Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

WHEREAS municipalities and community governments across the Northwest Territories are inadequately resourced to operate their communities and have been advocating to increase funding levels from the Government of the Northwest Territories for several years;

AND WHEREAS the $5 million increase in community government funding realized in the 19th Assembly does not recognize the increased inflationary costs to communities;

AND WHEREAS communities across the Northwest Territories have been facing emergencies since 2020 through COVID-19, flooding, and wildfires. The Northwest Territories communities are the first line of defense to protect residents and respond to emergencies and communities do this without dedicated resources and funding;

AND WHEREAS the economic multiplier of money spent through municipalities is greater than spending through other levels of government, it is estimated that for every $1 million of municipal activity, there is potential to create 13.11 jobs;

AND WHEREAS the Government of the Northwest Territories is in a time of fiscal restraint and the Northwest Territories economic outlook is in a slow decline, prioritizing money directly for communities provides an economic stimulus for employment and economic development across the Northwest Territories;

AND WHEREAS in July of 2023, the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs updated the policies to address the municipal funding gap, but the implementation of funding associated with those policies is not reflected in the 2024-2025 Budget;

NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, that the Government of the Northwest Territories reallocate internal funding resources without delay to implement the revised municipal funding gap policies;

AND FURTHERMORE, that the Government of the Northwest Territories balance the current discrepancies between communities regarding the percentage of the formula funding they receive;

AND FURTHERMORE, that the Government of the Northwest Territories make the calculation of the municipal funding gap, by community, publicly available;

AND FURTHERMORE, the Government of the Northwest Territories acknowledge the increased costs facing communities through public emergencies and natural disasters and allocate a new stream of funding for public safety and emergency preparedness into the municipal funding gap calculations;

AND FURTHERMORE, that the Government of the Northwest Territories provide a response to this motion within 120 days.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.