Committee, to the bill as a whole, does committee agree that Bill 72, Opioid Damages and Health Care Cost Recovery Act, is now ready for third reading?

Thank you, committee. Does committee agree that this concludes our consideration of Bill 72, Opioid Damages and Health Care Cost Recovery?

Thank you, Minister, and thank you to the witnesses. Sergeant-at-arms, please escort the witnesses from the Chamber.

Committee, we have agreed to consider Tabled Document 940-19(2), Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 2, 2023-2024.

Members, we have concluded all departments prior to deferring the tabled document. Do Members have any comments? Seeing none, Minister, did you have any comments?

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I was hoping to do some brief closing remarks, largely for the sake of ensuring that the purposes here are clear to the members of the public, so if I may, with that, Madam Chair, we are indeed seeking some supplementary funding for infrastructure expenditures in the amount of $124.5 million. This will bring total proposed expenditures for 2023-2024 to $462.146 million. As I outlined in Committee of the Whole yesterday, the additional numbers are mainly comprising capital carryovers.

Madam Chair, the GNWT does intentionally budget an amount above what we are expecting to spend for the simple reality that across hundreds of millions of dollars and multiple communities in a large jurisdiction, this ensures that when something may be delayed or it needs changing that, given the large infrastructure deficit that we have, we don't allow any of our capacity to go unused. But, Madam Chair, I did want to make clear, as I don't know that I was honestly quite clear yesterday, that in 2022-2023, the GNWT spent $285.8 million on capital projects in the territory and that this is indeed above the average of $226 million of the last ten years. If we take into consideration incremental costs and increases as a result of inflation, which I know was asked yesterday, the GNWT has spent almost $50 million more than the average fiscal year. However, Madam Chair, not all of the budgeted amount for capital expenditures in 2022-2023 was expended. And, again, I want to be clear about this given the questions that arose yesterday. Accordingly, departments are proposing here the capital carryover of $129.7 million in order to continue some of the work that was begun now into the 2023-2024 fiscal year.

We do continue to drive a decrease in the annual amounts that are carried over. And in last year's carryovers were, I acknowledge, almost at 40 percent of the capital budget. But, Madam Chair, again, a number that I ought to have perhaps clarified yesterday but I'm happy to do so now, this year the GNWT is proposing to carry over only approximately 24 percent of its annual budget.

Madam Chair, as I noted previously, changes to public sector reporting standards do require the GNWT to report some third-party funding as revenues for the related expenditures in order to be appropriated now and voted on by Members of the Assembly. This is a new change, so I wanted to clarify that.

Of the total $462.146 million capital budget that we now have, $95.3 million of that is in fact related to federally-funded projects administered by the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs that previously had been reported as work on behalf of others and therefore not appropriated. But that has now changed. Without the change in reporting, the GNWT's total 2023-2024 plan would be approximately $366 million. So that would have been a figure much more aligned with the realistic responsible capital plan that we are now trying to put forward. I.

Also do want to note, Madam Chair, most of the $129.7 million as carry over is required to provide funding for the continuation of infrastructure projects which were not complete in the 2022-2023 year. But, again, almost $35 million of that, in those capital carryovers, is itself a result of the change in accounting treatment.

Madam Chair, I also wanted to take an opportunity, there was questions about what some of the different projects were, and so I wanted to address that here in the House and bring attention to some of the major projects that were indeed completed or that had substantial work completed in the last fiscal year. And those include:

• The completion of the Ecole Itlo here in Yellowknife;
• Continued work on the runway extension in Inuvik;
• Inuvik airport resurfacing adaptation work;
• The completion of the Fort Smith airport surfacing overlay;
• A completion of the Fort Smith airport electrical;
• Work on the Stanton Legacy facility which will be opening this year; and,
• Work on the Hay River Fish Plant which will also be opening now this year.

Further to this, there's a few multi-year projects that are now underway for 2023-2024 as a result of this supplementary estimate, or which we would hope will be underway as a result of the supplementary estimate; namely, including:

• The wellness and recovery centre
• The territorial fire centre, and
• Electronic client health record charting.

Madam Chair, the right sizing efforts were also subject of discussion and so I wanted to clarify that we are, indeed, committed to the right sizing efforts. I believe they are starting to bear fruit and that efforts in the capital budget in working with communities in this regard is happening. Right sizing is reducing the growth in debt. Madam Chair, Budget 2022-2023 had projected debt growth of around 6 percent and that the GNWT would, in fact, reach our mandated borrowing limit by 2025-2026. But with the reductions to the approach in capital planning, Budget 2023-2024 reduced our projected debt growth to 1 percent and forecasts a more comfortable cushion of $300 million, approximately, from underneath the borrowing limit over the next five years.

This is going to continue into the future, Madam Chair, with an overall smaller capital plan. I think I did mention this yesterday. When we go into the construction season, we then see less carryovers into future years when we start out from a smaller spot.

That said, as I acknowledged yesterday, we are absorbing impacts from what was an ever-growing capital plan, something that began prior to this Assembly, or to anyone in this House. That does mean that there are some carryovers from those years of large growth and from the increased overall capital plans in those years and that was still the case with the items that are before committee here.

That said, Madam Chair, I do appreciate the support of committee through the supplementary appropriation process to get some of those key projects moving, concluded, and indeed to now get some of them started including the fire centre, the Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk Highway, and initiatives such as the fish plant also completed. Thank you, Madam Chair. That concludes my remarks.

Thank you, Minister. If there are no further comments, Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Madame la Presidente. I move that consideration of Tabled Document 940-19(2), Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 2, 2023-2024, be now concluded, and that Tabled Document 940-19(2) be reported and recommended as ready for further consideration.

(audio) it was caught on the end. Member for Frame Lake.

Thanks, Madam Chair. Would you like me to repeat the whole thing? I'm sorry, I couldn't get the computer screen to scroll up at the right time.

I move that consideration of Tabled Document 940-19(2), Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 2, 2023-2024, be now concluded, and that Tabled Document 940-19(2) be reported and recommended as ready for further consideration in formal session through the form of an appropriation bill. Mahsi, Madam Chair.

Thank you. The motion is in order. To the motion?

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Abstentions? The motion is carried. This concludes consideration of Tabled Document 940-19(2).

---Carried

Committee, we've agreed to consider Tabled Document 941-19(2), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2023-2024.

Members we've concluded all departments prior to deferring the tabled document. Do Members have any comments? Seeing no comments, Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Madame la Presidente. I move that consideration of Tabled Document 941-19(2), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 2, 2023-2024, be now concluded, and that Tabled Document 941-19(2) be reported and recommended as ready for further consideration in a formal session through -- I don't have a paper copy. Sorry, Madam Chair. Now I do. Thanks.

Madam Chair, I move that consideration of Tabled Document 941-19(2), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 2, 2023-2024, be now concluded, and that Tabled Document 941-19(2) be reported and recommended as ready for further consideration in formal session through the form of an appropriation bill. Mahsi, Madam Chair.

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

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Abstentions? The motion is carried. This concludes consideration of Tabled Document 941-19(2).

---Carried

Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Madame la Presidente. I move that the chair rise and report progress. Mahsi.

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

---Carried

I will now rise and report progress.

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

Mr. Speaker, your committee has been considering Bill 72, Tabled Document 940 and 941 and would like to report progress with two motions carried, and that Bill 72, Opioid Damages and Health Care Recovery Act, is ready for third reading and that consideration of Tabled Documents 940 and 941 are concluded, and that the House concur on those estimates and that the appropriation bill to be based thereon be introduced without delay. And, Mr. Speaker, I move that the report of the Committee of the Whole be concurred with. Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes. Do we have a seconder? Member for Deh Cho. All those in favour? All those opposed? Any abstentions in the motion is carried.

---Carried.

Third reading of bills. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, that Bill 90, An Act to Amend the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act, No. 5, be read for the third time. And Mr. Speaker, I request a recorded vote. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.