Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, earlier I spoke about conditions in housing in Nunakput, and my questions are for the Minister of Housing. Mr. Speaker, my first question is: can the Minister provide an overview of the NWT Housing Corporation's rules and procedures for evictions, specifically during the winter months? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Evictions are not an easy thing. When I first came in, my objective was to be able to provide people with the tools so that they could obtain, maintain, and retain their housing. Eviction does not fit within any of those priorities of my own. It is a last resort. It has always been a last resort for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation. The process we go through is, first of all, the local housing organizations work closely with the tenants to try to get them to deal with their arrears and set up a repayment plan. If that follows through, then the process is stopped, and then we just deal with the tenants and work towards them paying their current rent and dealing with a payment plan on their arrears.
If the repayment plan is not followed through or people refuse to enter into a repayment plan, then, sad to say, we do take them to the rental officer, which does sometimes take a few months to get through. The rental officer then provides an order, and usually it's telling people, if it's around arrears, to pay their rent and make a repayment plan. If it's around damages, that might be a different order. Most of the people actually adhere to the rental officer's orders. The last process within the step is when people do not enter into a repayment plan, do not work with the local housing organization, and do not adhere to the rental officer's orders; then we will start the eviction process.
The process specifically in the winter, there is no process. When I first came in to take over as Minister for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation, I was shocked at the amount of arrears people had. My direction has been: after two months of not paying rent, start the eviction process. It is a lot easier for people to pay a couple of months' rent than it is to let it build up for a whole season and have thousands of dollars that they cannot get out of. That is my direction, and I stand by it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I thank the Minister for that detailed response. Mr. Speaker, my second question for the Minister is: when can the Northwest Territories expect to see the Corporation roll out projects funded by the federal government's new National Housing Strategy?
The territorial government is hopeful that the National Housing Strategy will be finalized for the fiscal year 2018-2019. We are still in negotiations with the federal government on what the National Housing Strategy will look like for the Northwest Territories. We have, so far, a firm commitment that $36 million will be provided over 10 years. That's $3.6 million per year, and we're still negotiating further housing support that they can provide because, in my humble opinion, $3.6 million a year is not going to address our housing needs.
I appreciate the response. Mr. Speaker, with the economy slow as it is in Nunakput, it's hard to see anyone moving from outside the territory to the communities where there's no work, with market housing rentals still open, and some remain empty. Mr. Speaker, my final question for the Minister is: how will the Housing Corporation make progress in shortening the public housing waiting list in 2018-2019?
As a Minister, I am committed to addressing the wait list of people waiting for housing. It's a priority of my own. It's also a priority for all of the MLAs who have made a motion in the House to address 250 homes taking them out of core need; and so I am working diligently at meeting that figure and exceeding it is my goal. So, we have quite a few. Currently, and they remain in force, we have a CARE major program that gives up to $100,000 a year. We have a CARE minor program that gives up to $10,000 a year. We have a SAFE program that gives up to $10,000 a year, and with the SAFE program, you can even have arrears; it's about safety. We have a prevention and maintenance program that gives up to $3,000 a year for people to access services. Those are standard programs that we have and maintain, but new things that we've done is we've lowered the co-payment so that people under $60,000 no longer have to pay a co-payment. That that makes the programs more accessible.
We have a new rent supplement program for the market communities so that people who are renting rooms and are renting apartments, et cetera, can access a rent supplement to supplement the market rent. We're working with the non-government organizations, for an NGO, a rent supplement program similar to the Housing First model that is provided by the City of Yellowknife, so that more non-profits can work and get people into houses and provide the wrap-around support that is so desperately needed. We have a community housing support initiative that I really want to give kudos to. Well, first of all, it's for all municipalities or bands that are interested in working in partnership. They have to put something on the table and then we will provide, so it's a partnership.
I want to give kudos to Salt River First Nation who actually put labour and gave land, and we gave materials, and they have two beautiful homes that they've just given to members of their community. So, I want to promote that program for more governments to get on board, so we can work with them together. I can't solve this alone. We continue to the sale of public housing and we have a new lease-to-own public housing program, so that people who have been paying their rent -- so it's a reward of good behaviour, people who have paid their rent, people who haven't destroyed their homes, but can't get a mortgage, would be looking at a rent-to-own program.
We have a new home program, that is building big houses, so that we can accommodate some of the overcrowding in communities. That's a start. We have more to come, I think, Mr. Speaker, but I'm hoping that these programs will address some of the core needs that we have.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Mackenzie Delta.
