Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document: Inter-activity Transfers Exceeding $250,000 from April 1st to December 31st, 2024. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to present to the House Bill 23, An Act to Amend the Children's Law Act, to be read for the first time. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of Justice. Pursuant to Rule 8.2(3), Bill 23 is deemed to have first reading and is ready for second reading. First reading of bills. Minister of Justice.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to present to the House Bill 24, An Act to Amend the Family Law Act, to be read for the first time. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife South, that Bill 22, Legislation Act, be read for the second time.
The proposed Legislation Act sets out comprehensive rules about the processes for enacting, certifying, and publishing laws in the Northwest Territories and for ensuring laws remain up to date. This will consolidate existing provisions about these processes that are found separately in several statutes and will update and modernize current practices. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. The motion is in order. To the principle of the bill.
Question.
Question has been called. All those in favour? Opposed? Abstentions? Motion passed.
---Carried
Thank you. I will now call the Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of the committee? I am going to go to the Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, the committee wishes to consider Tabled Document 275-20(1), 2025-2026 Main Estimates, Departments of Education, Culture and Employment and Department of Finance. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. Does the committee agree?
Agreed.
Okay, thank you. We'll take a ten-minute break.
---SHORT RECESS
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters, 2025-2026 Main Estimates, conclusion of Department of Education, Culture and Employment and Department of Finance, form and concurrence -- concurrence.
Committee, we have agreed to consider Tabled Document 275-20(1), 2025-2026 Main Estimates. We will consider the departmental totals for the Department of Education, Culture and Employment and finance which we previously deferred. We will then consider the borrowing plan for the government reporting entity and established borrowing limits for the Government of the Northwest Territories.
Does the Minister of Finance have any opening remarks?
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Yes, Mr. Chair, as we conclude deliberations on the 2025-2026 Main Estimates, I want to recognize the work of Members in shaping this budget. And through collaboration, note that we are making additional strategic investments that reflect the priority of this Assembly and the needs of Northerners.
One of the most significant outcomes of our discussions, Mr. Chair, is that there is a commitment here being made to support housing. We will be introducing a $41.6 million supplementary appropriation for Housing Northwest Territories in 2025-2026 to make critical investments in public housing. This funding responds directly to the priorities set by the 20th Legislative Assembly to improve suitability, accessibility, and affordability of housing across the Northwest Territories.
In addition, we are committing a total of $50 million per year for the next two years, ensuring a long-term and sustainable plan to help modernize and replace aging public housing. In making this commitment, we are cognizant that we are living in a time where businesses are worried in a climate of tariffs, tariff threats, and financial uncertainty. Housing Northwest Territories already has innovative partnerships with Northwest Territories Indigenous governments and businesses and this commitment can help deepen and build upon them. This three-year commitment supports a plan that we believe can be delivered for Northerners by Northerners.
We are also addressing concerns about elders in public housing. Housing Northwest Territories will develop a strategy and a policy to forgive arrears and stop garnishment of elders, ensuring that this is in place before the 2025-2026 debt forgiveness period.
Additionally, we will be restoring $100,000 in funding for the 2025-2026 for the Family Violence Shelter Network and would note that in accordance with its new role as the GNWT lead for nongovernment support, this funding will move to the Department of Executive and Indigenous Affairs. Over 2025-2026, EIA will be engaging other nongovernment organizations and Indigenous organizations in order to explore how to best align available funding to address the needs of vulnerable populations, including those experiencing intimate personal violence -- intimate partner violence.
On the issue of community learning centres, Mr. Chair, we all acknowledge that CLC facilities have been important hubs for education, for training, and for community-based programs, and the Minister of ECE has committed to working with Indigenous governments and community organizations to ensure that residents will continue to have access to quality adult education and employment programs building off the successes of individual communities that individual communities may have seen within the existing CLC programs. A timeline for this work will be provided before the end of the May sitting.
I will speak further and further opportunity upon the location of an appropriation bill being introduced about the process of concluding this budget and on the broader direction that we are taking with these changes. But for now, Mr. Chair, I do want to thank Members for their contributions. This budget is, again, a product of the consensus process and together we are advancing these meaningful investments for the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you to the Minister for her comments. Mr. Chair, at this time I'd like to move that consideration of Tabled Document 275 -- sorry?
Okay, thank you. I'll go back to the Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I apologize; I was getting ahead of myself as we often do.
Mr. Chair, I'd like to again thank the -- certainly thank the Members of AOC. I mean, it's been an interesting couple of weeks for sure as we've deliberated on this budget and negotiated on this budget and, as the Minister said, I'll certainly speak more to it once we have the main estimates in front of committee tomorrow.
I would like, again, to thank Members of AOC for their direction, for certainly working collaboratively to work towards our common goal and thank Cabinet for their support as well. The housing funding that the Minister spoke of certainly is no small ask, and I think we all recognize in this House the importance of that priority to this government. We've -- you know, we've been saying it for the past year, you know, housing is likely our number one priority and to see this kind of a commitment going forward in this year's budget, coming back on the supplemental appropriation of $41 million to add to the additional funding that housing has already budgeted, I think will put us, Mr. Chair, up to, you know, upwards of $50 million this year alone with anticipating more funding coming in the next two years as we'll go through the budget -- through our capital budgeting process for even more housing and certainly addressing that important need.
So for now, Mr. Speaker, again -- Mr. Chair, I'd like to, again, thank my colleagues, thank the Minister of Finance for her time, and we'll leave it at that until tomorrow. Thank you.
Thank you. Does the committee agree to proceed to the detail contained in the tabled document? Committee?
Agreed.
Thank you. Committee, we will start with the Department of Education, Culture and Employment. Please turn to the department summary found on page 29, revenue summary information items on page 30 and 31. Are there any questions? Seeing no further questions, committee, I will now call the department summary.
Education, Culture and Employment, operations expenditure, total department, 2025-2026 Main Estimates, $403,245,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you. Committee, we will now move to the Department of Finance. Please turn to the departmental summary found on page 159 with information items on page 160 to 161. Are there any questions? Seeing no further questions, committee, I will now call the department summary.
Finance, operations expenditure, total department, 2025-2026 Main Estimates, $407,895,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. The borrowing plan is separate from the estimates but required by the Financial Administration Act to be presented with the estimates. Further, the borrowing outlined in the plan will be included in the subsequent Appropriation Act that is presented to the Assembly. Please turn to page 17 to find the borrowing plan from the government reporting entity established borrowing limits for the Government of the Northwest Territories. Are there any questions? Seeing no further questions, I will now call this page.
The borrowing plan for the government reporting entity and established borrowing limits for the Government of the Northwest Territories, the total considered borrowing limit is $1,722,122,000. Does the committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. Does the committee agree that it has concluded the consideration of Tabled Document 275-20(1), 2025-2026 Main Estimates? Does the committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you. Members, I'm going to go to the Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Now that we've all caught up, Mr. Chair, I move that consideration of Tabled Document 275-20(1), 2025-2026 Main Estimates, be now concluded, and that Tabled Document 275-20(1) be reported and recommended as ready for further consideration in formal session through the form of an Appropriation Bill. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. Committee, this concludes our consideration of tabled documents. Thank you to the Minister -- oh sorry, thank you. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. All those in favour? Against? Motion carried.
---Carried
I'm going to go to the Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that the chair rise and report progress.
The motion is in order. The motion is non-debatable. The motion's in order. The motion's not non-debatable. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.
---Carried
I will now rise and report progress. Thank you.
Thank you. Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiliideh.
Mr. Speaker, your committee has been considering Tabled Document 275-20(1) and would like to report progress with one motion carried and consider Tabled 275-20(1) is concluded, and the House concurs in those estimates as amended and that an appropriation bill to be based thereon to be introduced without delay. And, Mr. Speaker, I move that the report of the Committee of the Whole be concurred with. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiliideh. Can I have a seconder, please. Member from Nunakput. All those in favour? Opposed? Abstentions? Motion carried.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Orders of the day for Thursday, March 13th, 2025, at 1:30 p.m.
Prayer or Reflection
Ministers’ Statements
Members’ Statements
Motions
Motion 51-20(1), Affirmative Action Policy
Motion 52-20(1), Strengthening Support for Nurses and Healthcare Workers
Motion 54-20(1), Extended Adjournment of the House to May 22, 2025
Returns to Oral Questions
Oral Question 530-20(1), Senior Envoy to Government of Canada
Oral Question 607-20(1), Coverage Exemptions for Uninsured Medical Procedures
Oral Question 645-20(1), Senior Envoy to the Government of Canada
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Acknowledgements
Oral Questions
Written Questions
Returns to Written Questions
Written Question 14-20(1), Operating Rooms at Stanton Territorial Hospital
Replies to the Commissioner’s Address
Petitions
Reports of Committees on the Review of Bills
Reports of Standing and Special Committees
Tabling of Documents
Notices of Motions
Notices of Motion for First Reading of Bills
First Reading of Bills
Second Reading of Bills
Bill 23, An Act to Amend the Children’s Law Act
Bill 24, An Act to Amend the Family Law Act
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Report of Committee of the Whole
Third Reading of Bills
Orders of the Day
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Clerk.
This House stands adjourned until Thursday, March 13th, 2025, at 1:30 p.m.
---ADJOURNMENT
The House adjourned at 3:41 p.m.
