Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak to the decline of funding from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation and the challenges this decline will cause in the delivery of the Public Housing Program, as well as the potential negative impact on the condition of our housing stock.
There are clear signs that core need continues to be on the rise in Canada and in our own Territory. Earlier in this session I tabled the results of our housing needs portion of the 2009 NWT Community Survey showing that we continue to experience a growth in core housing need. This is in spite of investments made by the federal government and our own government over the last five years through the Affordable Housing Initiative, the Northern Housing Trust, as well as Canada’s Economic Action Plan, all of which saw funding matched by the Government of the Northwest Territories.
Since the NWT Housing Corporation came into being in 1974, federal funding and cost sharing of the construction has been the norm. Canada as a whole has approximately 630,000 social housing units, with 2,400 of these houses in the NWT. Many of the agreements to fund the O and M of these houses nationally will be ending in the next several years.
In the Northwest Territories, the federal cost share portion of funding for the operating and amortization costs for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation public housing portfolio is declining, and will lapse entirely by 2038. The funding reductions began in 2003-2004, with reductions increasing each year as additional project agreements expire, resulting in a significant financial shortfall to the GNWT. By the year 2038, the impact to the GNWT will be a shortfall of $348 million dollars in O and M funding.
It has been estimated that an annual ongoing capital replacement budget of $35 million is required to implement the government’s strategy, through the NWTHC, of replacing detached public housing units with multiplexes and retrofitting units twice during their design life. A capital replacement budget of $35 million annually does not, however, address the requirement for new housing stock to alleviate core need or the impact of new family formations.
Based on the 2009 NWT Community Survey results, it has been estimated that approximately an additional 2,755 new units are required in the NWT to address existing core need. This number is larger than our entire current public housing stock of approximately 2,400 units, and clearly, under our current means, we are not able to meet the demand for public housing to all residents who require it. The decline of the federal funding will further hamper our ability to adequately house our residents.
In response to the impact of reducing federal support for housing nationally, the provinces and territories are working towards the development of a business case for Parliament to consider the reinstatement of public housing subsidies as part of a national housing strategy. I have raised specific NWT concerns on the future delivery of federal housing funding at tri-territorial discussions and most recently during the FPT Housing Minister’s Conference in December 2009. Those concerns have focused on:
the need for more public housing in the NWT;
the need for increased O and M funding in support of public housing;
support for funding formulas that are not based on per capita calculations; and
the design of housing programs by the NWT that reflect the importance of housing need in the NWT.
The three territorial governments are also working collaboratively to develop a northern approach to address the high incidence of core need in our northern jurisdictions.
Mr. Speaker, our government is also taking proactive steps to mitigate the reduction in federal support towards the operation of the 2,400 public housing units. The NWT Housing Corporation, over the past several years, has invested significant federal and GNWT capital resources in renovating and replacing detached public housing with energy efficient, multi-family housing units such as triplexes and fourplexes. These units are more economical to construct and are more cost effective to maintain, especially when the utility costs are taken into account.
As well, in order to minimize the impact of the declining CMHC funding, the NWT Housing Corporation extends the design life of each public housing unit from 25 to 50 years by performing complete retrofits. These retrofits are performed 20 years after construction and again at 35 years after construction. Public housing units are planned for replacement after a period of 50 years. Units that are looked after and properly maintained will see their lifespan extended and will reduce pressure on the O and M budget. Likewise, improved payment and collection of arrears will offset some of the losses suffered from the declining CMHC funds.
The NWT Housing Corporation is working on a strategic plan, as well as a 20-year capital needs assessment. A major component of these plans will outline our efforts to address the infrastructure deficit and work to reducing core housing need across the NWT. We plan on sharing our strategic plan with all Members before the end of 2010.
While the impacts to date on GNWT revenue and expenditures have not been excessive, it is clear that the reduction in CMHC and federal investments will begin to be more acute in 2010-2011 with the expiration of a broad range of federal funding initiatives and programs aimed at housing. This, coupled with ever increasing energy, O and M, and construction costs, will be a significant challenge to the NWT in the immediate future.
While we have seen great progress made in the development of new supply over the last several years, it is also clear that the number of Northerners living in core housing need continues to be a problem that governments must tackle in a planned and strategic way. Through the proactive approaches I have outlined today and with a renewed strategic focus, I am hopeful that our public housing and homeownership programs will continue to serve our residents in the years to come.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.
