Global pandemic has little impact on $1.9B N.W.T. government budget

If you feared job cuts or other drastic changes in N.W.T. government spending this year, stop worrying. 

A status quo budget presented in February passed through the N.W.T. Legislative Assembly with few changes, despite the international health and economic crisis caused by COVID-19.

"I guess there's concern that there's an austerity budget or something coming and I think that's just a misunderstanding," said caucus chair and Yellowknife North MLA Rylund Johnson.

"Even with the downturn in the economy, our funding is pretty stable."

MLAs voted unanimously June 9 in favour of spending $1.96 billion in 2020/2021.

That includes $1.9 billion in departmental spending proposed in February alongside an additional $28 million to satisfy the demands of MLAs and address priorities identified in the government's mandate, and another $37 million in COVID-19 related spending that will ultimately be paid by the federal government. (The $37 million includes $8.7 million for northern airlines, $4.7 million for wage supplements for low-paid workers, and a running tab of $23 million in other expenses.)

The draft budget was largely determined by work stemming from the last Assembly, Johnson said. The changes to that draft budget are outlined in the supplementary estimates tabled June 10. Those changes reflect the new government's priorities as well as negotiations between MLAs that delivered consensus on the final numbers. 

Cash for Child and Family Services

Among the spending is an additional $3.7 million for Child and Family Services to pay for more community social services workers, foster care and adoption workers and family preservation workers in the regions. A further $2.6 million will be spent on mental health and wellness counselling for children, youth and families in Yellowknife, with another $600,000 to expand the Healthy Family Program. 

The final budget also includes an extra $2.6 million for municipal governments, something Finance Minister Caroline Wawzonek said was based on a funding agreement already in place. 

According to Wawzonek, the negotiating process that brought the house to consensus on the final budget also included:

• $600,000 for Indigenous Language Revitalization.
• $615,000 to expand a dialysis unit in Hay River.
• $500,000 for child-care spaces.
• More than $300,000 for food security, including more money for the Community Harvester Assistance Program. 

The supplementary spending also includes almost $4 million to fight forest fires. Wawzonek says that reflects the government's desire to spend more fighting fires up front, before they get out of control. Marshaling funds to do that now, she said, would mean not having to do so after the forest fire season. 

Only one budget cut is evident. That was $339,000 that would have paid for two lawyers to tackle "unauthorized and rights-based occupancy" in the N.W.T. for the Department of Lands. While the department will still tackle the issue, the decision was made, Johnson said, to apply one lawyer to the matter instead of three. "You don't need the lawyers until you've started actually issuing the ... removal orders," he said.

Change still coming

Having passed its operational budget, the government will now move into working on the business plans, which will guide next year's budget, which Johnson — among others — hopes will be more reflective of the government's goals. 

"I would have liked to see some bigger changes to how the GNWT [government of the Northwest Territories] operates and some larger departmental shifts, but I recognize that perhaps in the middle of a pandemic, departments just need the rest of the year's fiscal funding and some stability to get through this," Johnson said. 

"To have people moving departments and moving positions right now, I don't think there would be public support for it."

Both Johnson and Wawzonek emphasized the fact the budget passed unanimously, and with great collaboration. 

"I think everyone not just voted in support of this budget but was genuinely in support of this budget," Johnson said.