am proud to announce the renaming of the Legislative Assembly's meeting rooms in the territory's nine Indigenous languages. This project was inspired by nature and reflected in language. Each room is named after an animal in one of the Indigenous languages. Illustrations were done by the NWT-born Indigenous artist Trey Madsen.
All Members, staff, and public are encouraged to use the translated room names to integrate Indigenous languages into our everyday work. By celebrating Indigenous Languages Month, we acknowledge how fundamental language is to the identity of Indigenous peoples in the Northwest Territories. Mahsi cho, colleagues.

Ministers' statements. Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment.

Mr. Speaker, three years ago I was given a mandate to initiate a review of the income assistance program to ensure its objectives, benefits, and delivery support the social and economic aspirations of the people of the NWT. Since then, the Department of Education, Culture and Employment has put in a considerable amount of time and effort into fulfilling this mandate. Based on the findings of the review, the Department of Education, Culture and Employment is now in the process of finalizing the most significant changes to the income assistance program in a generation. These changes are supported by a proposed additional investment of over $5 million annually that will flow directly to our most vulnerable residents.

Mr. Speaker, the current income assistance program provides financial assistance to residents for rent and utilities, based on actual amounts, additional allowances for persons and seniors and persons with permanent disabilities, and set amounts, based on family size and community, for food, clothing, and furnishings. The program is intended to ensure a minimum standard of living and support greater self-reliance. To determine how well we are achieving these goals and whether these goals are still appropriate, the department conducted an extensive internal review of the program and engaged with stakeholders and the public through virtual focus groups, online surveys, and telephone interviews.

A total of 363 people participated in the engagement, with representation from Indigenous governments, non-government organizations, utility providers, landlords, the public, and frontline staff who deliver the income assistance program, and current and past income assistance clients.

In addition to the public engagement, the Department of Education, Culture and Employment completed a satisfaction survey, with 262 responses.

Based on this work, we are proposing to introduce two distinct income assistance programs this summer. First, we are proposing to introduce a redesigned income assistance program for clients ages 19 to 59. Over the years, there have been a number of incremental changes to the income assistance program, including modest increases and exempting certain types of income from the income assistance calculations. However, these increases have not kept up with inflation. The last full adjustment of benefits based on the Consumer Price Index was in 2005. To address this issue, we are proposing to increase benefits based on the new Market Basket Measure North, which is the Government of Canada's official measure of poverty that has been adjusted to reflect the realities of the North. This will ensure that there is a clear link between the amounts provided by the program and the amounts actually needed to establish a modest, basic standard of living. To reduce the program's administrative burden on staff and clients, we are proposing to streamline benefits and remove the requirement to participate in a Productive Choice. To remove barriers to employment, we are proposing to increase the amount of monthly income that can be earned before it is deducted from benefit payments from $200 plus 15 per cent of additional income to $500 plus 25 per cent of additional income. We are also proposing to remove employment-related suspensions so clients are not suspended from the program if they try to maintain employment but are unsuccessful. To advance reconciliation, we propose to increase the exemption for funds received from an impact benefit agreements and treaty or land claim agreements from $500 per year to 100 percent. We also propose to increase the unearned income exemption from $1200 per year to $350 per month.

Mr. Speaker, in addition to a renewed income assistance program, we are also proposing to introduce a new income assistance program for seniors and persons with disabilities. The program will be based on annual income so clients will only need to apply and report their income once a year. By moving to an annual process with income determined using the notice of assessment, only taxable income would be considered when determining benefits. As such, under this new income assistance program, money that seniors and persons with disabilities receive from friends and family, lottery and bingo winnings, and income tax returns and GST will no longer be included as part of the assessment.

Mr. Speaker, due to the magnitude of these changes there is still much work to be done - regulations and policies must be amended, a performance measurement plan has to be developed, staff need to receive training on the new programs, but we are well on our way and I look forward to updating this House as we continue to make progress on this important initiative. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Ministers' statements. Minister responsible for Health and Social Services.

Mr. Speaker, addictions continue to be a serious issue in the NWT. Many residents have experienced the grip of addictions at some point in their lifetime while many others have watched family or friends battle drug or alcohol dependencies. The GNWT is committed to making sure that residents have access to the right combination of culturally safe supports and services where and when they need it. This is why the 19th Legislative Assembly made it a mandate priority to increase the number and variety of community-based mental health and addictions programs, including aftercare. To ensure that actions we are taking best meet the needs of the people we serve, we regularly conduct internal and external audits to make sure that we are measuring up to our own standards and priorities. This is why we welcomed the 2022 findings of the Office of the Auditor General of Canada's audit of addictions prevention and recovery services for the period of August 1st, 2016 to July 31st, 2021. The findings from the audit help us understand where our programs are on track and where we need to improve outcomes for residents experiencing addictions.

Mr. Speaker, we accepted all seven recommendations by the Office of the Auditor General. The audit speaks to the importance of aftercare, cultural safety, access to services, coordination of services, and client outcomes. Later today, I will be tabling the Addictions Prevention and Recovery Services Work Plan that sets out concrete actions that we will be taking in response to the audit. The work plan identifies five areas of improvement to address the seven recommendations from the Office of the Auditor General. These include

• increasing our understanding of residents' self-determined mental wellness and addictions recovery needs to inform program planning and priority setting;
• enhancing partnerships with Indigenous governments and communities to ensure a continuum of services that better meets the addictions needs of residents; improving access to culturally safe addiction prevention and recovery services;
• increasing consistency in coordination of addictions services and aftercare; and
• enhancing the ability to track community-identified and service user-identified outcomes.

Mr. Speaker, many initiatives were already implemented, or work was underway during the time the audit was taking place. Examples include the establishment of the cultural safety and anti-racism unit that will ensure cultural safety is represented in all policies, programs, and documents. Another is the transformation of the addictions and recovery system by ensuring residents and their families have access to the right level of care when and where they need it. This model of care uses a recovery-oriented approach to provide same day access to flexible mental wellness and addictions recovery services. The community counselling program eliminated wait lists for counselling services. Other examples of work aligned with the audit recommendations include the

• establishment of an Indigenous advisory body;
• establishment of the peer support and addictions recovery and aftercare funds;
• development of a territorial approach to managed alcohol;
• establishment of the mental wellness and addictions recovery advisory group; and
• creation of Indigenous patient advocate positions and an Office of Client Experience.

Work is also underway to develop a territorial model for medical detox and the establishment of transitional housing for addiction recovery.

Mr. Speaker, we will be working closely with Indigenous and community partners, as well as health and social services advisory bodies to refine and implement approaches to advance change in the addictions and recovery services system.

Mr. Speaker, I understand the devastating impacts addictions have on families and communities across this territory. The work plan outlines how and what we will be doing to provide safe and effective services as well as meaningful tools to help struggling families and individuals. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Ministers' statements. Honourable Premier.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to announce today the launch of a new funding portal on the Government of the Northwest Territories website that will make it easier for territorial residents, businesses, non-profits, non-governmental organizations, and others, to find information and access funding opportunities offered by the Government of the Northwest Territories. This initiative also advances our government's commitment to open government by making government information accessible in a way that is responsive to the needs and expectations of NWT residents.

Mr. Speaker, the government's job is to help improve the lives of the people we serve. We must not only accomplish our broader mandate objectives but also make smaller meaningful improvements along the way. These actions are the building blocks to accomplishing our broader priorities and this funding portal represents one of these smaller but significant achievements.

Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories provides over 120 unique funding programs to residents, delivered by nine departments and agencies across the government. It is understandable that sometimes residents have difficulty finding these programs as the information, while provided online, is located on various government websites. This comprehensive new funding portal brings all these programs together in one online location. Residents can filter through based on who they are and what kind of funding they are looking for. The launch of this portal provides citizens with a clear and simple path to accessing the monetary support they need.

Mr. Speaker, whether you are a small business owner looking to grow, a non-profit organization seeking support, or an individual who needs financial assistance, this new feature on our main GNWT website allows you to find the resources and supports you need to succeed.

It also represents equitable access to government funding, Mr. Speaker. Some residents of the Northwest Territories are less familiar with today's online world, and many struggle to navigate websites to find what they need. This small improvement means that more residents, regardless of their comfort level with technology, can more easily understand and access funding and support available to them. The launch of this portal is a direct response to what I have heard from residents, businesses, and non-government organizations across the territory. It demonstrates our commitment to empowering residents and providing the resources they need to thrive. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Honourable Premier. Ministers' statements. Members' statements. Member for Great Slave.

Drin Gwiinzii, Mr. Speaker. February is Indigenous Languages Month in Canada, and once again the Northwest Territories proves unique in that we are the only political region in Canada which recognizes 11 official languages, nine of which are Indigenous. Indigenous Languages Month is an opportunity to celebrate the NWT's unique culture and heritage, once again emphasizing how important it is that we preserve and revitalize Indigenous languages. We will achieve this through their everyday use, in-depth educational program, and new technology such as apps, ensuring these languages survive for generations to come.

It was with this in mind, Mr. Speaker, that in the last sitting I introduced a Private Member's bill to change the name of my riding Great Slave. It was my intent to identify a name more representative of the Indigenous people of the Yellowknife area and their culture.

When I began speaking with people on this topic, to gauge residents' thoughts and opinions, it soon became apparent to me that many people had strong feelings about a rename. Some were not open to change and felt the name should stay Great Slave. Some wanted the change but objected to the name that I had proposed, which was just a placeholder, Mr. Speaker. And others had wonderful ideas about how the name should be chosen and what significance should be looked at. Geographical names were proposed as were some that represented the wildlife and the flora of the NWT.

Ultimately, Mr. Speaker, I have decided not to move forward with my bill in this Assembly. I want to ensure that the proper time and consideration is given to this important decision - consideration that is beyond what one MLA can do and particularly one that is not Indigenous. It is my hope, Mr. Speaker, that the 20th Assembly will take a good look at the names of all the ridings in Yellowknife, as well as those outside, and determine a new methodology for renaming them that incorporates local traditional knowledge and has the approval of the Indigenous governments.

Mr. Speaker, before settlers arrived, Indigenous people had names for the different areas in this region that we call Yellowknife. It is respectful and honourable to have them lead the discussions when renaming the ridings of the Legislative Assembly.

I just want to say big thank you and mashi cho to all of our interpreters and translators who have to deal with me speaking a mile a minute. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Great Slave. Members' statements. Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Monsieur le President. On February 15th, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission ("CRTC") announced that it would not review Cabin Radio's application to take its programming on air with a new FM radio station. There are a number of problems with this decision, and it needs to be reversed.

First, while I respect the authority of this quasi-judicial regulator, I am concerned with the lack of NWT representation on this body. The legislation establishing the CRTC states that federal cabinet appoints up to 13 members. The only requirements are that an individual must be a Canadian citizen, ordinarily resident in Canada, and not have any direct role or interest in the telecommunications sector. If you look at the CRTC website, there are now eight members and one apparent vacancy on the board, with geographic representation from five regions where the northern territories are lumped in with adjacent provinces.

For the first time ever, a northern resident, a Yukon First Nation citizen, was appointed in August 2019. This is a good thing but why is the NWT lumped in with Alberta in terms of representation on the CRTC?

That BC and Yukon commissioner was also one of the two dissenting opinions on the Cabin Radio decision. I want to quote a few points from her dissenting opinion: "There was not enough evidence on the record to show me that Yellowknife cannot sustain a second commercial radio station," and "the Commission may wish to consider a departure from its general practice not to accept further applications for a commercial radio station to serve the Yellowknife market for two years from the date of the decision."

Another dissenting opinion had the following to say, Mr. Speaker. "The existing commercial radio stations in Yellowknife cannot bar competition indefinitely by citing unprofitability. Diversity of voices should be supported as much in a somewhat remote northern community as elsewhere in Canada. Contrary to the decision, I believe publishing the applications received and proceeding to a hearing is the appropriate and timely response. The alternative is further delay."

While I personally disagree with the CRTC decision, the public wants to know if Cabinet is doing anything about this situation. I think we also need a more systemic fix to ensure that the NWT's interests are known and understood by the CRTC through its membership. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Frame Lake. Members' statements. Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Members' statements. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to start off by wishing my daughter, and the Minister of education's sister, Chelsea, a Happy Birthday today. Hopefully her co-workers are spoiling her, in Calgary.

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to announce that the 41st K'amba Carnival is on and runs from Thursday, March 2nd through to Sunday, March 5th. It is an event that brings friends, family, and tourists together and is a great way to usher in the start of soon-to-be spring weather.

Mr. Speaker, to pull this event off requires ingenuity, dedication, and countless hours by a dedicated community and group of volunteers. The impact K'amba Carnival has on the K'atlodeeche First Nation spills over into the town of Hay River, where it generates much excitement. The people of K'atlodeeche First Nation and Hay River look forward to this event as not only great entertainment and fun for all but the recognition that spring and warmer weather is just around the corner.

Mr. Speaker, this year's event will start on Thursday with a fire feeding ceremony at the Chief Lamalice Complex, followed by a children's talent show, crowning of the K'amba Carnival Queen, Prince, and Princess. Friday evening will see youth outdoor events, a $6,000 bingo, and the opening of registration for the dog races. Saturday will start with a pancake breakfast, followed by dog races, hand games, adult outdoor games, all capped off with an adult talent show in the evening. The canteen will be open all day and let's hope they have bannock burgers which are a “must try”. Sunday, being the final day of the event, will again start with a pancake breakfast, more hand games, dog races, adult outdoor games, a poker derby, and hopefully more bannock burgers.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of myself, the MLA for Hay River North, and all Hay River residents, I would like to send a big shout out to Diane Tourangeau, who is working many hours to pull this event together, and to the K'atlodeeche First Nation for hosting it, the K'amba Carnival Committee for making it happen, and the many sponsors and volunteers that are bringing this 41st K'amba Carnival annual event to life.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage all of you here to skip out on Friday's session, as I may very well just do that, and take a trip to the K'atlodeeche First Nation and Hay River this weekend and enjoy some of the festivities taking place, along with the bannock burgers. Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Members' statements. Member for Monfwi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it is a mandate item of the Government of the Northwest Territories to increase affordable housing, especially for vulnerable people. I have said in this House many times how the communities in the Tlicho regions are in a housing crisis. Behchoko, the largest Dene community in the NWT, does not have enough homes to shelter its people.

Mr. Speaker, when youth need a safe place to live so they can go to school, the GNWT should remove all barriers in their way. There should be extra supports and services to assist youth. We should not be forcing youth to navigate government programs just to be sheltered in a safe space. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, this is not happening for constituents in my riding, for a young adult in my riding, and this applies to a lot of others who find themselves in these situations.

Mr. Speaker, a young adult that I am talking about, who was raised in the child welfare system, who is facing homelessness but has found safe housing in their home community, who is trying to complete high school education, who is struggling to navigate government system to access financial support to pay for housing and other expenses. Mr. Speaker, the GNWT says they are not eligible for housing assistance because they are not sleeping in a room.

This is exactly the problem, Mr. Speaker. Our communities are in a housing crisis. There is nowhere to house people. They are forced to sleep on couches and then they have to fight with government programs and services to give them the financial help they need to get out of this situation. This is unacceptable treatment of our vulnerable population. I will have questions for the Minister of education. Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Members' statements. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the federal government's universal child care goal is to build a Canada-wide community-based system of quality care. This is good news. But unfortunately this good news has had a rocky shotgun start here in the Northwest Territories. While the foundation for $10-a-day child care takes shape, some struggles we are seeing aren't new to this funding model.

The federal government's own explicit model in this new Canada-wide social program is Quebec who, in 1997, built an affordable child care system. This system has led to large increases in birth-giver employment and prominent economists say that child care reforms will, over time, pay for themselves in increase government revenues and lower benefit costs.

Mr. Speaker, Quebec's program saw its own growing pains and, luckily, the NWT can learn from their experience. The Institute for Research on Public Policy published four recommendations to address the anticipated growing pains of universal child care . The recommendations called for increased early childhood educator wages, being prepared to inject more funding as no one has addressed whether the federal commitment will actually achieve its goals, and to close the maternity and parental gap benefits. But ultimately, they concluded Quebec tried to do too much too fast and should have focused first on rapidly expanding capacity.

Mr. Speaker, the GNWT's current early childhood infrastructure fund has a $1 million budget for projects that preserve, expand, or create new centre-based child care infrastructure in NWT communities. Most recently, the Yellowknife Daycare Association built a new facility that serves 104 children. In 2018, this build costs roughly $4 million. The Yellowknife Daycare Association currently has over 400 children on their waitlist. Pair this with ECE's desire to create 300 new child care spaces NWT-wide, and we know this fund will not go far enough to address the needs of our territory.

Mr. Speaker, you don't need to look far here in Yellowknife to find an entrepreneur, healthcare worker, teacher, or public servant looking for child care to meet a looming return to work deadline without any nibbles of potential open spaces. To see this initiative's success, the GNWT needs to be ready to inject more funding in operations and infrastructure through substantial capital grants or loan guarantees to accelerate a coordinated sector expansion.

Working toward universal child care is a good news story, Mr. Speaker. But without learning from Quebec's growing pains, we are already walking in their footsteps, and I worry we are not properly preparing ourselves for a successful next mile. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Members' statements. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I ask a lot of questions of the Department of Lands, not as many as the Minister asked in the last Assembly, but that's because I have a long dream list for the Department of Lands.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to make some changes to our leases. Ideally, I'd like people who lived in their lease for decades of their life to be able to own that home, to have the certainty that that land can be passed on to their children and they won't have to, you know, have the remediation requirement that comes at the end of a lease over their head.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to see us sort out pricing on leases, to make sure there is fairness there. I'd like to sort out some sort of rights-based option for our hunters and trappers out on the land so that they're not under the same lease and in the same conversation as some sort of recreational user. Mr. Speaker, I would like to finally get rid of this having two types of land. And I know the Minister would like to do many of these things and, in fact, they are dependent on two pieces of work largely: The Public Land Act coming into force and the Land Lease-only policy being reviewed.

This Minister had big dreams, I would say, at the beginning of the Assembly of getting that Land Lease-only policy in force within two years, and then COVID hit and it kind of became hopefully at the end of this Assembly. And when I asked him last session, it was more I hope to get a timeline back to you when we will complete this work. So my hope is that he's gone back, he's got a hard timeline, and he will get that work done in the life of this Assembly, similarly for the Land Lease-only policy.

Mr. Speaker, there's a lot of little changes I would like to see. I'd like to see a cabin lottery. That's one of those other potential things that may happen just in the life of this Assembly. Many of my constituents have complained they've reached the maximum amount of outbuildings on their property so they can't build a greenhouse. I think that's completely at odds with our goal of food security. Many have expressed a desire to run Airbnbs out of their leases. That's presently not allowed. I think that would be a great business model in all of our communities to allow some sort of commercial interest in our leases, or at the very least they'd legally be allowed to live in their houses. I'll have questions for the Minister of Lands about whether we're actually going to complete any of this Public Land Act work or Land Lease-only policy work. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Members' statements. Member for Nahendeh.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to wish you a belated Happy Birthday yesterday. I heard you turned 29 so Happy Birthday.

Today I'd like rise in the House to speak about the Dene drums in the Gahnihthah film that got selected to be part of the Yellowknife International Film Festival, the Swedish International Film Festival, the Berlin Short Film Festival, Dawson City International Short Film Festival, Brooklyn Film Festival, Los Angeles Skins Film Festival, LA Documentary Film Festival and the Skabmagovat Indigenous Film Festival in Finland.

The film is a short documentary about a group of Liidlii Kue Dene that go into the Nahanni National Park to learn the Dene drum songs from the Deh Cho region of Denendeh, Northwest Territories. The short documentary was shot before the pandemic was edited during the pandemic and is now screening across the world.

Mr. Speaker, the director Jonathan Antoine studied cinematography at Capilano University in Vancouver. At the end of the program, he took another cinematography certification program and has been working ever since. Jonathan's first short documentary called "Trapline" got selected to the

LA Skins Film Festival located in Los Angeles, which is one of the best Indigenous film festivals in the United States.

Jonathan went back home to Liidlii Kue to make documentaries and short films about his people and his family. Jonathan made the Dene Drum Songs for the love of the Dene drum that is very special to the people of the Dene. The drum represents the heartbeat of the human spirit. The Dene are very connected to the land and to Mother Earth. This documentary is about the connection to the drum.

Jonathan Antoine would like to thank his mom, his dad, his brother and sisters, his nieces and nephews, his friends, and the people of Deh Cho for encouraging him to make films.

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to announce that it was screened at the 4th Annual Liidlii Kue Film Festival this past weekend at the rec centre in Fort Simpson. I have been advised that this event was well attended.

Mr. Speaker, I have a list of people that were part of the production of this documentary, and I will ask it to be deemed as read. Mashi cho, Mr. Speaker.

Dene Drum Songs in Gahnihthah

• Director: Jonathan Antoine
• Producer: Olinto Beaulieu Liidlii Kue First Nation
• Cast: Angus Ekenele, Olinto Beaulieu, Bobby Cazon, Skylar Deneyoua, Nolan Mendo, Brandon "Buttons" Norwegian, and Edward Villeneuve
• Info: Canada, 2021, 11:28 min Shooting
• Format: Digital Festival
• Year: 2023
• Category: Short Documentary
• Email: [email protected]

Thank you, Member for Nahendeh. Members' statements. Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. With the family's permission, I am honoured to be able to read the eulogy of a constituent of mine, Chief James Bennet Firth, who passed away on February 14th, 2023.

Chief James Bennet Firth was born in Aklavik on August 15th, 1951, to his beloved parents James Bennet (Ben) and Joanne Firth. James was the eldest son born to them and had eight siblings, five of whom he is survived by.

The first few years of his life he spent out on the land at Dthaa Tee with his family. They moved to town when his dad was hired at the local power plant. James was ten years old and remembers this as a time when his mother passed away. Being one of the oldest, he helped and cared for his younger siblings. James recalled how the community helped the family with cooking and even remember getting new shoes. James enjoyed packages from his godmother Elizabeth Kunnizzi as she knew what his favourites were. And he fondly remembers Jijii Alfred would come to check on them and at times camped.

He attended Peter Warren Dease School in Fort McPherson and Sir Alexander MacKenzie school in Inuvik where he graduated from high school. He then went on to ABTC in Fort Smith, NT, training in electronics. James continued training with CN in Edmonton, Alberta, who hired him and then he moved to Inuvik for a 40-year career with what is now called Northwestel. Growing up with sports and school, curling was one he continued for many years, enjoying many bonspiels.

While living in Inuvik, James met Verna Hansen in 1972, and they were married in 1976. Together they had two children, Bradley and Jacqueline. James and Verna would have eight grandchildren, each of whom were his pride and joy.

James was elected chief of the Inuvik native band and held that position for 13 years. He took good care of his people, both the young and the elderly. He would share his harvests with people, and that practice continues on through his son Bradley and his grandchildren.

James was a huge part of the negotiations of the Gwich'in Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement in 1992. Together with the negotiation team, they settled one of the largest land claim agreements in Canada. He also served as vice-president of the Gwich'in Tribal Council and was appointed to numerous boards, such as the Gwich'in Development Corporation Renewable Resource Board and the Denendeh Investment Incorporated.

James was taught by many elders. William Vittrekwa, Uncles Willie Firth, Johnny D. Charlie, John Edward Snowshoe, and Bea Jerome, and his grandmother Mops, who all took time to teach him skills for harvesting and surviving on the land. While living in Inuvik, he became very close to the late Emma Dick and her son Richard. He learned from them how to go whaling and Emma called him the Gwichovaluit. Last summer he made his last trip whaling with his grandsons Jared and William. He made sure Verna always had muktuk to share at Midway Lake Music Festival.

James used his skill to mentor many young people by taking them out on the land or giving them a camp to use for their harvesting. His two grandsons were taken out on the trapline since they were very young. Both were recognized with Youth Trapper of the Year awards. His son Bradley now carries the same passion and love for trapping and harvesting from the land.

Because of his upbringing and the love for the land, James made sure no one went without. He shared his harvest. He helped many who needed extra help. And as one elder said of James, he shared and provided us food and gave our boys employment to help others. James travelled up the Peel River in the fall for many years to go moose hunting with elders such as the late Amos Francis and Isaac Kunnizzi and everyone's uncle, Abe Stewart. Their harvest was always shared with the community. James took a lot of young people under his wing by providing them with employment with the business he built. Others he gave the opportunity to go out on the land and learn those skills, and it didn't matter whether they were Inuvialuit or Gwich'in. Also mentioned something that he said is that I hate that I'm leaving the youth with them being so lost. They don't even know where they come from anymore. I wish I could have been able to help more.

He was known for not giving up on anyone, especially those struggling with addiction. It's fitting that James became chief seven generations later after his late great grandfather Vishriinintsi Tyi who was chief of the at the Teetl'it Gwich'in.

Chief James Bennet Firth was a true Dinjii Zhuu, trapper, hunter, fisherman, and whaler who respected the land, animals he harvested, and shared as his people always have done. On Thanksgiving Day, he had a talk with his children and his grandchildren as his illness progressed. He also sat down with his siblings and gave each of them a job he wanted done for him. He spoke to them about the importance of life and most importantly how strong our people are. He encouraged them to remain together, stay strong, and keep moving forward as the young children are following behind us. James final words: I am grateful for my family. He will be remembered for many years to come, and we as family will continue his life legacy. God bless.

Thank you, Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and community and the community of Fort McPherson as well at this time. Mahsi.

Members' statements. Returns to oral questions. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Acknowledgements. Oral questions.

Sorry.

No problem. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes.

I needed a moment, Mr. Speaker, after that. I'd like to recognize my husband who is here with us today; he's travelled down. So my husband, Jozef Carnogursky. Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Acknowledgements. Oral questions. Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in June 2021, I questioned the Minister of ECE about the state of JBT School in Fort Smith. Today I am going to carry on with that questioning. At the time, the Minister stated that the last time a technical assessment was done to JBT was in 2005, almost 20 years ago.

Can the Minister tell us if a technical assessment of JBT was done in the last two years or if one is planned to be done soon? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The last technical status evaluation was 2005. These evaluations are typically done when work is planned to be done on a building. However, there was a building condition assessment completed on JBT by the Department of Infrastructure in August of 2022. These assessments are not as in depth as the technical status evaluation, but they do provide an overall assessment of the building. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, in June 2021, the Minister said that the Department of Infrastructure has a database that produces a rating for schools, and JBT was rated 0.52. The Minister said that that was an "okay" rating.

Can the Minister tell us if JBT's rating has changed since then and to please explain the process for how ratings for schools are actually produced? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So that would be the facility condition index rating. And that has increased from .52, I believe the Member said, to .61, which is just a function of its age. This is determined by a database which is managed by the Department of Infrastructure and includes factors in outstanding maintenance required for individual buildings. So if the building needs a lot of work, it will have a higher number. Once that work is done, it could lower the number. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell us, based on current capital needs assessment figures, when does ECE anticipate that JBT School is expected to be replaced? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So earlier in her statement the Member mentioned that back in I believe it was 2002 it was thought that there would need to be a replacement sometime around 2015 or 2020, something like that. And clearly we haven't needed that yet. So it's hard for me to put numbers out there, dates out there, when obviously things can change. Right now, based on the information we have, we're looking at 2035. But that could come a lot sooner; it could take longer. You know, Fort Smith has Aurora College with a trades school, and I think that expertise in trades really has helped those buildings be maintained in excellent condition for many, many years. So I hear it all the time that the Department of Infrastructure does a good job maintaining schools, at least in the regional centres, and I believe that the longevity is a function of that maintenance. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Thebacha.

Mr. Speaker, of the 49 schools across the NWT, there have been several new school replacements built in multiple communities where their schools are actually younger in age than JBT in Fort Smith. For example, in Yellowknife, the former JH Sissons School was only 45 years old when it was demolished and replaced with a brand new school just a couple years ago. And I'm happy for them. And that school was 20 years younger than JBT.

Can the Minister explain what is the necessary criteria to replace a school when the community wants one as soon as possible? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So we rely on the Department of Infrastructure and their technical assessments of schools. As well, we have our schools' capital planning -- sorry, capital standards and criteria document to guide capital planning and space requirements. We look at the need for school infrastructure projects, including a new construction, renovations, and upgrading of facilities and equipment. Criteria are used to assess and determine needs while standards describe the amount of space considered adequate to meet those needs. So there's a couple different elements we need to look at the actual building, the physical building, as well as the rates of utilization, how many students are using the facilities. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, safety of children while taking student bussing transportation is important to all of us and more so, you know, when it comes to the smaller children who during the cold winter months, you know, maybe missed their bus stop and not quite sure where they are.

So will the Minister of ECE confirm who is responsible for developing student bussing policies? Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Education Act lays out the various responsibilities of the department as well as education, the DECs and DEAs. And so it would be the DEAs who are responsible for developing their own bussing policies however there's always supports available from the regional body or from ECE if it is needed. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, sometimes the policies, at least some I've looked at, they're very vague and, you know, they may just be a couple of lines.

So will the Minister confirm if a student bussing policy lays out responsibilities of the DEA, bussing contractors, students, and parents or caregivers, and the GNWT as well? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A bussing policy can touch on many of those things. It doesn't necessarily have to have all of those things. There are different ways that education bodies go about providing bussing. So sometimes there is a contractor, sometimes the bus is owned by the education body, so it really depends on the situation. But I'm sure there's best practices that we would like all the DEAs to follow. And, again, the department's always happy to provide any sort of assistance when DEAs want to develop these policies. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, will the Minister confirm who is ultimately responsible for the safety of those persons using student bussing? Is it the department, the DEA, or the bussing contractor? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Safety is everybody's responsibility. And so the bussing -- depending on how things are structured, you know, the bussing contractor could be responsible for the safe operation of the bus, the technical status of the bus. Education bodies are responsible for developing the policies. But ultimately the department is responsible for ensuring that education bodies are developing policies in accordance with the legislation. So ultimately the GNWT is responsible. Whether or not the Act lays out a framework that makes that easy for us to be responsible and puts the authorities in the right places is a different conversation. But that is the situation. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Final supplementary. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, will the Minister confirm that he will have his department ensure that all DEAs have in place a comprehensive student bussing policy that sets out the rules and responsibilities for the DEA, bussing contractor, students, parents or caregivers, and any other, you know, people or things that would be included in there? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish I could say that I would ensure that DEAs have all the appropriate policies in place but my authority doesn't allow me to dictate to DEAs which policies they should have in place. We're happy to work with DEAs and encourage them to develop policies. If a DEA doesn't have a bussing policy, we can look at other bussing policies and provide those as templates, we can outline which policies DEAs should have, but ultimately it is up to the DEA. I know that in Hay River the DEA is working on improving their bus policy so at least in the Member's constituency that work, from what I understand, is well underway. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Monfwi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we know that children who have grown up in the child welfare system are more at risk of being homeless, homeless than others. The high numbers of Indigenous children and youth in care relates to the high number of Indigenous youth in the NWT seeking homes, housing.

Can the Minister describe when the department is dealing with young adults what types of exceptions are considered to support that person? Does the department recognize the need for flexibility and compassion when providing supports to youth? Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I hope that we would always be a compassionate government. Sometimes our own policies and procedures get in the way of that and recognizing that we are working to change the income assistance program so that it can be more compassionate so it is not so rigid. However, as it currently stands, the income assistance program is laid out in regulations and so it is legislated so there is minimal flexibility in many instances. However, when we can be flexible, we are. And I've seen many instances of that happening. Thank you.

I would not have said compassion if I didn't have a reason.

Mr. Speaker, we need to ensure our residents have timely access to government supports as they struggle with many challenges. Completing unnecessary paperwork creates difficulty for accessibility. Can the Minister advise if there can be advanced payment to shelter and utility support to youth who are looking for support? Thank you.

Thank you. So utility payments are paid to utility providers upon receipt of an invoice. So I don't think there would be advanced payments made without that invoice. But if someone needs income assistance, they can go apply for income assistance and then they receive it pretty quickly. There's not generally a big period where people are waiting. So I'm not sure what the Member is referring to in advance of what; receiving support in advance of what? Thank you.

Advance payment to shelters and utilities to people. That's what I'm talking about. To where these young people are staying at, living at, and if it can be part of their income assistance instead of the policy that's in place. That's what I was referring to.

So, Mr. Speaker, couch surfing is also homelessness. What support does the department of ECE provide to help young adults break free of homelessness? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So just speaking to the income assistance program, because ECE does much more for young adults than just the income assistance program, ECE will pay for eligible clients' accommodations. So pay really the full cost of rent, the full cost of utilities to someone who needs that service. So that is the assistance that we provide with people who are seeking shelter. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Monfwi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It was almost four years ago that this House passed the Public Land Act, a landmark piece of our post-devolution work that truly gave a made-in-the-North approach to how we were going to deal with land. And so my question for the Minister of Lands is as we approach that four-year mark, when are we going to bring that piece of legislation into force? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Minister responsible for Lands.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, when we started the process, we had to work with IGC in that process there. So we're hoping to have it done by the end of this Assembly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was hoping the Minister could give us -- I'm happy, I really want to see the Public Land Act put into force and I know that requires phase one of the regulations. I was hoping the Minister could just update this House a little bit more about what exactly will be brought into force, hopefully by the end of this Assembly, to do that and what has now been put into another Assembly for the rest of the regulations? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we're working on trying to get all the regulations done. There's been a process working with IGC, the secretariat as well, and Indigenous governments. We're working with them. In regards to where we are, we are working on I think the last part of it. Again, it's -- we're trying to do it all and then we're going to take it to the drafting process and that, get it done there. So to give them -- there's nine regulations there we're working on. We got eight done, and we're working on that. So I will have to get back to the Member on the exact details and timelines on when we expect everything done. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I hope all nine of those regs are done by the end of this Assembly. I think that would be a true step in getting the Department of Lands to start some of their other work.

First amongst that is the Land Lease-only policy, Mr. Speaker. I know the department has gone out and done a review on the Land Lease-only policy. I'm wondering if the Minister could update this House on when he expects to see changes to that policy. Thank you.

Short, Mr. Speaker, we're hoping to have it -- something here in the House by the end of this session. Not this Assembly but the end of this session. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think first in that policy, I and I believe the Minister shares, that people living in communities who've been in a lease for many years would be given the option to own their homes in fee simple. Is that something we can expect to see from the changes to the land lease-only policy, Mr. Speaker?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don't want to, you know, wreck the surprise and say that. But this is part of the conversations that we're having. Again, we have to recognize we have 33 different communities, different organizations like designated authorities, hamlets, and tax-based communities. So we have to look at those as we move forward. So we may or may not be able to do that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Monsieur le President. My questions are for the Minister of Finance who seems to have the reins when it comes to telecommunications for this government.

The Minister has probably had ample time to review the CRTC decision on Cabin Radio. Can the Minister tell us whether Cabinet has taken a position on the CRTC decision? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Frame Lake. Minister responsible for Finance.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, to be clear, I do not have any reins when it comes to telecommunications. There's a little thing called a constitution and the jurisdiction over this is exclusively with the federal government. That said, Mr. Speaker, under the Department of Finance, we do have the Office of the Chief Information Officer. The OCIO does represent us with respect to northern interests on internet broadband. And we were able to get a bit of information and some support with respect to telecommunications radio -- or rather with radio broadcasting. So in that regard, while this isn't going to be a Cabinet position, and again very clearly do not have that constitutional authority, I have indicated, and I will be writing a letter outlining the position -- a general position of support to the FM license application that's been put forward. Thank you.

Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister for that excellent explanation. I said in my statement that while I respect the authority of the CRTC, I disagree with their decision in this case. Can the Minister tell us whether Cabinet is going to do anything about this CRTC decision, and if so, what? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, I don't really have any authority and don't have the authority constitutionally to do anything per se. That said, Mr. Speaker, having the opportunity to raise the issue publicly, as the Member's doing here, probably is one of the strongest things we can do to get all of the public aware, and they can make their own choices and decisions and participate as members of the public vis-a-vie the federal government in terms of raising the voices from the North. As I've indicated, we certainly can write in general with respect to this decision, keeping in mind that it is a decision by an administrative body and that does put some obligation to be respectful, given that we are, again, also a level of government that is not directly responsible. But having this conversation here, again, Mr. Speaker, there's a lot that members of the public may want to do. Thank you.

Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister for that. I spoke on the lack of NWT representation on the CRTC. There's an Alberta-NWT commissioner in name only. The commission's enabling legislation provides for a board of up to 13 members. There are currently nine, one vacancy.

Can the Minister tell us what action, if any, has this Cabinet taken about nominating individuals or changing the composition or appointment requirements for the CRTC? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, Mr. Speaker, I am also aware of the appointments to the CRTC insofar as they are known on the internet. The federal government does not have an obligation to come to me with respect to their decisions over who they appoint. They are appointments done by the Canadian heritage minister, federal Canadian heritage minister so, again, they're five-year appointments. It may well be that it's an opportunity to put forward some names if people in the Northwest Territories are interested in this area. I would certainly be interested in hearing from them or hearing about them. But, again, it's an appointment made by a federal minister. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Monsieur le President. Glad that the Minister offered a free advertisement there for people interested in the CRTC and that Cabinet's willing to maybe even nominate some people. That's great.

So when this subject was last raised in this House a couple weeks ago, the Minister committed to write a letter to, quote, "comment upon or to express some concern around this decision," end of quote. So I think the Minister said that she hasn't written the letter but can the Minister actually confirm that she does intend to write this letter, and will she commit to table it in the House before we break on March 9th? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the department and I do have a draft letter that we are working on. It will be ready I think by the end of today or tomorrow. I am mindful again that this is a federal adjudicative body that has made an adjudicative decision whether or not we may now agree with it. And so in my role, I do want to be conscious of what I comment upon and how I do so. When I made that determination, I'd certainly be, if it's appropriate, happy to table it or at the very least to share it with Members confidentially. But, again, this is a good opportunity to let members of the public more broadly know that they certainly can also lend their voices if they may choose to do so, depending upon how they feel about the matter. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment in regards to the early childhood infrastructure fund. Currently the fund is set at $1 million every year, and I'm wondering if there is a plan to increase this fund given ECE's current child care goals? Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. No one would like to see this fund increased more than myself. I could take a win right now but I don't have a million dollars in my back pocket. The budget is, you know, it's before committee right now. And so the Member is aware what the budget for this upcoming year is, and it will be $1 million. In the future, I'm sure the budget will increase but it is not in the immediate future. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, during a March 2022 public hearing with the Standing Committee on Social Development, the Minister and staff stated that increases to the fund would be made in, quote, "considerations for project going forward based on need." So I'm wondering if the fund isn't intended to increase, how potentially would the Minister be able to accomplish this based on need, and what would be used as determinants of need? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And this is one avenue that organizations can pursue to get new child care infrastructure or assist with that. Indigenous governments also have their own child care agreements with the federal government and so there could be funds through there. The early childhood infrastructure fund is proposal-based and so "proposals" very widely in terms of what they're proposing, the cost of what they're proposing. But what the fund is intended to do is support more spaces. So adding spaces to existing programs or creating new spaces.

We looked at communities where there is established demands, such as Yellowknife. We also look at communities with no child care to ensure that there is equitable access. The proposals need to demonstrate a need for the early learning and child care in their community. There must also be a plan for the delivery of a licensed program once it becomes operational. It's not just we want a building; we also -- the department also needs to see a plan for once that building is in use. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, based on the high demand of child care in some communities, I'm wondering if this fund, if it is able to provide full funding to some programs based on what is left in the pot or if the department of education has a maximum of what they're prepared to provide to child care centres? Thank you.

Sorry, Mr. Speaker. I might have missed the question, but we have $1 million in the fund, and based on the programs that apply that's how we make a determination. So sometimes there may only be a few programs that actually qualify based on the proposal. And so those programs, as we've seen in the past, can get some significant amounts of funding. And I apologize if I missed the Member's statement. I will say that we have also overspent. I believe we spent $1.28 million last year on this because there was a number of good proposals, and there was a demonstrated need that we wanted to support. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my previous question was in regards to whether or not the fund can fund an entire project or if it can only fund a portion of a project. But my next question -- and if the Minister is able to answer that, great. And the reason that I ask this is that in my statement I also talked about the Yellowknife Daycare Association who paid just over $4 million before the pandemic, before inflation, before the high cost -- higher cost of building in the Northwest Territories for 104 spaces. If the goal of ECE is to create 300 new spaces, the $1 million absolutely won't cut it. And I appreciate the Minister acknowledging that he too would like to see an increase in this fund. And so my concern is that if for some communities who don't have the ability to go out and do some own source revenues, if daycare centres are kind of being dictated what their increases can be, there's some concern about how they're going to turn around and pay for a potentially really high cost of building infrastructure spaces. And so I'm wondering if the GNWT is expecting to plan for some -- or some infrastructure increases within the child care agreement through the federal government going forward to address this huge infrastructure deficit and this need in the territory? Thank you.

Thank you. So every time we speak to the federal government, we talk about the cost of infrastructure in the Northwest Territories. I think that we're all aware of the cost but when we speak to federal officials and politicians, it's clear that they're often taken aback by the cost. So we do our best at the officials level, at the political level, to hammer home, you know, the reality of the cost in the North and the changes we've seen over the past few years. We've seen costs double, triple, and even more than that. So we are working with the feds on this. We are doing our best to look at what we have internally and how we can best use that and at the same time looking for additional resources from the federal government. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Written questions. Returns to written questions. Mr. Clerk.

Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Returns to written questions. Replies to the Commissioner's address. Petitions. Reports of committees on the review of bills. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, your committee would like to report on its consideration of Bill 65, Builders' Lien Act.

Bill 65 received second reading in the Legislative Assembly on November 3rd, 2022 and was referred to the Standing Committee on Social Development for review.

On January 18th, 2023, the committee held a public hearing with the Minister of Justice and expressed concerns with the bill, including the level of consultation completed prior to introduction of the bill. Following the public hearing, the Government House Leader requested that committee seek an extension on the review period for Bill 65.

Therefore, Mr. Speaker, in accordance with Rule 8.3(2) of the rules of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Great Slave, that the review period for Bill 65, Builders' Lien Act, be extended by 120 days -- sorry, Mr. Speaker, thank you very much.

I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, that the review period for Bill 65, Builders' Lien Act, be extended by 120 days. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. The motion is in order. To the motion?

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Any abstentions? Motion is carried.

---Carried

Reports of committees on the review of bills. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Committee would like to report on its consideration on Bill 66, An Act to Amend the Property Assessment and Taxation Act, as ready for consideration in Committee of the Whole. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Reports of committees on the review of bills. Reports of standing and special committees. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, your Standing Committee on Social Development is pleased to provide its interim report on Bill 65, Builders' Lien Act, and commends it to the House.

Introduction

Bill 65, Builders' Lien Act, was referred to the Standing Committee on Social Development for review on November 3rd, 2022. A plain language summary for Bill 65 was tabled on the same day. The sponsoring department for Bill 65 is the Department of Justice. During committee's review and public hearing on Bill 65, inquiries focused on applying the Builders' Lien Act to the Government of the Northwest Territories, Indigenous governments, and municipalities, including questions on how provisions related to lands owned by those entities would work. Committee had already raised concerns and considered amendments to the proposed legislation, particularly concerning types of lands subject to the bill and GNWT's engagement with Indigenous and municipal governments in developing the bill.

During the public hearing on January 18th, 2023, committee expressed concerns regarding the level of consultation done by the department prior to the introduction of Bill 65. During the same hearing, the Minister of Justice committed to working with committee, doing further engagement, and improving the bill.

Following the public hearing, the Government House Leader requested that committee seek an extension of the review period under Rule 8.3(2) to allow the Department time to engage in discussions with Indigenous governments, municipalities, and industry about committee's concerns.

The purpose of Bill 65 is to modernize the Northwest Territories lien legislation as it concerns construction. The existing Mechanics Lien Act has not changed substantially in over 100 years. Since then, practices and contractual arrangements in construction and real property development have changed considerably and continue to evolve. At the core of this legislation lies the intent to ensure that contractors and subcontractors are paid for the work and materials they have provided.

The builders' lien legislation would also regulate the way payments are made in the construction industry and protect the participants in a construction project against the failure of others to pay for the work or materials provided. Several Canadian jurisdictions have also updated their builders' lien legislation, including Ontario in 2019, British Columbia in 2020, and Alberta in 2022.

Bill 65 applies to activities involving the creation, repair, or alteration of an "improvement" to land or alteration of the land itself. This includes buildings and structures above and below ground and could consist of culverts, driveways, utility lines, pipelines, excavations and nearly all active modification of the surface and subsurface of the land, including demolition or removal of structures.

Bill 65 updates the law governing construction in the NWT by clarifying who is entitled to claim a lien (including workers), extending timelines to preserve and perfect a claim, allowing annual and phased holdback amounts, requiring a certificate of substantial performance, providing rights to certain information, and including regulation-making provisions.

COMMITTEE CONSIDERATIONS

Committee reviewed Bill 65 and found there is room for changes or clarification in the following areas:

• Ensuring the GNWT is bound.
• Ensuring that Bill 65 treats all governments equally.
• Ensuring that land, resources and self-government agreements prevail where there is conflict or inconsistency.
• Exempting three categories of land from sale and seizure: public lands and lands owned by agencies on behalf of the Government of the Northwest Territories, settlement lands, and municipal lands.
• Considering that lands withdrawn from disposition for the purpose of pending treaties also be exempt from seizure and sale.

In the initial review, committee perceived that GNWT did not give enough consideration to the thought that settlement lands may not be sold. Members found that any sale of lands requires recognition of the land for a heightened sensitivity in the analysis and preparation of legislation.

Committee included Indigenous governments and organizations in the initial review during the engagement period, however, committee did not receive submissions. Members see it as necessary to have communication on Bill 65 going directly to Indigenous governments.

Committee members determined that Indigenous governments and communities as well as industry must have an opportunity to provide input.

Conclusion

Committee decided to wait for the outcome of the department's consultations before taking a final view on any amendments to Bill 65. Committee is willing to work collaboratively with the department and looks forward to considering the results and recommendations from the department's engagement. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Reports of standing and special committees. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker -- I'm talking too fast even for myself.

I move, seconded by Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, that Committee Report 41-19(2), Standing Committee on Social Development Interim Report on the Review of Bill 65, Builders' Lien Act, be received and adopted by the Assembly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. The motion is in order. To the motion?

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Any abstentions? The motion is carried. Bill 65 has been adopted by the Assembly.

---Carried

Reports of standing and special committees. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your Standing Committee on Government Operations is pleased to provide its Report on Bill 66, An Act to Amend the Property Assessment and Taxation Act and commends
it to the House. I have four pages to read today, Mr. Speaker.

Bill 66: An Act to Amend the Property Assessment and Taxation Act received
second reading on November 3rd, 2022 and was referred to the Standing Committee on
Government Operations for review.

Bill 66 makes changes to the Property Assessment and Taxation Act. These changes address known issues specific to the assessment side of the Act, based on suggestions from stakeholders to the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs.

Specifically, Bill 66:

• Streamlines certain administrative and operational process to make things more
  efficient without changing the overall intent of the act;
• Clarifies and modernizes terminology; and
• Ensures that the legislative framework supports a fairer, more effective system.

Bill 66 is the first of two planned pieces of legislation to amend the act. Phase two will
deal with more complex taxation and authorities' issues. Public comments from MACA appear to imply that a second bill will not come forward until the 20th Assembly. Committee is disappointed with this apparent delay as MACA had previously committed to bringing forward a second bill in the life of the 19th Assembly. The act, which has not been comprehensively reviewed since it was first passed in 1988, urgently requires
modernization. Committee hopes MACA will prioritize the second bill and bring it forward
as soon as possible.

Committee considered public input

Committee sought public feedback on Bill 66 with a public notice and targeted engagement letters. Committee received written submissions from:

• The Northwest Territories Association for Communities; and
• The Northwest Territories Metis Nation.

All written submissions are included in an appendix to this report.

Committee also held a public review of Bill 66 on January 23rd, 2023. At that meeting, committee heard remarks from Minister of MACA, asked questions to departmental officials, and received oral comments from the NWTAC and the NWTMN. Committee thanks the NWTAC and the NWTMN for their engagement. Their participation helped committee identify amendments to improve the bill and highlighted other key issues for future consideration. Committee also wishes to highlight a concern raised by the NWT Metis Nation. The NWTMN indicated that they have asked for discussions with the Government of the Northwest Territories to amend the act to exempt Indigenous Metis rights-based cabins from taxation. However, the NWTMN reports that discussions have not taken place. Committee strongly encourages the department to engage with all Indigenous governments on the phase two changes to the act.

Committee amended three clauses

Requiring tribunal decisions within three months

Clause 18 of Bill 66 proposed an operational change so appeals would be resolved in a
timelier manner. Specifically, the clause would have required the Assessment Appeals
Tribunal to sit within three months of the Territorial Board of Revision's
decision.

Committee wanted to see this clause go further. While the clause set a time limit for the
Tribunal to sit, it did not set a timeframe for the Tribunal to render a decision. The clause
also falls short of the NWTAC's advocacy on the issue. NWTAC Resolution 21-98-12
urges: "That the tribunal be granted a period of no more than six months from the time of
the deadline of appeals during which it must rule on said appeals."

Committee sought an amendment that would reflect the NWTAC's resolution. MACA
accepted this request, drafting a motion to drop clause 18 of Bill 66 and to add subclause
19.1 to the bill. The new subclause requires the tribunal to make a decision within three
months of receiving a notice of appeal.

Committee was satisfied with the changes and agreed to pass the amending motion at
the clause-by-clause review.

Publishing ministerial orders that vary timelines

Section 112 of the existing Act allows the Minister to vary any deadline with an order. Two
of the new deadlines introduced in the amended Bill 66 are:

1. The Territorial Board of Revision must give a decision by March 31 on complaints in the previous 12 months; and
2. The Assessment Appeals Tribunal must give a decision within three months of receiving a notice of appeal.

Committee was concerned that ministerial orders to vary these deadlines may not be
sufficiently transparent to the public. The existing act does not expressly require variation orders to be public - though they are registered and published in the next monthly issue of the Northwest Territories Gazette, which is publicly available.

Committee sought an amendment to require variation orders to be made public without
delay. MACA accepted this request and drafted a corresponding motion. The motion split
section 112 into two subsections: Subsection 112(1) retained the language of the existing
section 112. Subsection 112(2) required any variation order to be published on the
department's website within five days. Committee was satisfied with the amendment and approved the motion at the clause-by-clause review.

Requiring public approval for purchases by municipal council members, officers, and employees

Clause 22 of Bill 66 reverses the current ban on council members, officers, and
employees in the six municipal taxing authorities to purchase taxable property offered for sale at a municipal public auction.

While supporting the intent of clause 22, the NWTAC explained that more detail in the
clause would be beneficial. The NWTAC was concerned that municipalities may have difficulty interpreting the clause as it was drafted.

Committee sought an amendment to clause 22 to specify what it means for the council to
provide "prior approval" for a purchase. Committee wanted to ensure that council's
decision to approve would be made public and that council had more legislative guidance
when granting approval.

MACA accepted committee's request and drafted a motion to amend. The amendment
added subclause 97.81(1.1), which requires council's approval to be made by resolution
and to be recorded in the minutes of the meeting at which the approval was given.

Committee was satisfied that this addition provided sufficient legislative guidance to
municipalities and agreed to pass the motion with the amendment. Committee believes
these requirements for public processes will support municipalities in managing the risk
of potential conflicts of interest.

Further building on the NWTAC's feedback, committee asked that MACA commit to
developing a guidance document covering council approval for purchases by municipal employees. Such a guidance document should include the options and best practices available to municipalities to address the potential for conflict of interest. MACA should consult the NWTAC in this work.

Committee scrutinized board of revision timeline

Clause 15 of Bill 66 would require the Territorial Board of Revision to give a decision by
March 31 on complaints in the previous 12 months. Committee was concerned about
unworkable timelines - for example, if a complaint was made in mid- or late-March, the
Board of Revision would only have a couple of weeks or days to give a decision. Committee considered putting forward an amendment that would define the deadline based on equal wait time.

MACA provided committee with further explanation on the choice for the March 31
deadline. The assessment roll is generally finalized in October; afterwards, there is a
certain amount of time for ratepayers to make complaints, then the roll needs to be
revised. MACA projected that, in the vast majority of cases, the notice of assessment is
provided by February 15th - and in most cases earlier than that. That provides enough
time for the Board of Revision to give a decision by March 31. The Board of Revision also
only meets once per year. MACA wanted to avoid convening multiple meetings. The
March 31 date also ensures complaints are decided on within the same fiscal year, averting an impact on the property taxes a municipality can collect in the next fiscal year. Finally, MACA pointed out that if the March 31st deadline is not workable, section 112 of the existing act allows the Minister to vary the date.

Committee accepted the department's explanation but brought forward and approved an amendment to ensure that, in the rare occasions that the Minister varies the deadline, the order would be made public without delay.

Conclusion

On February 13, 2023, committee held a clause-by-clause review. Committee passed
a motion to report Bill 66, as amended, to the Legislative Assembly as ready for
consideration in Committee of the Whole.

This concludes the Standing Committee on Government Operations' review of Bill 66. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Reports of standing and special committees. Member for Yellowknife North.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the Member for Thebacha, that Committee Report 42-19(2), Report on Bill 66, An Act to Amend the Property Assessment and Taxation Act, be received by the Assembly and referred to Committee of the Whole. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.