Caroline Wawzonek

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So in this supplementary appropriation is reflecting something that came out just at the end of last year in response to the GRA that we were required to file by the PUB where we've proposed to put in $48 million over four years, so $12 million for this year, and that's what this supp amount is.

In addition to that, Mr. Chair, we also provide the territorial power support program which subsidizes all of the communities that are thermal communities, so communities that are running on diesel generators, so throughout the Beaufort Delta communities, Mackenzie Delta...

Mr. Speaker, I'm not sure that I'm -- I'll wait a minute.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So the proposed GRA would be for this fiscal year and so it would have to be -- it would have to be part of the assessment. It has to be part of the assessment, so -- yes, we can't sort of wait until they're done their review or wait until they issue their determination because their determination needs to take into account whether or not there's going to be a process. And the current year is also under consideration -- or the 2024-2025 year is under consideration so therefore it needs to be part of that year. That's why it's part of this final supp. Thank you.

Thank you, madam -- sorry, not Madam Chair; I'm so used to the last government. Sorry, Mr. Chair. No, I mean those of us sitting here haven't necessarily occupied these positions, any of us, for, you know, ten years of history, but to the best of all of our knowledge, it does -- we do tend to typically go over. Again, I will be frank, Mr. Chair, I have often asked why we put it at 35, and I'm promptly reminded that raising it doesn't necessarily create the kind of fiscal barriers that we are discussing now. So I'm happy to go back and ask the department if they can look back in time. But...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it's early days to know what may or may not be in the review of a piece of legislation and, of course, always happy to consider amendments. I can say that we are members of the Canadian insurance services regulatory organization, meaning the Canadian Council of Insurance Regulators and the General Insurance Statistical Agency. I mention all of those because as this process moves forward, I'll certainly look for the opportunity to see if there's any best practices happening. Again, cost increases are happening everywhere, and it's an issue that's coming up...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The urgency of this was due to the timing of the required generate applications, so the deadline for that was the end of October and so there was a desire to get this in as quickly as possible to reflect that timing, and so there's a supplementary estimate here now. This is the earliest time we could put it before the House but wanted to see that it's part of the process of the public utilities board which is underway right now. That was the timing issue. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, we do have a supplementary reserve that we set at $35 million and, obviously, this one alone would certainly put us over that. We do -- sorry, Mr. Chair, I'm just trying to see where -- anyways, it is obviously going to put us over that we -- oh, there we are. Thank you.

So, Mr. Chair, the net impact here, we are going to end up at a total impact of $64,717 million in this case, obviously significantly beyond a $35 million target that we would have set. And, yes, I guess that's the answer to start, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I can say that to my information there's 150 individual insurers that are licensed under the Insurance Act. As for what each or every one of them may or may not be doing with increasing rates, I don't have that information. The Insurance Act gives me the ability -- or gives the department the ability to regulate but not necessarily to control the commercial side of what these organizations do. That said, Mr. Speaker, we are, as a government, a member of a number of different groups across Canada, and rates are rising across the country so can certainly say...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I don't know if I have that level of detail. Let me see if the deputy minister maybe can, and if not, we will look to pull up -- sorry, it's where the $12 million came from or where it's being applied? It's going to be applied on to -- to the costs -- the ratepayers' costs but it's where it's coming from, I'll see if the deputy minister may have that handy.

Please, Mr. Chair.