Well, it's my understanding that some of these reconciliations and costs, in other words knowing exactly what it costs and then submission of the final portion of our application to get some money back from Canada, there will be an assessment and accounting of those costs. So is the Minister saying that it's fully been costed out or costed, paid for, and reconciled and submitted for the transparency of our public accounts, or is it still being worked on? I'm asking when can that when would that be available? Thank you.
Thank you. I'm going to go to Minister Wawzonek.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. So I mean, again, certainly the public accounts do provide that type of accounting. This is this supplementary appropriation is really just seeking to make up the amount that we at this point have available to us knowing the actuals to date. I mean, there may well be, and I expect that there indeed probably are, still some amounts to be that will still be coming in to communities and then through communities to MACA from communities and community firefighting efforts up to ECC. So the total fire suppression, total firefighting budgets, and reconciliations of that, are not in front of me right now. I only have here the amounts that are with respect to the shortfall on the actuals or on the projected amounts known to date for fire suppression. So, again, public accounts is a good place to start. There's likely to be, I'd expect, in the course of the various reviews and efforts probably a lot more information that can also come out through that process. Thank you.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Member from YK Centre.
No, it's I don't have a further question. I've kind of asked it twice. But, really, I mean, when they're looking for more money, I mean, people do wonder where the money's going, what's it paying for, and how are we balancing it out in the bigger picture. It's not directly connected to the overall costs but it certainly it's like saying, you know, one part of the government isn't part of the other. So it's just there are a lot of people still wondering how much is it costing and how much do we keep paying. That's the that's ultimately the issue. So it is a comment. I'm not sure the Minister wants to comment; she doesn't have to. It's not implied that she has to. But, you know, you just people are concerned about how much keeps going out to pay for this. And it's not that they don't think that the bills are real, but I think it's more a question of like oh my goodness, how expensive does this keep getting?. Thank you.
Thank you. Does the Minister want to respond?
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I mean, again, Mr. Chair, the supplementary estimate process is one where we do main estimates as one part of the budgeting cycle, and then when there are additional unforeseen costs that arise throughout the fiscal year you would come back to the House for a supplementary appropriation. And I would think that the example of a bad fire season is often used as an example of when the government comes forward to say that they need an additional appropriation. This is exactly that situation. That's why the government came back in August, and that's why we've come back again now bringing forward the projected expenditures at the first opportunity to put before the Assembly what the expected costs of the fire suppression season were. Thank you.
Thank you. Is there any further questions from Members? I'm going to go to from Great Slave.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I would like it if the Minister or her witnesses could provide a little bit more detail on what additional funding the Bilateral Water Management Agreement needed with AlbertaNorthwest Territories? Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'm going to go to Minister Wawzonek.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. So this is money that is coming in under the requirement or to fulfill the requirements under the AlbertaNorthwest Territories Bilateral Water Management Agreement. It's a cost shared agreement between the two, and it's meant to provide water management support for the Mackenzie River Basin. That's an agreement that was signed back in 2015. It commits both governments to cooperate in terms of the management of water resources, facilitate the monitoring of the water. Obviously, it moves across the border fluidly, and reporting of upstream effects that may occur, if there's been any sort of pollution. And this is an amount that's being appropriated because as an offset from the Government of Alberta. Thank you.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Member from Great Slave.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. And thank you to the Minister. I'm curious if this additional expense had anything to do with the let's call it a dustup with Alberta around oil sands in the last fiscal year? Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'm going to go to Minister Wawzonek.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. No, it doesn't. That was a good example of the bilateral agreement. Perhaps initially not quite an action as intended but then brought back into the front of mind and being utilized thereafter hopefully as intended. No, this sup appropriation reflects the fact that money can be carried over, and in this point there's some unspent funding that's being that gets held over but can be brought forward, and that's the situation that we find ourselves in, and that money is being brought forward. Thank you.
Thank you. I'm going to go to back to the Member from Great Slave.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Nothing further.
Any further questions? I'll go to the Member from Sahtu.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I wanted to ask the Minister the questions on the crossborder water monitoring. I see later on in the department requests that we're going to be dealing with the marine training society or the Marine Transportation Services on additional funds. This is a result of the low waters that we're probably running into a deficit with that MTS service.
Is there discussions as part of the bilateral on the monitoring of the Mackenzie River Water Basin and making it known during these bilateral discussions that your management of the water levels, particularly in the site C Bennett Dam area on the release of water is really affecting the downstream services of this government and communities? Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'm going to go to Minister Wawzonek.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I'm happy to commit and take that back to my colleague. The details of the agreement itself and whether or not it involves site C or the extent to which it does, I don't have that detail and I don't know that my team here does either. But I expect that the Minister responsible would probably be happy to follow up, and we can add that in our followup letters. Thank you.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Member from the Sahtu.
Thank you. No further questions there, Mr. Chair.
Is there any further questions? Don't see any. Okay, I'm going to continue on.
Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 4, 20232024, Department of Environment and Climate Change, wildfire and forest management, not previously authorized $27,813,000. Does the committee agree?
Agreed.
Okay, thank you. Moving on, Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 2, 20232024, Department of Environment and Climate Change, total department, not previously authorized $28,752,000. Is there any questions? Don't see any. Does the committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you. Anyway, I'm going to continue on.
Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 4, 20232024, Department of Environment and Climate Change, total department, not previously authorized $28,752,000. Does the committee agree?
Agreed.
Okay, thank you. I'm going to continue on.
Committee, we will now consider the Department of Executive and Indigenous Affairs on page 5.
Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 4, 20232024, Department of Executive and Indigenous Affairs, directorate, not previously authorized $2,241,000. Is there any questions? No questions. Does the committee agree?
Agreed.
Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 4, 20232024, Department of Executive and Indigenous Affairs, total department, not previously authorized $2,241,000. Is there any questions? Don't see any hands up. I'm going to continue on. Does the committee agree?
Agreed.
Committee, we will now consider Department of Finance on page 6.
Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 4, 20232024, expenditure of finance directorate, not previously authorized $6 million. Is there any questions? I'm going to go to the Member from Range Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I know that this substantiation is to provide funding for the NWT Evacuation Travel Support Program. I have several it's becoming more than several constituents who have yet to be paid or reimbursed for their travel expenses.
Is this funding adequate to cover the I know the Minister's department is maintaining a list of those who have applied to the program. So is this is this fully funded now? Have we assessed everyone's needs and is this going to cover what we need to pay out? Thank you.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Minister of Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, to date we've had 6,336 folks apply under the income disruption; 9,515 under the travel support. And of those, quite a number, 4,800, are processed for payment under the first. 8,712 under the second. Some are ineligible so there may be duplicate applications. They maybe hadn't met the specific qualifications under each program. But at this point, there shouldn't we're not expecting that there should be a significant number of any new applications. There's still about 230 about just under 250 that are still in process or being reviewed further. But that certainly with that small number, we shouldn't be requiring anything further to support that. Thank you.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Member from Range Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. So how much have we paid out total of the Travel support program, not the employment disruption fund but the Travel support program, how much have we paid out to date? Thank you.
Thank you. I'm going to go to Minister of Finance.
$6,061,850, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Member from Range Lake.
So just so the total expenditure's going to be just over $12 million, is that accurate? Thank you.
Thank you. I'm going to go to Minister of Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I think and I just want to make I'll double check this, that I have this accurately, but I think no, it's $6 million roughly or just over $6 million is for the travel. We maintained the employment disruption from internal funds and so the total expenses on both will come in at just around $9 million. Thank you.
Thank you. I'll go back to the Member from Range Lake.
Okay, now I'm confused. So the Travel support program is $6 million, then. Okay, I see a nodding of heads. Yeah, nothing further. Thank you.
Thank you. Is there any further questions? Okay, I'm going to go to Member for Frame Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm just wondering, so the total well, I mean, we can ask about the $6 million but also the total appropriation. Is there indications that the feds are going to be coming back to the territorial government with support for this due to it being related to a natural disaster?
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Minister of Finance.
