2021 fall sitting of the Yukon Legislative Assembly concludes

The 2021 fall sitting of the Yukon Legislative Assembly concluded today. The 2021–22 First Supplementary Estimates received assent along with seven pieces of legislation on the final day of the 31 day sitting.

The 2021–22 First Supplementary Estimates includes funding to support Yukoners through COVID-19 and historic flooding while providing early learning opportunities for children. The supplementary budget includes:

• nearly $10 million for the Yukon’s universal Early Learning and Childcare initiatives;
• close to $21 million to support the tourism and aviation sectors, as well as public health measures in response to COVID-19;
• more than $11 million to support the historic flood response and recovery of the Southern Lakes and Lake Laberge;
• $3.7 million to develop rural residential lots in rural communities such as Haines Junction, Dawson City and Watson Lake;
• $2.4 million to create modular classrooms at the Robert Service School;
• $1.7 million for renovations needed at Copper Ridge Place; and
• $1 million in increased funding for the Innovative and Renewable Energy Initiative that will help increase the supply of renewable energy and reduce diesel consumption in the Yukon.

The 2020–21 Public Accounts were tabled in the Legislative Assembly during the fall sitting, showing a return to surplus for the 2020–21 fiscal year. The Public Accounts report that the annual surplus for 2020–21 was $19.3 million, an increase of $15.2 million from the $4.1 million surplus forecast at the start of the fiscal year. The increased surplus is the result of the Yukon’s responsible fiscal management and positive relationship with the federal government as the territory navigated the challenges associated with COVID-19.

Over the last year, the Yukon government has been able to leverage significant federal recoveries to ensure that Yukon individuals and businesses remain supported through the most difficult phases of the pandemic while also reducing the financial impact to the government’s bottom line.

Several new pieces of legislation received assent that will improve the lives of Yukoners by promoting equity, increasing road and community safety, enhancing worker protection, supporting local businesses and providing more clarity for resource road use to support the sustainable and environmentally responsible growth of the Yukon’s resource economy.

An amendment to the Family Property and Support Act provides equal and fair access to spousal support for both married and common law spouses in the Yukon.

Amendments to the Motor Vehicles Act enhance impaired and dangerous driving laws in the Yukon by providing enforcement officers with better tools to impose penalties for impaired driving, expanding the ability to impound vehicles and updating the ignition interlock device program.

Changes to the Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods Act enable the Yukon’s Safer Communities and Neighbourhood Unit to investigate illegal activities related to child abuse and sexual exploitation, firearms and gang and criminal organizations, where these activities are adversely affecting a community or neighbourhood. The changes do not impact the lawful possession; use; sale; purchase; storage or transportation of firearms.

The Act to Amend the Territorial Lands (Yukon) Act (2021) gives the Government of Yukon the ability to implement, administer and enforce the new Resource Roads Regulation that is under development. The Yukon’s mining and resource sectors often require new or upgraded access to enable growth and economic development. The Resource Roads Regulation will provide more clarity to companies, and more tools for regulators to ensure that the Yukon’s resource economy grows in a sustainable and environmentally responsible way. The Resource Roads Regulation is still in development and expected to be complete in spring 2022.

Amendments to the Cannabis Control and Regulation Act will allow private cannabis retailers in the Yukon to begin e-commerce and home delivery to Yukoners over the age of 19 once regulations are finalized.

The new Workers’ Safety and Compensation Act is the most progressive workplace safety and compensation legislation in Canada. It will ensure that worker safety and the care of injured workers is always kept at the forefront, in step with changing workplace conditions. The new Act is the result of extensive public engagement that found Yukon employers, workers and stakeholders support the modernization of legislation that enhances safety and compensation systems within the territory. The new Act replaces the Workers’ Compensation Act and the Occupational Health and Safety Act.

Amendments to the Territorial Court Judiciary Pension Plan Act implement the recommendations received in the 2016 Final Report of the Judicial Compensation Commission and address the pensions of the judiciary. Reviews of judicial salaries and benefits by the commission occur every three years.

The fall sitting saw a number of witnesses appear before the Legislative Assembly including:

• The Yukon’s acting Chief Medical Officer of Health;
• the President and Chair of the Board of Governors of Yukon University;
• the Chair and the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Yukon Workers’ Compensation Health and Safety Board;
• the Chief Executive Officer and Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Yukon Hospital Corporation;
• the President and Chief Executive Officer and the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Yukon Energy Corporation; and
• the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Yukon Development Corporation.