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Members' Handbook

RESEARCH SERVICES

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135. RESEARCH SERVICES

Research Services undertakes research and analysis on behalf of Members and Committees of the Legislative Assembly, the Speaker and the Clerk, as well as providing broad policy advice. This includes research on the background, history and key considerations of matters of interest to individual Members and Committees, such as those related to GNWT policies, programs and services, and issues of territorial and national significance to residents of the Northwest Territories. It also includes assistance with the preparation of briefing materials and Committee reports for Standing Committees and speaking notes, Members’ Statements and oral and written questions for individual Members.

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Work prepared by research staff is objective, non-partisan and impartial. The Director, Research and Committee Advisory Services and Legislative Assembly Advisors will not present personal opinions as fact nor canvas support for Members’ activities.

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135.1 Research Services for Members

Research services are available to all Members. Members may request information or analysis of any topic of interest to them in their role as Members. Services for Cabinet Ministers are limited to matters outside the mandate of their assigned departments. Requests must directly relate to the Minister’s duties as a Member on behalf of their constituency.

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CONFIDENTIALITY

Research support to individual Members is provided on a confidential basis. The identity of the Member making a request, and Members’ areas of interest, are not shared with other Members, and are only shared amongst research staff to the extent necessary to fulfill a research request.

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When more than one Member requests similar research, the findings from the research conducted may be shared with all interested Members. However, Members will not be informed as to which other Members have requested similar information.

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Distribution of materials generated by Research Services is at the discretion of the Member for whom it was produced. A Member who intends to table or otherwise make research information public is encouraged to discuss this beforehand with the Director. If research materials are distributed by a Member, the identity of the Advisor must be kept confidential.

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MAKING A REQUEST

Requests for research assistance must be directly by the Member, ideally in writing by email, to the Director. The scope of the request should be clearly defined. Research Services can assist Members with drafting research requests if required. Legislative Assembly Advisors are not mandated to accept assignments from executive assistants, departmental officials, other staff or constituents.

 

The Director reserves the right to assign or re-assign research projects to Advisors on the basis of workload, expertise and familiarity with the subject matter. The assignment of research projects to Advisors tends to align with the subject areas of expertise of the Standing Committee that the Advisor provides support to.

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PRIORITY

Legislative Assembly Advisors recognize that some requests arise under extremely tight time lines. Advisors will endeavor to assist Members to the greatest extent possible. However, to ensure satisfactory service, Members are encouraged to submit any requests for assistance at the earliest possible opportunity. Advisors must balance their support to individual Members with their support to Standing Committees. For this reason, Legislative Assembly Advisors may not be able to begin a project that is very time consuming while the House or Committees are sitting. Extensive, long-term projects require the written approval of the Director.

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Projects are handled on a first come, first served basis. Research Services should be advised of deadlines and other relevant information when a request is made. Requests for assistance for speaking points or questions for later than same day may not be accepted. Where a Member has several requests underway, the Member must prioritize their requests. The Director is ultimately responsible for ensuring balance and fairness to all Members and to the work of Committees.

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SCOPE OF SERVICES

Legislative Assembly Advisors can assist Members by:

  • obtaining background information and documents on a subject, including interjurisdictional research;

  • preparing briefing notes or other analysis of an issue;

  • preparing or editing correspondence or other written material for Members, where the correspondence or material relates to research information or analysis provided; and

  • Assisting with the drafting of Members’ Statements, oral and written questions, and speaking notes for debates in the House and preparing speaking notes for any Member attending an event as a formal delegate on behalf of the Legislative Assembly (i.e. Commonwealth Parliamentary Association).

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135.2 RESEARCH SERVICES FOR COMMITTEES

Each Standing Committee has an assigned Legislative Assembly Advisor, who supports the work of the Standing Committee on the basis of their areas of knowledge and expertise. Despite these Standing Committee assignments, there may be times when Advisors from other Standing Committees will be required by the Director to step in and provide assistance, particularly when a Committee’s workload is demanding. The Committee Advisor will work closely with the Committee Chair and Members to identify research needs and reporting formats. Committee reports are produced by Advisors are required to adhere to the rules, practices and parliamentary precedents of the House.

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Scope of Services

Advisors assist Committees by:

  • attending Committee meetings;

  • preparing briefing notes and other analyses of Bills, Business Plans, the Main Estimates and other issues before the Committee;

  • delivering oral briefings to the Committee;

  • highlighting and clarifying central issues before the Committee, including legislative, budgetary and policy matters;

  • assisting Committee to identify areas requiring additional research and key Committee decision points;

  • obtaining background information and documents on issues before the Committee, and undertaking additional research, including interjurisdictional research;

  • summarizing submissions made to the Committee and drafting reports as directed by the Committee;

  • working with the Committee Clerk to assist the Chair in preparing for meetings based on facilitated discussion

  • carrying out other research duties as identified by the Committee Chair or Committee.

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The Committee Chair must approve a research request made by a Member of a Committee.

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CONFIDENTIALITY

The services provided to a Committee are confidential to that Committee, subjection to the direction of the Committee or the House.

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EXTERNAL RESOURCES

Occasionally Committees may require the assistance of additional expertise in a specific discipline to assist with the review of a subject. When this occurs, the Committee Advisor and Committee Clerk will work with the Deputy Chair, House Procedure and Committees to arrange for external assistance, as directed and approved by the Committee, and will ensure that working relationships are coordinated.

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RESTRICTIONS

The efforts of Advisors to obtain information from persons or organizations outside the GNWT that is not within the public domain or that would not be expected to be provided upon request to a member of the public, will be limited to advising the person or organization of the request and asking them to provide whatever information they wish to make available in response to the request. In such cases, the Legislative Assembly Advisor will clearly identify themselves as staff of the Legislative Assembly, and will advise the person or organization that the source of the request is a Member or a Committee of the Legislative Assembly.

The Legislative Assembly Advisor will not act as liaison between a Member and any person or organization or act as representative for a Member in any context.

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In an election, year research services may be impacted during the pre-election period and Members should refer to the Election Year Guidelines for more detailed information.

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CONCERNS

Questions or concerns respecting this policy, the quality or delivery of research services or the role of research staff should be brought to the attention of the Director of Research and Committee Advisory Services or the Deputy Clerk, House Procedure and Committees.

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136. LEGISLATIVE LIBRARY

The Legislative Library is here to serve you. While the Library is open to the public and does provide services to GNWT employees, the primary clientele are the MLAs, their staff, and the Legislative Assembly personnel.

The Library provides confidential information and in-depth reference services for its clients. A collection of materials with a focus on governmental, northern, and Indigenous issues is maintained including: texts, government publications, reports, periodicals, and newspapers which meet current and anticipated research and information needs of the Legislative Assembly. The Library also hosts the transcript of the House (the Hansard), a series of NWT legal statutes, Tabled Documents, and other Sessional materials.

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Continuously adding more and more digital content to its growing collection, the Library is improving access to its many resources through it electronic environment. The desktop services such as email reference and the Table of Contents service are but two of the features available to Members and staff without the need to interrupt the workday. In addition, there is also:

  • Interlibrary Loan (if the Library does not have the book, it will explore options to purchase a copy or

  • borrow it from another library);

  • Article Service (if you discover an article not in the collection, the Library staff will do its best to obtain a copy);

  • Circulation Privilege (many materials may be signed out from the library).

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In order to utilize these services, complete the library registration documentation included within the orientation package or contact the Library directly. Members and their staff may borrow materials for up to three weeks with the option to extend. All requests for information and borrowing transactions are considered confidential. The Legislative Library’s collection may be searched and accessed through its website and the digital repository.

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