Lucy Kuptana

Member Nunakput

Minister Responsible for Housing Northwest Territories
Minister Responsible for the Status of Women

Lucy Kuptana was elected to the 20th Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories in November 2023 to represent the constituency of Nunakput, which includes the communities of Paulatuk, Sachs Harbour, Tuktoyaktuk, and Ulukhaktok. A member of the Executive Council, she is the Minister Responsible for Housing Northwest Territories and the Minister Responsible for the Status of Women.

Prior to her election, Mrs. Kuptana was the Senior Administrative Officer for the Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk. She was also a director with the Tuktoyaktuk District Education Authority.

For 22 years previous, Mrs. Kuptana was the Director of Operations, Communications, and Culture with the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation (IRC). In a volunteer capacity, she has served as a director of the Inuvik Homeless Shelter Society, trustee of the Arctic Inspiration Prize, president of the Inuvialuit Communications Society, director of the Inuvialuit Investment Corporation, director of the Tuktoyaktuk and Inuvik Community Corporations, and a committee member for the 2023 Northern Youth Games “Inuvialuit Piuyausiat” in Tuktoyaktuk.

Originally from Aklavik and raised at her family’s bush camp in the Mackenzie Delta, Mrs. Kuptana obtained a Level II and Level III Certificate in Community Administration from Aurora College in the early 1990s and returned to graduate with a Diploma in Business Administration and Management in 2013. Mrs. Kuptana is currently enrolled with Yukon University, where she is working towards accreditation in the school’s First Nations Governance and Public Administration program.

Despite a successful career spanning decades, Mrs. Kuptana credits her husband and family in supporting her. She says she owes much of her success to those who have fought – and continue to fight – for Indigenous and Inuvialuit rights.

Mrs. Kuptana’s guiding principle is to lead with respect, empathy, knowledge, and the willingness to work hard for the constituents she represents and all residents of the Northwest Territories.

Nunakput Electoral District

Committees

Public Accounts
Lucy Kuptana
Nunakput
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Email
Phone
(867) 767-9143
Minister
Email
Email
Minister Responsible for Housing Northwest Territories, Minister Responsible for the Status of Women

Statements in Debates

Committee Motion 75-20(1): Tabled Document 275-20(1): 2025-2026 Main Estimates - Deferral of Department of Education, Culture and Employment, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 46)

Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to be clear. There is no funding for this plan yet. We continue to request funding for this plan through the federal government and the different departments. But we do have to work and provide planning and design if -- and be prepared if there was to be anything approved by federal -- different funding pots with the federal government. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Committee Motion 75-20(1): Tabled Document 275-20(1): 2025-2026 Main Estimates - Deferral of Department of Education, Culture and Employment, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 46)

Thank you, Madam Chair. So in the last year's budget, we had the same line item with these HELP units, and we're not disposing of these HELP units. We're actually counselling with the owners of these HELP units to see if they want to purchase these HELP units. But if they feel that they can't afford it or if they want to stay within that HELP unit, we look at turning it into either a market unit or a public housing unit. So they are being counselled. There is advice. Depending on financial situation, depending on the situation within the family, that would depend on them with Housing NWT...

Committee Motion 75-20(1): Tabled Document 275-20(1): 2025-2026 Main Estimates - Deferral of Department of Education, Culture and Employment, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 46)

Thank you, Madam Chair. The estimated amount is $50 million.

Committee Motion 75-20(1): Tabled Document 275-20(1): 2025-2026 Main Estimates - Deferral of Department of Education, Culture and Employment, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 46)

Thank you, Madam Chair. For that detail, I'll ask vice-president Mr. Jim Martin. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Committee Motion 75-20(1): Tabled Document 275-20(1): 2025-2026 Main Estimates - Deferral of Department of Education, Culture and Employment, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 46)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Mr. Martin here will provide you more information related to the commitments with the hundred-unit build. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Committee Motion 75-20(1): Tabled Document 275-20(1): 2025-2026 Main Estimates - Deferral of Department of Education, Culture and Employment, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 46)

Thank you, Madam Chair. President Kelly will provide more information with that.

Question 512-20(1): Remediation and Demolition of Housing Northwest Territories Units in Mackenzie Delta
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 44)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I completely agree that we need to remove many of these boarded up or derelict buildings. The situation is it's hard to get money for housing. It's even more difficult to remediate or demolish older housing units. Our budget for Housing NWT is $500,000 a year. We have 2900 units across the North. It costs up to $50,000 to remediate or demolish a unit considering the contaminants or the age of the unit, the space within the solid waste site, and sometimes we have to ship that material south. So it could be difficult but we are willing to look at partnerships. We are...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 44)

Mr. Speaker, it's not often I get a constituent from Nunakput here in the gallery, so I'd like to recognize Sandra, Sandra Elias, from the Aimayunga Women's Shelter in Tuktoyaktuk, so welcome Sandra and the entire shelter network. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 512-20(1): Remediation and Demolition of Housing Northwest Territories Units in Mackenzie Delta
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 44)

Mr. Speaker, I'm willing to commit to meet with the Member to discuss this further. We do have funding available. It's called the community housing initiative funding. We could work with Indigenous governments or local government or bands to look at some of these opportunities and perhaps advance them in his riding. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 512-20(1): Remediation and Demolition of Housing Northwest Territories Units in Mackenzie Delta
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 44)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Member for the question. His concern is my concern because living in small community, you drive around, you walk around, you see many units within the community that are boarded up or that have no windows or busted up windows. So this is something that we are working towards as Housing NWT is working within our community, working with Indigenous governments, to either remediate or demolish or modernize these homes.

So in terms of the question from the Member, we have 293 units in the Mackenzie Delta riding. 265 are occupied. We have one that is...