(File photo/The Canadian Press)

By rdnewsNOW staff

Ric McIver

Premier Smith issues mandate letter for Minister of Municipal Affairs

Aug 4, 2023 | 2:51 PM

Premier Danielle Smith has issued a mandate letter to Minister of Municipal Affairs Ric McIver calling on him to maintain and build relationships and partnerships with municipal leaders.

In her letter, government officials say the Premier outlines her expectations that Albertans can rely on good governance that improves their lives and helps the province realize its potential, and asks Minister McIver to deliver on a platform commitment to, in cooperation with the Minister of Transportation and Economic Corridors, who is the lead, contribute up to $330 million towards road and bridge construction, LRT connection, site utilities, site reclamation and other supportive infrastructure to support the Calgary arena and entertainment district project and create a new 1,000-seat community arena neighbouring the main arena that will serve youth and amateur hockey.

The Premier also tasks Minister McIver with:

• Working with municipalities and local businesses to benchmark, measure and reduce the time it takes to approve permits to create a more attractive business investment environment.
• Continuing to monitor the Calgary and Edmonton metropolitan region boards to ensure they are serving the needs of their urban and rural residents effectively and fairly without unnecessarily interfering with the autonomy of small and mid-sized municipalities.
• Continuing to improve the delivery of stable, predictable funding through the Local Government Fiscal Framework.
• As lead, collaborating with the Minister of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction, Minister of Seniors, Community and Social Services, and Minister of Affordability and Utilities, and informed by on-the-ground municipal realities, to develop appropriate incentives and benchmarks to significantly reduce municipal approval times for housing and business park developments.
• Protecting the province’s constitutional right to oversee the governance of Alberta’s municipalities without federal interference.
• Maintaining and building relationships of trust, partnership and open dialogue with municipal leaders across the province and bringing feedback and solutions from these discussions with municipal leaders to Caucus and Cabinet for timely consideration and action.
• Teaming with the Minister of Energy and Minerals, who is lead, to ensure the government’s new policy on making wellsite transfers contingent on payment of outstanding property taxes is implemented and enforced.
• In collaboration with the Minister of Justice, reviewing the Local Authorities Election Act and making recommendations for any necessary amendments to strengthen public trust in and the integrity of Alberta’s municipal election laws.
• Working with the Minister of Education and the President of Treasury Board and Minister of Finance to review the feasibility of amending the Education Property Tax to assist municipalities with retaining more funding for local priorities.

“I am committed to supporting accountable and effective local government for Albertans. Together, we will build vibrant neighbourhoods, support local priorities, and increase the quality of municipal governance in communities across our province,” says Ric McIver, Minister of Municipal Affairs.

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Sarah Hoffman, Alberta NDP Municipal Affair Critic (Edmonton & Calgary) issued the following statement in response to the Municipal Affairs Mandate letter:

“It is telling that Danielle Smith chose the Friday before a long weekend to release her priorities for Alberta’s municipalities. The UCP is trying to hide from their record, which has been deep cuts and total failure on many issues, including getting municipalities compensated for unpaid property taxes.

“Alberta’s municipalities need a real partner in their provincial government, and nothing in this letter indicates that this is a priority of the UCP over the next four years.

“In contrast, the Alberta NDP has been clear and transparent with Albertans on what municipal priorities we will focus on this term, which includes ensuring support for the downtowns of Calgary and Edmonton, public safety, access to affordable housing, and prioritizing future transit lines.

“These are among the top priorities that myself and my colleague Kyle Kasawski, the Alberta NDP critic for Municipal Affairs (Mid-sized Cities & Rural Alberta), have heard during our consultations with Albertans. Our priorities were outlined in a letter we sent to Minister McIver in July.

“We will work to ensure that the priorities of Alberta’s municipalities and their residents are heard and acted on.”