Acho Dene Koe eyes community charter status for Fort Liard

The Acho Dene Koe First Nation is exploring the possibility of transitioning Fort Liard from a hamlet to a charter community.

In June, the First Nation circulated a petition amongst community members to gauge support for such a transition.

In a letter to territorial municipal affairs minister Vince McKay, which was shared with Cabin Radio, Chief Eugene Hope wrote that there were 154 signatories to the petition, out of about 268 eligible voters.

The letter explains that residents in Fort Liard are currently served by two separate governments: the hamlet, which is governed by a mayor and council, as well as the First Nation, which has its own chief and council.

The First Nation’s letter argues the current structure “does not allow for formal integration between these two governments.”

“In a community of this size, operating two siloed governing bodies has created numerous inefficiencies in service delivery, and uncertainty among residents about the responsibilities of each government,” the letter reads.

“A charter community model would provide a framework for more integrated local governance that better reflects the makeup and needs of our community.”

What is a charter community?

In an email to Cabin Radio, Peter Tah, a spokesperson for the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs, explained that a charter community is a type of municipal government that falls under the territory’s Charter Communities Act while a hamlet’s governance structure is prescribed under the NWT Hamlets Act.

Tah said charter communities operate under a charter developed by the community, which can dictate things like the composition of a council and how those members are selected.

“For example, a charter could provide for a different governance model than a traditional hamlet council, including a mix of elected and appointed members and representation from the First Nation government,” said Tah.

The charter established by the community would also dictate how the municipality’s head of government would be selected and what their title would be.

Tah said if Fort Liard became a charter community, it would not change the operations of either the community government nor the First Nation government, and they would remain legally separate governing bodies.

“The municipality would continue to deliver core municipal services and exercise municipal powers under territorial legislation,” he said.

“The change is primarily about the governance model and representation structure, not about creating a new order of government.”

Currently the only charter community in the NWT is Fort Good Hope. Tsiigehtchic was a charter community before it became a hamlet in 2024.

Délı̨nę was also previously a charter community before its self-government agreement was finalized. It is now governed by the Délı̨nę Got’įnę Government.

Chief Hope’s letter suggests that given ongoing negotiations between Acho Dene Koe First Nation and the federal and territorial governments, Fort Liard becoming a charter community could help ensure an easier transition to self-government in the future.

Will it get the desired result?

Sheila Bassi-Kellett, former longtime manager of the City of Yellowknife, said it’s “interesting” to see Acho Dene Koe First Nation exploring becoming a charter community given that other communities have moved away from this model in recent years.

Though, she said it’s understandable that a community might want to simplify governance.

“When you’re looking at Fort Liard or Délı̨nę or Tsiigehtchic, you’re dealing with under 1,000 people having [a] municipality, and then you have a band government, and maybe you’ve got a Métis local, or even an Inuvialuit Community Corporation – that’s a lot of government in a community,” Bassi-Kellett said.

“I get it that people want to streamline. Will this streamline the way that they want it to? That’s a great question that I’m not sure they’re going to get the results that they want because other communities have done this and chosen to go in other directions,” she said.

“So many local governments go into this thinking, “Oh, this is amazing – we can simplify leadership, and then we can simplify administration as well, and it’s a little more challenging than that.”

Bassi-Kellett said the intention of NWT’s Charter Communities Act is to provide some flexibility for municipalities to align their governance structures with Indigenous governments.

She said, for example, it could allow for a certain number of seats on a municipality’s council to be designated for members of a band council.

“The intention was great – trying to bring the two together – [but] administratively, it didn’t change anything,” said Bassi-Kellett.

As funding from territorial and federal sources often comes with different requirements for First Nations and municipalities, she said merging components of administration can become “really convoluted and complicated.”

“And so, where there used to be lots of charter communities, there are hardly any anymore,” she said.

Next steps

Minister McKay’s response to Chief Hope, which was shared with Cabin Radio, McKay said that in order to exercise his authority under the Charter Communities Act, he must have a clear understanding of the level of support for the status change as well as the implications for things like governance, service delivery, finances, accountability and representation.

“Given the importance of your request, I have directed officials from the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs to validate the petition, further assess the proposal, and engage directly with ADKFN, the Hamlet of Fort Liard, residents, and other affected stakeholders,” the letter reads.

“Once this preliminary outreach and validation is complete, and should I determine that it is appropriate to proceed in exercising my authority under Section 11, the Charter Communities Act establishes a formal process that includes public notice, consultation on a proposed community charter, and a community vote before any change in municipal status could occur.”

In order for the transition from a hamlet to a charter community to move forward, Tah told Cabin Radio a community charter would need to be drafted and put to a vote. To pass, it would need to be approved by at least 60 percent of eligible voters.

Territorial legislation also dictates that a charter be subject to a minimum 180-day community consultation period. However, the law does not outline the kinds of activities that would need to take place during consultation, such as public meetings or the distribution written materials