Michael Miltenberger

There are four thermal communities where the distributor of power is Northland Utilities, ATCO, and in those four communities there’s a subsidy program that is funded by the Government of the Northwest Territories to make sure that the NUL rate that the customers pay is the same as the NTPC thermal rate. So, you have the two distributors and the government subsidizes to make sure that people across the Northwest Territories are treated equally when it comes to buying power in their communities, and that requires a subsidy, in this case, of half a million dollars a year.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife South, that Bill 67, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2015-2016, be read for the third time. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife South, that Bill 67, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2015-2016, be read for the second time.

This bill makes supplementary appropriations for operations expenditures for the Government of the Northwest Territories for the 2015-2016 fiscal year.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following three documents, entitled “Growing the Northwest Territories: Supporting Population Growth of the Northwest Territories,” “Background Research: Growing the Northwest Territories - Supporting Population Growth of the Northwest Territories” and “Environment and Natural Resources Framework for Action 2012-2016, December 2014 Status Update.” Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Monfwi, that Bill 37, Financial Administration Act, be read for the third time. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife South, that Bill 67, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2015-2016, be read for the first time.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The transboundary water agreement with Alberta definitely looked at quantity issues. We are blessed with significant flows into the Northwest Territories and on through into the Mackenzie and into the Arctic Ocean.

The amount of water coming in the Slave River has been negotiated at about 1.9 percent of the water is available for extraction between Alberta and the Northwest Territories. The other basically 98 percent stays in the river to feed the river and aquatic ecosystems and the Mackenzie Basin to make sure it stays healthy. It gives you a sense of the volume of the...

Yes, Madam Chair, that is correct.

One of the biggest needs was assessed to be the need for better coordination and resources, some resources at the executive level, the headquarters level to help coordinate better and more effectively the current system as well as all the programs and services that we have taken on since post-devolution. There are folks in the regions as well. But the overall need is for government to do a better overall job of coordinating and managing the communication requirements, and we are in, fundamentally, the communicating business. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I have with me Mike Aumond, deputy minister of Finance; and Mr. Sandy Kalgutkar, deputy secretary to the FMB. Thank you.