HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY MANAGEMENT COMMISSION
MINUTES
A meeting of the House of Assembly Management Commission was held in the Committee Room, One Government Place, on Tuesday, September 12, 2017 at 3:00 p.m.
Present were: Chair, Hon. Kevin Murphy, Mr Gordon Wilson, Hon. Geoff MacLellan, Mr Chuck Porter, Hon. Labi Kousoulis, Hon. Chris d’Entremont, Mr Tim Halman, Hon. David Wilson and Mr Neil Ferguson, Chief Clerk.
Also present were Gordon D. Hebb, Q.C., Chief Legislative Counsel, Deborah Lusby, Director of Administration, Office of the Speaker and Annette M. Boucher, Q.C., Assistant Clerk
1) Minutes of the April 4, 2017 meeting
It was moved by Hon. Chris d’Entremont and seconded by Mr Gordon Wilson that the minutes of the April 4, 2017 meeting be approved as circulated.
CARRIED
2) Section 52 of the House of Assembly Management Commission Regulations
Mr Ferguson reminded the Commission members that pursuant to Section 52, the Commission may annually on April 1st increase the fixed amounts for member expenses set out in the Regulations by the lower of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for Nova Scotia or the core Consumer Price Index for Canada.
It was moved by Hon. Geoff MacLellan and seconded by Mr Gordon Wilson that under Section 52 of the House of Assembly Management Commission Regulations, there be no increase in members’ allowable expenses equal to the increase in the Consumer Price Index for the 2017-18 fiscal year.
CARRIED
3) House of Assembly Management Commission Audit Committee appointment
Annette Boucher informed the Commission members that pursuant to subsection 3(6) of the House of Assembly Management Commission Act the Commission members ceased holding office on the day prior to the General Election in May 2017. Consequently, pursuant to clause 15(2)(a) of the Act, the Commission was required at this meeting to select two of its members as members of the Audit Committee.
It was moved by Hon. Geoff MacLellan and seconded by Mr Chuck Porter that pursuant to Section 15 of the House of Assembly Management Commission Act, the House of Assembly Management Commission hereby appoints members Hon. Labi Kousoulis and Hon. Chris d’Entremont as members of the Commission’s Audit Committee for a term commencing September 12, 2017 to continue until such time as they are replaced by the Commission.
CARRIED
4) Director’s Update
(a) Financials: 4th Quarter report for 2016-17 as of March 31, 2017, Final
Ms Lusby pointed out that this report was distributed to Commission members in advance of the meeting. There was nothing unusual to report.
(a) 2016-17 Audit Update and 2017-18 Audit Plan
Ms Lusby reported that representatives from the Auditor General’s office would be attending the Audit Committee meeting to present the 2016-17 Audit Update and 2017-18 Audit Plan. The Audit report which included a review of internal controls and compliance with the Regulations, does not contain any recommendation and thus is a “clean” audit. She will report further at the next Commission meeting.
(a) Risk Assessment – April business continuity exercise
Ms Lusby informed the Commission that the business continuity tabletop exercise took place on April 24 with the legislative managers, the Sergeant-at-Arms, Emad Aziz (the manager of business continuity and disaster recovery) and Matt Dunn (the Province of Nova Scotia’s risk manager). The exercise took several hours and considered what kind of communications needs are required; what type of message is required; to whom the message is directed to; whether communication with the public is required and if so which type; are House sittings or Committee meetings cancelled; who is the decision-maker; is an alternate Legislature location required; etc. It was a good exercise to participate in as it identified key issues for further consideration. A debrief was held to identify strengths and weaknesses as well as threats and opportunities.
The next step is to review the House of Assembly business continuity plan and make any necessary revisions based on the lessons learned during the exercise.
The meeting adjourned at 3:10 p.m.
These minutes were approved by the Management Commission on December 12, 2017.
Certified
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Speaker
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Chief Clerk
