Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Clerk.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to table a response to petition provided by the Honourable Robert R. McLeod, Premier of the Northwest Territories, in response to a petition tabled by Mr. Bob Bromley on December 14, 2011. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Item 15, notices of motion. Item 16, notices of motion for first reading of bills. Item 17, motions. Item 18, first reading of bills. Item 19, second reading of bills. Item 20, consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters: Tabled Document 1-17(2), Interim Appropriation 2012-2013; Tabled Document 2-17(2), Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 3, 2011-2012; Tabled Document 3-17(2), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 3, 2011-2012; and Committee Report 1-17(2), Report on the Use of Tablet Computers in the Legislative Assembly, with Mrs. Groenewegen in the chair.
I call the Committee of the Whole to order. We have numerous items that have been listed before us in Committee of the Whole today. What is the wish of the committee? Mr. Menicoche.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The committee wishes to consider Committee Report 1-17(2), Tabled Document 1-17(2), Interim Appropriation 2012-2013, Tabled Document 2-17(2) and Tabled Document 3-17(2).
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. I assume in that order. With that, I will call a brief break and we will come back and deal with those. Thank you.
---SHORT RECESS
I’d like to call Committee of the Whole back to order. The committee report we have before us today is a report on the use of tablet computers in the Legislative Assembly. Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I’d like to move a committee motion. I move that this committee recommends that tablet computers or other similar electronic devices be considered as a type of laptop computer/hand-held device, subject to the existing conventions in the House regarding electronic communication devices. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. We’re just going to back up a little bit. The Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures Report on the Use of Tablet Computers in the Legislative Assembly was already read into the record in the House today. I would like to ask if there are any general comments with respect to the committee report. Okay, thank you. I’ll have the motion re-read now, then, please. We’ve established that no one wants to make any comments on the committee report, so we will have the motion re-read. Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I move that this committee recommends that tablet computers or other similar electronic devices be considered as type of laptop computer/handheld device, subject to the existing conventions in the House regarding electronic communications devices. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. To the motion.
Question.
Question is being called.
---Carried
Does committee agree that concludes our consideration of Committee Report 1-17(2)?
Agreed.
Thank you. The next item on our agenda today is Tabled Document 1-17(2), Interim Appropriation 2012-2013. Would the Minister of Finance like to provide some opening comments? Minister Miltenberger.
Yes, Madam Chair. The interim appropriation requests authority for appropriation of $404.121 million for operations expenditures in the 2012-13 fiscal year.
This interim budget provides the necessary resources for the government to operate in the first three months of the 2012-2013 fiscal year. As discussed with committees previously, the 2012-2013 Main Estimates, or full budget, will be presented during the May/June sitting of the Legislative Assembly.
I will explain the methodology of the interim appropriation development and clarify that the interim provides for only a portion of the full year requirements in operations.
As directed, departments were required to develop their 2012-2013 interim appropriation requirements using the following parameters:
Funding is to be included only for the six pay periods that fall within the time frame of the interim appropriation;
Contribution funding is only to be included for those recipients that require the funding within the time frame of the interim appropriation;
Other expenses should only include the minimum requirement during the interim time frame. However, where it is absolutely necessary to enter into contracts for the full year, the full year requirements have been included.
The $404.121 million in operations expenditures represents 30 percent of the total expenditures included in the 2011-2012 Main Estimates. This exceeds one-quarter of the 2011-2012 Main Estimates budget due to funding requests to cover expenditures that require sufficient funding at the beginning of the fiscal year. Committee members will also note that a number of departments are requesting funding that exceeds the average 30 percent. This is due to the operational requirements, the need to put in place contracts for specific work at the beginning of a fiscal year and for funding for items approved in 2011-12 Supplementary Appropriations No. 1 and No. 2. These departments include:
The Department of Executive offices requests an appropriation of $5.6 million or 37 percent of the 2011-12 Main Estimates amount. One point seven million dollars of the $5.12 million approved in the supplementary appropriation process for devolution activities is being requested for the interim period.
The Department of Human Resources requests an appropriation of $13.1 million or 31 percent of the 2011-12 Main Estimates amount. Human Resources provides funding up front for various activities associated with collective bargaining, PeopleSoft upgrades and other various programs and training in the first quarter of each fiscal year.
The Department of Finance requests an appropriation of $29.4 million or 29 percent of the previous year’s main estimates. The department requires the full $2.3 million for insurance premiums which are paid in April.
The Department of Municipal and Community Affairs requests an appropriation of $31.7 million or 34 percent of the 2011-12 Main Estimates appropriation. The department requirement includes upfront contribution funding to communities of $14.6 million, grants in lieu of taxes of $4.2 million, $1.5 million for youth centres and corps and $825,000 for community recreation funding.
The Department of Education, Culture and Employment requests an appropriation of $89.9 million or 31 percent of the 2011-12 Main Estimates appropriation. The department requires 38 percent of the contribution to education authorities in the interim period and has a number of contracts in place for homeless shelters and other community offices.
The Department of Health and Social Services requires an appropriation of $103 million or 30 percent of the 2011-12 Main Estimates. The increased requirement is a result of the need to provide 33 percent of contribution funding to health and social services authorities in the interim period.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources requests an appropriation of $33 million or 49 percent of the 2011-12 Main Estimates appropriation. At the beginning of the fiscal year, in anticipation that the fire season will start in early summer, the department puts in place contracts for fire suppression estimated at $14 million.
I would like to point out that this does not include any new funding that has not been approved by the 17th Legislative Assembly. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister Miltenberger. I’d like to ask the Minister if he would like to bring witnesses into the House.
Yes, Madam Chair.
Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Agreed. Thank you. I’ll ask the Sergeant-at-Arms to please escort the witnesses to the witness table.
Thank you. I’d like to ask Minister Miltenberger to introduce his witnesses for the record, please.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I have with me at the witness table Mike Aumond, deputy minister of Finance and Mr. Olin Lovely, the director of Management Board Secretariat.
Thank you, Minister Miltenberger. I’ll now open the floor for general comments on the interim appropriation. General comments. Any general comments? If not, we’ll move on to the detail. Interim Appropriation 2012-2013. I will first go to the Department of Health and Social Services, which is item number 8 on your schedule. Health and Social Services, operations expenditures, appropriation authorization required, $103.023 million.
Agreed.
Agreed. Thank you. We’ll go to item 10, which is the Department of Education, Culture and Employment, appropriation authority required, $89.897 million.
Agreed.
Thank you. Transportation, which is item 11, Department of Transportation, appropriation authority required, $29.848 million. Mr. Menicoche.
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. I was just speaking earlier in the House about the efforts of Highway No. 7 and part of this interim appropriation. I’d like to know what’s being appropriated for the maintenance of Highway No. 7 for this coming fiscal year. Like I indicated is the concern, is that we cannot wait until our full budget in May/June because it’s typical that April or May is when our highway collapses. I’d like to know what’s being appropriated from our O and M budget for the efforts of Highway No. 7 and the safety of our travelling public in the Nahendeh riding.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The budget before us has money for highway maintenance. It’s not broken out. I don’t have the specific information for the Highway No. 7 maintenance costs. The capital budget has already been passed and we had a discussion today about the plan of the government as we deal with our borrowing limit to enable us to make key strategic infrastructure investments in the coming months.
I made the case that there is no money, I already know that. What I’m asking is in O and M budget we have to take some planning for this coming spring thaw and potential collapse of Highway No. 7 for the travelling public. I was trying to get at what’s being allocated within the Transportation budget and what exactly is the plan in the interim on this interim budget.
There is, if I look at the list before me, a highway and airport maintenance in Fort Liard, $903,000; there’s highway maintenance in Fort Simpson, $1.4 million; winter road construction and maintenance, Zone 6, Wrigley area, $590,000. These specifically speak to the Member’s constituency.
I think these speak to the existing contracts that are there that need to carry out for the next three or four months, I believe. I’m not satisfied unless I get the answer to exactly what’s going to be done about Highway No. 7 and the spring thaw this coming spring.
There are two potential options. I could commit to get the information from the Department of Transportation, or Minister Ramsay will be back tomorrow and ready to appear before the House on Friday. Either way, I can commit to get the information. I don’t have the detail that the Member is asking of me today.
With that, I don’t know; I would urge my committee members, if I can get their support, to defer this item until later.
Does that need to be in the form of a motion to defer it? Defer Transportation?
---Interjection
Okay. I’d like to ask the committee: Do you agree that we’ll defer the consideration of the interim appropriation for the Department of Transportation until Mr. Menicoche has the answers he’s seeking to his questions?
Agreed.
Thank you. Okay. Moving on, then. That was Transportation. We will defer that. The next item is Industry, Tourism and Investment, which is item 12 on your schedule. Industry, Tourism and Investment, appropriation authority required, $11.909 million.
Agreed.
I know we didn’t ask any other Members comments on Transportation but we have deferred it. We’re on ITI and we have just said agreed, but we will go to Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I’m sorry; I am a little confused. I did want to know, when I look at the spending for ITI I realize it’s for a three month period but the spending for energy is $112,000. It’s an extremely puny amount compared to what we have been used to spending annually over the last four years. I’d like to know from the Minister if that is an indication of the funds that we’re going to be spending on energy projects in the next fiscal year, or is there a particular reason why this is such a small amount?
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Madam Chair. There are a number of programs that have sunsetted, which is reflected here in a diminished amount.
Thanks to the Minister. I guess a follow-up question would be: Can the Minister give us any indication whether the full budget that’s coming up will continue to provide for energy projects which are either in the works or which we saw in the last Assembly as planned for future years? Will any of those be in the next budget, or are they going to be special initiatives that may need extra money that we don’t have at the moment?
The money, the last year of the $60 million four-year Energy Fund concludes at the end of March. We do not have the replacement funds for that in place at this point. There are a number of programs that were added to the base but there are a lot of sunsets. The challenge going forward coming when we get to May when the borrowing limit is cleared up and we look at what type of infrastructure investments we want to plan for one of the areas, of course in addition to the red flag capital list, is going to be the whole area of energy.
Just a comment. I would like to say that I think this is an area in which we need to be well aware that it’s one of our priorities. It’s an area which will only serve to make us more efficient over the long term. I’m glad to hear the Minister say, I think I heard him say that it’s a priority for him to try and reinstate some of the funding, the $60 million funding that we had in the last Assembly. I would encourage him and all departments to take him up on his advice and make sure that we do have a major funding for energy projects in the full budget that’s coming up in May/June.
