Thank you. Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks, Madam Chair; yeah, you can give me a promotion.
Yeah, look, I think I understand something of what these folks do and it is important work and we have to make sure that there's a safe workplace for all our employees. But I just wonder how we approach this as a government. You know, do these people only serve and work with Infrastructure staff, or do they serve other government departments as well and how and if not, how do other government departments meet the needs in terms of occupational health and safety for their employees? So yeah, I guess that's a question for the Minister here. It's probably more of an issue of how do we approach occupational health and safety as a government. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you, Madam Chair. So each department is responsible for their own occupational and health safety of their department. I don't think I want to speak to some of the other departments and what and where their occupational health and safety positions are. I do want to note, though, Madam Chair, while the Member was speaking about a position, the highway transportation officer was a request from the region because there were, you know, issues on Highway no. 1, on Highway no. 3, and, you know, this is result of the communities coming back to us and leadership coming back to us to ensure that we maintain all health and safety of the highways. Thank you.
Thank you. Member for Frame Lake.
Okay, thanks. I think I'm going to have ask some questions of the Minister of Finance, then, when we get to that department about how our government approaches the issue of occupational health and safety across the whole government because, you know, with different departments are having these occupational health and safety officers of different, they only serve one department, and they it's kind of doesn't seem like there's a coordinated approach, so I'll just leave it at that. I'll have questions then for the Minister of Finance when we get there.
But on the highway transportation officer, is this new position going to be serving the Tlicho AllSeason Road as well? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, yes, that's the plan, to be able to look at. But not only that but to support the other position, and that's located due to some safety issues and regulatory issues. But if I can get deputy minister Mr. Loutitt to be able to explain because I mean, I asked that question as well. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you. Deputy minister Loutitt.
Thank you, Madam Chair. We made a decision or we wanted to get this position in Yellowknife so that would support the other highway patrol. And Yellowknife is the only in the only area that we have a single highway patrol officer, and we have 60 percent of the commercial vehicles in the Northwest Territories located. It does require two officers to inspect, and the Workers Safety and Compensation Commission recommends two officers for patrols from a safety perspective. So it makes sense. We have two in Inuvik. We have five in Enterprise. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you. Member for Frame Lake.
Okay, thanks, Madam Chair. Is there any possibility that this position could be located in Edzo? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, we looked at that as an option, and it's that's not the decision that's going to be going forward. Thank you.
Thank you. Member for Frame Lake.
Okay, yeah, thanks, Madam Chair. We'll I guess we'll have a discussion about that.
But I think that's all the questions I have on this section. I'm just going to look at my notes. Thanks, Madam Chair. That's it.
Thank you. Are there any further questions from Members on programs and services? Member for Thebacha.
Thank you, Madam Chair. On page 252, contract services, are the actuals for 20212022 were 6 million 302 and then we go down on the 20212022, and then down, everything else is down to $1.7 million. I'm just wondering why the decrease?
Thank you. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, there is a variance of 4.5. $2.2 million of that is absorbed the department had to absorb that as part of our NTS service deficit so that we can stay within some of our authorization stable limits. The other 2.7 that you'll see on page 252 speaks to the department had to absorb fuel service division deficit so that we can, again, stay within some of our stabilization limits. So that's the decrease in that line. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you. Member for Thebacha.
So my second question is I don't know a lot about MTS but just from the figures, and so the main contractor is ORC, or whatever, and it's a threeyear contract; am I correct?
Thank you. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes, that is correct.
Thank you. Member. It's okay. Member for Thebacha.
Madam Chair, I'm a little bit tired. So Madam Chair, I'm just wondering would that contract be going out for tender when the time comes, or is it going to be sole sourced?
Thank you, Member. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, that just went out in I believe the contract was just awarded in October of 2021, and it is for a threeyear contract. But I mean, at the time that was put out for tender, so. Thank you.
Thank you. Member for Thebacha.
So the next question I have is on page 253, you have ten positions allocated for this coming 20222023. The ten positions in the South Slave. How is that divided? For which communities? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you. Member for sorry. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, if you look at the active positions from 20212022 and then 20222023, there's only an increase of one, and that's what's put in the occupational health and safety specialist. So the breakdown is so we're only increasing it by two. So the South Slave will be ten. The Deh Cho, seven. The Sahtu, one. And the Beaufort Delta, seven. And the North Slave, six. That's the breakdown of the positions. There's only two new positions that have been included.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Thebacha.
Madam Chair, I said with the South Slave positions. There are several South Slave communities. I want to know how that well, if we even go to the nine positions, because we know one is going to Hay River now. So I want to know how that's broken down with the South Slave. Are they so how many in Fort Smith? How many in Fort Res? How many in Hay River? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to note that all the MTS positions are in Hay River. So that's why you see the number there. It relates to just MTS.
I think the next section when we get into some of our regional OPs, you'll be able to see much more of some of the positions there. But under this section that talks specifically about MTS, that's where the majority of those positions are, because it fits through our fiscal projects in that area. So that's why it's high in that area. But if we get into some of the the next section, you'll be able to see some of the other positions equally. Thanks.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Thebacha.
I don't have any other questions, Madam Chair.
Are there any further questions from Members on programs and services?
If there are none, please turn to page 252, Infrastructure, programs and services, operations expenditure summary, 20222023 Main Estimates, $16,716,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. We will now move on to I'm just going to yeah, move on to regional operations. And that begins on page 254, with information items on 255 to 257. Questions. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Can I just get the total amount we are spending on road salt right now?
Thank you. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. And I think I said this number yesterday but I'm just it's about almost $400,000.
Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. No, I believe the Minister was asking for 478,000 more money in road salt but I'm looking for the total that would bring us up to. I believe we're spending quite a bit more than that already. Thank you.
Thank you. Minister of Infrastructure.
Sorry, Madam Chair. I thought the Member was asked to off the top of my head to be able to say how much more we're asking. Our total budget for salt is $1.1 million. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Yellowknife North.
Yeah, I guess when bringing forward this ask for a half million dollars in salt, it seems like a lot. Can I get, you know what is the temperature we don't put salt on the roads and for how many months of the year essentially are we not salting the roads? Thank you.
