Thank you, Member. Minister of Finance.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, again, that would involve going through project by project over 33 different communities. The GNWT is the flowthrough agent. So the federal government really just provides the money but we allocate it out without -- you know, it's not up to us to decide for a community what project they want to advance or not. So there is a lot here that's being carried over, and I'd be happy to try to work in a new way if there is one but, really, this is money that is not ours to decide upon it. Really, just what we want to keep it available for communities but I can't speak to the level of certainty that any one community might be bringing to their project. Thank you.

Thank you. Member for Yellowknife North.

Yeah, thank you. I guess I want to clarify whether -- when this $29 million is carried over, whether there's any review by the GNWT of the project or is it simply we didn't get it out the door to give it to the communities so it automatically gets carried over, or do they have to come to us and say hey, sorry, this is what's happening, can you please carry over our funding? Is there any sort of accountability or oversight by us on it or is it an automatic carryover once we don't send it to them? Thank you.

Thank you. Minister.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, this will be an automatic carryover, and the communities can continue to apply for the money for their projects and we'll hold it for them pending their completion of those projects. Thank you.

Thank you. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Member. Minister.

Yes, thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, this really was a community-driven -- these are community-driven projects and initiatives. It's really not one that has a lot of oversight by the GNWT. That said, and just to defend, if I might, the communities as a whole, there certainly is money being spent. There are some projects that are being advanced, and the smaller project, often the more nuanced the reasons were of carry over.

It may well be in one community a very specific labour market issue and in another community inflation and in another community a supply chain. These are smaller projects, each with their own challenges. All that said, Madam Chair, I recognize the challenge here, and I don't -- also don't like having the $30 million sitting and adding to the carryovers that are before the House overall as a total. So there is still is a fair bit of time. We have some additional time on this money from the federal government and can certainly make a commitment to take this away, between the Department of Finance as well as MACA, and see if there's something further we can do to assist. There may be some areas where there's some specific issues that we can support communities on, and there may simply be other projects where the communities need to take a hard look themselves and just need a bit of a push to do so. Thank you.

Thank you. Member for Yellowknife North.

Yeah, thank you, Madam Chair. I guess would we be able to get a list of the projects that are currently in the queue here? Thank you.

Thank you, Member. Minister.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I certainly do have a list of projects, and I'm only hesitant in that it's because this is -- these are community-driven projects, I want to confirm there's no reason that I'm holding it and can't share it. But if there's not, then I'm certainly happy to share that at the very least with committee. Thank you.

Thank you. Member for Yellowknife North.

Yeah, thank you, Madam Chair. You know, it's obviously in everyone's interest to spend this tens of millions of dollars, I think. We've heard the feds say, you know, well we don't need to give you more community infrastructure money, you're not spending the money we gave you. And I've heard MACA say similarly well, we don't need to increase the community infrastructure budget, there's tens of millions of dollars not being spent. I think we all know if this was just unconditional money to spend on infrastructure, they'd get it done. But sometimes the ICIP project categories were rather specific and you kind of had to shoehorn projects in. And I know there's some frustration about that. So just a bit of a comment, I don't think -- our communities need infrastructure money but when we put these strings attached to it and then we hold it as GNWT, it's clearly having a hard time getting out the door and there's a larger conversation to be had to get all the parties to the table and make sure this money is spent. So a comment. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to make a comment because just some of the comments that are being made is -- you know, flowthrough money from the federal government just comes to the government, it's flowed through. Many times, even when I was chief of Salt River First Nation, monies that came to -- that we got from Salt River First Nation flowed through the Government of the Northwest Territories, okay. It has nothing to do with the Government of the Northwest Territories. That's the way the federal government gets the money out the door to go to the First Nation or to the community or -- it's not the fault of anyone in this House. That's just the way it's done.

And if the community at that time is not ready because there's something that happened or -- it could be many things. Like now we're into wildfires, we're into climate change. Like everybody always brings that up all the time, you know. I just -- I don't -- I am used to defending how money flows through governments. But I mean, that's just a standard -- the practice that's been done for years and years. As far as I know, from -- since I've been in leadership and way before that when my husband was mayor of Fort Smith, that's the way that it's done, even for the municipality of Fort Smith. So going on to say that there's something being done wrong when you -- when the money's flowed through here, or making it sound like it's not right, is incorrect information. And I'd like more clarity on that if that's the way it's done. And you know, you can't fault people for -- if someone's not doing the other part on the other side because there might have been change in leadership, there might have been different standards now, there might have been a criteria that they cannot -- they cannot follow, because there's all these criteria that have to come into play before the money is asked for. It doesn't -- you just don't flow the millions through and then it just comes. That's not the way it is. I know that because I -- I've had to do that many times when I've gone to the federal government and the flowthrough money comes through the territorial government. It's all about timing. And most of the time you can extend it and extend it until it's time. So that's just a comment I want to make. I don't expect anybody to answer any questions. But, you know, you can't make it sound like there's something not right here because nobody wants to have anything happen to a community or a municipality or for the capital for that -- for any reason. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Yeah, thank you, Member for Thebacha. And, you know, it's what we're doing here is we're able to ask questions and get answers from the Minister and everybody's doing that and, you know, that's why we have this time. So, Member for Great Slave.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I will ask the Minister a question. Of this $27 million that's being carried over, for municipalities -- or communities to access this money, is it application-based; do they have to fill out forms, do they have to provide proposals, etcetera, to get this money? Thank you.

Thank you. Minister.

Thank you, Madam Chair. So, Madam Chair, there are -- well, this is a funding that is entirely application-based, but it is applications for federal dollars, not for our dollars. So, again, you know -- again, and I do want to make clear, I certainly wouldn't want any community governments or municipal governments thinking that we're not happy to be able to help and that MACA certainly would be able help. I can tell you there are 84 projects that are at least have -- you know, moved forward. Five of those now, mind you, are waiting again for approval from Canada so not the GNWT. I'll stop there, Madam Chair. I think I'm going beyond the Member's question. Thank you.

Thank you. Member for Great Slave.

Thank you. I appreciate the Minister's answer. So in its capacity with this type of money, is MACA providing technical advice to the communities, and are they helping with the preparation of the federal application process? Thank you.