Thank you. I'll go to the deputy minister.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Yeah, so good question. The numbers do look odd here. But the way it works basically for emergency management for disasters is that once a disaster happens, we activate our disaster assistance policy, which is an executive council policy, and then we would go to the financial management board to seek appropriation for the amount of the damage that we think has happened. At that point in time, we'll be getting an appropriation.
So what we're seeing in the main estimates for 2024-2025 and the decrease, the 2024-2025 is the damage from the previous disasters that we've already had. And the funding for 2024-2025 is disasters -- so if something happens this year, it's not funded yet. It would happen after disaster happens. Thank you. B
Thank you. I'll go to the Member from Monfwi.
I was going to ask, too, I know last year, last summer, we brought forward Bill 98, an amendment to the Emergency Management Act. So I just wanted to ask the Minister if there's any update, or are there plan to update the disaster assistance policy?
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Minister.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. There is a plan to review that policy once the afteraction review is completed. Thank you.
Thank you. I'll go to the Member from Monfwi.
At the last Assembly, there were six new positions that was approved, and it seems like the six new position, it's all going to be in -- it's all in the headquarters, nothing in the regional. Is there any positions that's been allocated to the regions?
Thank you. I'll go to the Minister.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm going to pass this off to the director, please.
Thank you. I'll go to the director.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Last year we did re-profile positions in each of the regions to be emergency management coordinator positions in each of the regions last year. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Member from Monfwi.
Okay. With that in mind, is there any new position created in Tlicho region?
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Minister.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm going to pass this off to the director again.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the director.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Yes, one of those positions is a coordinator position in Behchoko. Thank you.
Thank you. I'll go to the Member from Monfwi.
Okay. Well, thank you, that's good to know.
For the contract services, I know that, you know, there's a big difference from 2022-2023 to current. Well, last year there was $100 million, so now it went down to $29 million. Can they explain that to us, why this contract services is low? Did they -- so where are we spending more money? Because it doesn't seem like there's lots for the emergency management here. Thank you.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Minister.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm going to ask the director to speak to this again. Thank you.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the director.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. The funding differences that are showing up in contract services is strictly related to the flood and wildfire budgets and the expenditures that we're seeing that and changes in that line item year over year. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Member from Monfwi.
I would like to ask if all the contracts are paid up to date for the contract services?
Thank you. I'll go to the Minister or the director.
With that detail, Mr. Chair, the director.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Yes, the contracts are paid up to date. And I will also add that we have accrued quite a few funding amounts for this fiscal year to still be paid out once the work has been completed. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'll go to the Member from Monfwi.
I have no more further questions for this page. Thank you.
Thank you. Is there any further questions? No further questions, please turn to page 356.
Municipal and Community Affairs, emergency management, operations expenditure summary, 2024-2025 Main Estimates, $29,902,000. Does the committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you. Moving on to the public safety, beginning on page 358 with information items on page 361. Are there any questions? I'm going to go to the Member from Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. So in regard to the 9-1-1 program, can the Minister explain whether the 9-1-1 program is currently cost neutral or whether there are plans to make it a cost neutral program; i.e., the fees that go on phone bills will pay for the program itself?
Thank you. I'll go to the Minister.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. The program is required to be cost neutral. So, yes, it is and will be cost neutral.
Thank you. I'm going to go to the Member from Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. And so it looks like the budget is increasing from last year's $1.274 million to this year's $1.527 million. Can the Minister explain what are the reasons for the increase in cost there? Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'll go to the Minister.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. For that detail, I'm going to pass it off to the director, please.
Thank you. I'll go to the director.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. The reason for the increase in costs is related to some staffing we are adding in to the 9-1-1 area to alleviate some of the costs we're seeing related to overtime. And because of the analysis that we had done, we had justified the need to add in more positions. One would be an emergency medical dispatcher's position as well as some relief positions. That is factored into the amount the Minister was alluding to earlier in terms of needing to increase our cost levy to make the program cost neutral.
We're also, in public safety, adding a position in the Office of the Fire Marshal for regulatory purposes. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'll go to the Member from Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. So my first question is if it was determined that adding of the new positions would actually save money because it would lower -- is -- let me just first clarify. Is what I heard that it will -- the intent is to save money because we'll be paying less money in overtime? And if so, why do we see an increase in funding? Or is the intent to sort of make the human resources sort of more sustainable in the long term? Can the Minister just clarify whether we're saving money by adding these now positions. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'll go to the Minister.
Thank you. And, again, for that detail, I'll pass it off to the director Jennifer.
Thank you. I'll go to the director.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I apologize for not being clearer in the first part of the response. There is two things happening. One is we identified that because the legislation requires us to be cost neutral, our expenses were actually more than what we were budgeted, so we had to ask for some additional funding in this program area for 9-1-1. So it's twofold. One in terms of the additional expenses we have that we were not budgeted for, and also some savings in the staffing area, if you will, to flat line, so to speak, any -- to offset the additional costs we were having in overtime. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. I'll go to the Member from Yellowknife North.
