This is page numbers 6023 - 6088 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

Some Hon. Members

Question.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Abstentions? The motion is carried.

---Carried

Member for Kam Lake.

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I move that this committee recommends that Housing Northwest Territories eradicate the community residency policy and update the public housing point rating system with community membership as an additional factor with corresponding points and significant weight. Thank you, Madam Chair.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you. The motion is in order. To the motion. Member for Great Slave.

Katrina Nokleby

Katrina Nokleby Great Slave

Yeah, thank you, Madam Chair. I -- you know, I have to say I found this one to be a shock when I realized that someone who is homeless has to be considered to be somewhere in order to qualify for a house. And the funny part about that was -- or funny, I shouldn't say funny. It's -- but if I don't laugh, I'll cry -- was that at times while I was, you know, advocating for someone in this position, I got a response from the department that was well, they left town. We heard they were in Yellowknife. And therefore, you know, their position on the list -- whatever. And I was, like, but they don't have a home. So if you don't have a home and how can the government be penalizing you for not being in the location that they think you should be in while you sit and wait. And in this instance, this person had been waiting for five years and only finally got a home through the Indigenous organizations and such, not through the housing corporation. So when I hear things like that, this just to me is a no-brainer. Let's put the residency issue to the side and just, you know, make that a point system that just adds into everything. Don't make two things happen at once. So I'm not explaining myself well. But thank you, Madam Chair.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

To the motion.

Some Hon. Members

Question.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Abstentions? The motion is carried. Member for Kam Lake.

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I move that this committee recommends that Housing Northwest Territories develop a first right of refusal clause in leasing agreements to ensure family members of tenants receive the first opportunity to lease a public housing unit before the unit goes to market. Thank you, Madam Chair.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

The motion is in order. To the motion. Member for Kam Lake.

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Thank you, Madam Chair. Sorry, I jumped the gun there. We heard about this a lot in our travels to communities. And what spurred this motion is there are families who have lived in public housing units for decades, and unfortunately when an elder who is the leaseholder passes away, their children and grandchildren and nieces and nephews who live in that unit with them, and have spent their entire lives calling that unit home, find themselves homeless and at the bottom of a housing waitlist because they are not the leaseholder, and they have no claim to that home. And so this motion is calling on a mechanism for those family members that have called that unit home for decades, and for their entire lives, a way to be able to add themselves to the lease and continue living in that home. Thank you, Madam Chair.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

To the motion. Member for Monfwi.

Jane Weyallon Armstrong

Jane Weyallon Armstrong Monfwi

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes, I do support this motion because we do have a lot of -- if you go to our warming shelter, you will see some of the family members who lost their house after parents passed because their name is not on the lease. And that policy created a lot of homelessness in many of the small communities in the Northwest Territories. And we didn't hear about it -- not just in our riding but in other -- other community as well because parents are aging, and these are their forever home, and even -- you know, like I did a Member's statement on it yesterday as well, because when these family are moved who lived in those houses for over 30 years, you know, there's emotion attached to that unit. That's their house. That's where they raised their family. That's where the grandkids were raised too as well. So I really -- I support this motion because if we don't have this there and families who lived in that house for so many years, we're making them go through another trauma. And that has to stop. So therefore I do support this motion that it ends there. Thank you.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

To the motion.

Some Hon. Members

Question.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Abstentions? The motion is carried.

---Carried

Member for Kam Lake.

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Government of the Northwest Territories provide a response to this report in 120 days. Thank you, Madam Chair.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

The motion is in order. To the motion.

Some Hon. Members

Question.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Abstentions? The motion is carried.

---Carried

Thank you, committee. Do you agree that you've concluded consideration of Committee Report 47-19(2)?

Some Hon. Members

Agreed.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you, committee. We have concluded consideration of Committee Report 47-19(2), Homelessness Prevention - Supporting Pathways to Housing NWT Residents.

What is the wish of committee? Member for Kam Lake.

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Madam Chair, I move that the chair rise and report progress.

The Chair

The Chair Lesa Semmler

There's a motion on the floor to report progress. The motion is non-debatable. All those in favour? Is in order and non-debatable. All in favour? Opposed? The motion is carried.

---Carried

I will now rise and report progress.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

May I please have the report of Committee of the Whole. Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes.