Yes, Mr. Chair.
Evidence of meeting #85 for Public Accounts in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was ncc.
A video is available from Parliament.
Evidence of meeting #85 for Public Accounts in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was ncc.
A video is available from Parliament.
Noon
Liberal
Noon
Chief Executive Officer, National Capital Commission
Probably, the important document in question is the NCC's asset condition report of its official residence portfolio, which is a public document.
Noon
Liberal
Noon
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
I recommend that you provide that to the committee so they can actually see, again, the asset management plan, the provider lists and the funding. This is not just a one-off. This is actually part of a bigger picture as it relates to your fiduciary responsibility, quite frankly, of the assets you manage.
The next question is, in terms of your unfunded liabilities as per the asset management plan, are there any unfunded liabilities that are identified that are not part of your asset management plan?
Noon
Chief Executive Officer, National Capital Commission
I would answer that by saying that we still have a deferred asset maintenance deficit. Is that an unfunded liability? To a certain extent, yes—
Noon
Chief Executive Officer, National Capital Commission
—but that would all be articulated.
Noon
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
We all understand whether we own our home, we own a car or we own asset individually.... A business under proper business practice or a public entity under proper business practice would identify asset repair maintenance that goes along with the life cycle. Of course, the second part of that is an ultimate reserve that has to be established to replace that asset.
Do you actually have reserves, not only to repair or maintain, but also to replace the assets once they hit the life cycle?
Noon
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
You do. Okay.
You do pay-as-you-go when you can for the capital side in your capital budgeting, but obviously, sometimes your capital budgeting may impact your operating budget as it relates to financing debt.
Do you actually finance the debt, as well, through your operating...?
Noon
Chief Executive Officer, National Capital Commission
We do not have the legislative capacity to take on debt.
Noon
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
So, there's no debt at all. It's all pay-as-you-go.
Essentially, when you have projects like this—or any project, for that matter—they have to be done through the prioritization of your asset management plan, and a project has to be financed with no debt.
Noon
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
Okay.
My last question, Mr. Chairman, is with respect to what the committee has been provided.
I do think, with all due respect, that some of the questions might be.... I'm not saying that anyone's being political here, because I'm sure they're not. They're actually looking at the best interests of the taxpayers today and, equally important, of tomorrow by not deferring liabilities and literally landing that on the next generation of those who would otherwise have to take on that responsibility because it's been deferred.
Essentially, what I would actually do is provide the committee with that information so that they can see it. Therefore, with their fiduciary responsibility and our fiduciary responsibility on behalf of the taxpayers of Canada, we can make the proper decisions based on what's being presented to us both with respect to the asset management plan and the financing plan attached to it. The second part of that is any unfunded liabilities that would otherwise be deferred to the next generation of taxpayers.
Mr. Chairman, how much time do I have left?
Noon
Conservative
The Chair Conservative John Williamson
I'm afraid you're out of time.
I was going to allow Mr. Nussbaum to respond, but—
Noon
Conservative
The Chair Conservative John Williamson
Yes, I'm afraid that takes us to the end.
I want to thank the National Capital Commission for appearing today. I appreciate it and your agreement to respond to some of the questions with the documents you said you would get back to us.
I'm going to excuse you all, please, and suspend this meeting for about five minutes. We will return in camera.
Again, thank you very much.
I'm suspending the meeting.
[Proceedings continue in camera]