This is page numbers 5151 - 5186 of the Hansard for the 19th Assembly, 2nd Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was know.

Topics

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Written questions. Member for Yellowknife North.

Rylund Johnson

Rylund Johnson Yellowknife North

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I've also asked these ones and didn't get an answer but I'm feeling lucky.

Payments for leased space:

The Government of the Northwest Territories is one of the largest tenants in the Northwest Territories. Can the Minister provide lease fees paid by the Government of the Northwest Territories to the following companies, broken down by individual lease and building space, for the last ten years as follows:

  1. All lease payments made to Northview Canadian High Yield Residential Fund (Northview) and its predecessor companies, broken down both by residential leases and commercial leases per year;
  2. All lease payments made to KingSett Capital, which is the co-owner of Northview Canadian High Yield Residential Fund, for the last ten years and broken down by residential and commercial leases per year;
  3. The total of future lease commitments to the above companies and the expiration date of each of those leases;
  4. A clear breakdown of how each of the leases were tendered and in what year they went out for public competition, if at all.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Written questions. Returns to written questions. Replies to the Commissioner's address. Petitions. Reports of committees on the review of bills. Reports of standing and special committees. Tabling of documents. Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment.

R.J. Simpson

R.J. Simpson Hay River North

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document: Aurora College Annual Report 2021-2022. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Tabling of documents. Member for Hay River South.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I wish to table a copy of Bill 7, Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods Act, from the sixth session of the 15th Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Tabling of documents. Notices of motion. Motions. Notices of motion for the first reading of bills. First reading of bills. Second reading of bills. Consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters, Bill 23, 29, and 62, Committee Report 39-19(2), Minister's Statement 264-19(2), Tabled Document 681-19(2), Tabled Document 694-19(2), Tabled Document 813-19(2), with Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes in the chair.

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The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

I now call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of committee? Member for Frame Lake.

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Kevin O'Reilly

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Merci, Madam la Presidente. The committee wishes to deal with Bill 62 and Committee Report 39-19(2). Mahsi.

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The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you. Does committee agree?

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Some Hon. Members

Agreed.

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The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you, committee. We'll take a short recess and resume with the first item.

---SHORT RECESS

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The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

I will now call committee back to order. Committee, we have agreed to consider Bill 62, An Act to Amend the Income Tax Act. I will ask the Minister of Finance to introduce the bill.

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Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I am here to present Bill 62, An Act to Amend the Income Tax Act, No. 2.

The main purpose of Bill 62 is to make various legislative retroactive housekeeping measures to the territorial income tax legislation to comply with the Canada-Northwest Territories Tax Collection Agreement. These amendments keep territorial legislation current and harmonized with the federal income tax legislation. Specifically, the proposed changes include:

  • Remove a reference to a repealed federal provision about an option for trusts to pay tax;
  • Exclude a reference to the federal COVID-19 relief measures for an additional GST/HST payment;
  • Exclude a reference to the federal temporary wage subsidy under COVID-19 relief measures;
  • Include special federal rules for determining the Northwest Territories Child Benefit as part of COVID-19 relief measures;
  • Include a reference to the federal special rule for the disability supports deduction as part of COVID-19 relief measures;
  • Align the Northwest Territories Act with the federal administrative rules in compliance with the Canada-Northwest Territories Tax Collection Agreement;
  • Include a reference to federal rules on evidence for notices sent to persons in compliance with the Canada-Northwest Territories Tax Collection Agreement;
  • Include a reference to federal provisions relating to certain allowed or disallowed deductions in the calculation of the federal foreign tax credit; and,
  • Remove ambiguity in certain terms relating to tax on split income for multi-jurisdictional tax filers.

Bill 62 also includes an amendment to allow the Canada Revenue Agency to share Northwest Territories-specific taxpayer data with Finance Canada. Sharing this data with Finance Canada assists in designing tax policy, and it benefits the GNWT as it allows Finance Canada to provide a more detailed analysis of the implications of federal tax measures on the territorial tax system. The Canada Revenue Agency has a number of stringent security agreements in place to safeguard Northwest Territories taxpayer data from being used inappropriately. That concludes my opening remarks, Madam Chair.

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The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Minister. Would you like to bring witnesses into the Chamber?

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Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

Yes, Madam Chair.

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The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Sergeant-at-arms, please escort the witnesses into the Chamber. Thank you. Minister, please introduce your witnesses.

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Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, on my right I have Kelly Bluck, who is director of fiscal policy within the Department of Finance, and on my left I have Christina Duffy, who is legislative director.

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The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you, and welcome. I will now turn to the chair of the Standing Committee on Government Operations, the committee that reviewed the bill, for any opening comments on Bill 62. MLA Johnson.

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Rylund Johnson

Rylund Johnson Yellowknife North

Thank you, Madam Chair. Bill 62, An Act to Amend the Income Tax Act, received second reading in the Legislative Assembly on November 2nd, 2022, and was referred to the Standing Committee on Government Operations for review.

On January 18th, 2023, the standing committee held a public hearing and completed its clause by clause review with the Minister of Finance I believe. The committee received no submissions on this bill. I thank the committee for reviewing this legislation. Individual Members may have additional comments. Thank you.

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The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you. I will now open the floor to general comments on Bill 62. Member for Frame Lake.

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Kevin O'Reilly

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Thanks, Madam Chair. Who could have thought tax bills would be so exciting? But the committee report raises a few questions for me, and I did have the privilege of sitting in and listening to the review of the bill. There was some amendments made to the bill, and some of this, the provisions now, are being made retroactive to like more than five years ago. And I just had wondered why these changes were going back five years in time. Was there some delay on our part in getting some of this implemented? And I think the Minister said that that was not the case. But the report also says that the Minister was going to try to find details of which she would try to find and provide separately to committee. I'm not aware that that actually happened. So was the Minister and her staff actually able to see why these delays in implementation took place? Thanks, Madam Chair.

Sorry, and if I could add. I just wanted to get the Minister to reconfirm that none of these delays were our fault as a government. Thank you, Madam Chair.

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The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Member. Minister of Finance.

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Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

Thank you, Madam Chair. I do remember that exchange, Madam Chair, and I apologize if we didn't include that on any correspondence to committee. I did just confirm again now with the Department of Finance, as I had at the time, that, indeed, these were changes that were slow in coming from the federal government and so we are simply aligning with the calendar that they had -- or the timelines that they had put forward on their side. So, again, I ought to have conveyed that to committee earlier; I apologize for not doing so. Thank you.

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The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you. Member for Frame Lake.