Debates of March 9, 2005 (day 52)

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Madam Chairperson. A large part of this increase is as a result of the increased usage of hospitals outside the Northwest Territories. Almost two-thirds or three-quarters of this, actually, is in the area of increased utilization. Approximately $2.8 million was just the increased use, add another $330,000 for the additional rate increase for the services that were charged by the Capital Health Authority, and then claims processed between 2003-04 and 2004-05 is about another $800,000 or $860,000. The biggest driver here is the actual increase in use of the hospital facilities outside the Territories. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Mr. Ramsay, general comments.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I have a couple more questions that I would like to ask. The first one relates to some funding for the community of Ndilo, $29,000 to plan and design a new subdivision. I have been down in Ndilo many times, and I am just wondering where exactly in the community of Ndilo are they planning on putting a subdivision. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs has come forward with that. We know that it is for putting a plan together. I am not aware of the actual detail of where in the community this site is being looked at. Maybe the Minister has that background information. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Madam Chair. If I could maybe get that response from the Minister of MACA in terms of where exactly in Ndilo the proposed subdivision is. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I don’t have that information on me at this time. I don’t know if the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs has that available at this time, but he may have that detail that he can provide to the Member. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, Ndilo submitted a request for extraordinary funding for planning and designing a new subdivision. They have a serious issue in the community regarding accessing some funding and also to develop new lots. We don’t have exact locations. At least I don’t have that information tonight. That is all I have at this point. I could commit to getting further information. At this point, the money is earmarked and identified for planning and design of a new subdivision.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Madam Chair. When I said that I know the Premier is familiar with the community of Ndilo too, I am not familiar where there is an area you could actually put a subdivision because it is the end of Latham Island. I am wondering if the Minister can provide the information on where that new subdivision is going to go in Ndilo, if in fact it is Ndilo. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Mr. McLeod.

Madam Chair, I can’t tell you exactly where the location of the subdivision is being planned for. This money is for planning and design. My information tells me that it is at the end of the island, and we are applying for extraordinary funding because Ndilo is unable to secure the financial resources through the regular funding process. We are going through this route to do the planning and design and create a new subdivision to open up properties or some lots for what we believe would be able to accommodate their needs for three years.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Can the Minister of MACA state unequivocally that the subdivision is in fact in Ndilo proper? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Mr. McLeod.

Yes, Madam Chair.

Okay. The Minister confirms yes, it is in Ndilo. Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I would like to thank the Minister for that. I wouldn’t want to think that it was somewhere else. The Minister knows where I am thinking of too. I think that is probably about all I had, Madam Chair. Thank you.

Thank you. General comments, Mr. Yakeleya.

I understand there is some extra funding going to the Centre for Northern Families and also the Salvation Army for short-term needs for homeless individuals in the communities. Is that something that we are expecting every year? We certainly need that type of money in our communities. Is this the type of funding that is going to come up every year in the supps? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, as the process would work, the department comes forward with a request for money for either a new program or programs that they didn’t have enough funds for, if the usage was too high. In this particular case, we have requested and there is work underway within the department to come up with an approach to deal with this. We are looking at, once this is developed, that it would become part of the business planning process, not being dealt with strictly through a supplementary appropriation process. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Mr. Yakeleya. General comments.

Detail.

Okay, detail. I will ask Members to please turn to page 5 of Bill 20. Executive operations expenditures, executive offices, special warrants, $50,000.

Agreed.

Not previously authorized, $496,000.

Agreed.

Total executive offices, special warrants, $50,000, not previously authorized, $496,000.

Agreed.

Thank you. Page 6, Executive, Financial Management Board Secretariat, labour relations and compensation services, special warrants, zero, not previously authorized, $323,000. Total for Financial Management Board Secretariat, not previously authorized, $323,000. Total department, special warrants, $50,000, not previously authorized, $819,000.

Agreed.

Thank you. Mr. Yakeleya.

Can I get an explanation from the Minister in terms of this supp here?

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, the transfer of the pay office from the Stanton Territorial Health Authority took place and moved into the Financial Management Board Secretariat. This is the money that goes along with that.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Executive, operations expenditures, total department, special warrants, $50,000, not previously authorized, $819,000.

Agreed.

Thank you. Finance, operations expenditures, treasury, not previously authorized, $300,000. Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Madam Chair. What does the Minister mean by doubtful accounts for property and fuel tax revenues? What are the doubtful accounts?

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, in the area of doubtful accounts, within the Department of Finance, there is a built in reserve for accounts where we send out invoices on an annual basis. Once Municipal and Community Affairs has done their assessments, that comes over to us and we send out invoices on an annual basis around property taxes. As we realize through the year that the account isn’t being paid and if it carries over to the next year, then we have to realize that account as unlikely to be paid. So we have to build in a reserve. This is an accounting exercise that we put in place.

The fuel tax revenues work somewhat differently. Fuel taxes are collected on a monthly basis from corporations. In this one particular case, we weren’t able to secure payment for those fuel taxes before the company went out of business. We can’t carry that on the books as revenue coming in because we doubt, in fact, that we will be able to receive that. That is what we do as well with property taxes. When we feel that we won’t be able to collect on those taxes, it wouldn’t be appropriate to continue to count them on the revenue side of the chart, so we put them onto the doubtful accounts. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Mr. Yakeleya.

So, Madam Chair, the doubtful accounts on the property taxes, isn’t that worked out with the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs in terms of some of the taxes or is it solely the responsibility of the GNWT in terms of…Are we telling some of the people in the communities and regions and here in Yellowknife that property taxes can be written off? Don’t pay your bill because we could cover it anyway. I don’t know what the message is here in terms of doubtful accounts. Just for clarification, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, when we put in an account into the doubtful accounts section, we do not stop from having that on the books and continuing to pursue payment. It is not a forgiveness. It is not a write-off. The debt stays there. We continue to go after it. It continues to accrue interest even. But we can’t account for it in the revenue side because, if a company has gone out of business, we know that it probably won’t get paid, or if they have gone into receivership or filed with the courts for protection, this is the same as with individuals when people are issued a property tax invoice and they haven’t been paying it. We, at some point, have to recognize that it is doubtful that we will receive that. So we have to book it that way. This particular section deals with companies and corporations, as well as communities in a general taxation area. For example, in Yellowknife, Inuvik and Norman Wells, those are municipal taxation authorities. They have their own avenue of going after the taxes and collecting the taxes and, in fact, going as far as going after the property and selling property if, in fact, they go beyond that.

This is for the general taxation area as well as the corporations and some of the filings that happen outside of the municipal taxation authorities. Thank you.