Alberta has tabled legislation that will give it sweeping powers over municipalities

[chuckChuck]

Alberta to overhaul municipal rules to include sweeping new powers, municipal political parties

[url]https://globalnews.ca/news/10450717/alberta-municipal-politics-elections-bill/[/url]

The government of Alberta has tabled legislation that will give it sweeping powers over municipalities across the province, including the right to fire councillors and overturn bylaws.

Bill 20, the Municipal Affairs Statutes Amendment Act, includes two pieces of legislation: the Local Authorities Election Act ([url]https://globalnews.ca/tag/local-authorities-election-act[/url]) (LAEA) and the Municipal Government Act (MGA).

If passed, the amendments to the Municipal Government Act will allow cabinet to remove a councillor “if in the public interest” or to order a referendum to decide whether a councillor should be removed, which will be reviewed in a case-by-case basis.

The amendment will also enable cabinet to require a municipal government to amend or repeal a bylaw, as well as giving cabinet the ability to postpone elections.

Right now, provincial cabinet can only intervene with municipal land-use bylaw or statutory plan. Only the municipal affairs minister can remove a sitting councillor under specific circumstances through a municipal inspection process.

“I think the provincial government wants to be the central government, which is always ironic, of course, because there’s so many accusations of socialism and communism. Yet it’s only the province who seems to be trying to become sovereign from the federal government and then now trying to take control of local governments.”

Bill is an attempt to create a conservative council: political scientist

Duane Bratt, a political scientist with Mount Royal University in Calgary, said Bill 20 is an attempt to create conservative city councils in Calgary and Edmonton by the province.
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“We’ve had periodic discussions about political parties but not very seriously and the provincial government seems to be gung-ho about this despite public opposition. They don’t appear to be interested in doing this across the board, only in the City of Calgary and Edmonton,” he said.

“(Premier Danielle Smith) has explicitly said that this is about getting rid of progressive mayors and progressive councils. This is a partisan move.”

[cropgrower]

hopefully now gondek will get her walking papers

[chuckChuck]

Now Danny Smith wants to be the supreme leader and get rid of more progressive city mayors and Councillors who don't toe the UCP party line?

Her true colours coming out! She wants to take away the democratic decisions of the big cities who didn't vote for the UCP!

The UCP political sewage runs deep in Alberta!

[chuckChuck]

hopefully now gondek will get her walking papers

And you live where Crop? Not in Calgary! So you want Wab Kinew to pick your council and reeve or mayor of your town? LOL

[cropgrower]

Do you live in Alberta ? don't think so

[chuckChuck]

Crop do you want Wab Kinew to pick your council and reeve and run your municipality?

[goalieguy847]

I DO live in alberta and am involved in municipal politics.

This bill is absolutely shocking.
Its complete horsecrap.

The amazing part is how they try to make it seem " ok" by including a small bit that would require those running for municipal politics to get criminal record checks and be ineligible to run if having been convicted of certain crimes.

The UCP have done some good things... some dumb things... and then this. This is overreach and honestly, there is no defending this.

Political parties should not directly be involved in municipal politics. FULL STOP.

[AlbertaFarmer5]

Political parties should not directly be involved in municipal politics. FULL STOP.

Would you take that one step further and say that Federal political parties should not be directly involved in municipal and provincial politics?

[sumdumguy]

I think Municipal Affairs is under provincial jurisdiction. Since municipalities depend substantially on provincial governments for direction and funding, it seems right to have those two bodies in cooperative agreement. When you have a rogue mayor who will not listen to her/his voters and despises her/his constituents, four years is too long for her/him to have free-reign. Same should happen with federal government, they should answer to the majority vote, not pander to minority interests, self-interest and lobbies.

[goalieguy847]

This is valid, but they already are. The minister of municipal affairs looks after all this and there is a system in place that allows for the removal of councillors.
This new bill is widesweeping and overhanded and has 0 wording ( as of now) with what would consitutute the allowance to remove an elected municipal member.

85% of the minicipalities recently voted to NOT allow party affiliations in municipal elections.
this is Smith and the UCP trying to sneaky pete affiliations in here.

Is anyone paying attention?

How about their appeal to stop coal mine information being released?
what sort of info are they attempting to withhold here? ( this is all freedom of info act too they are trying to block... that was requested by fellow farmers and ranchers).

[goalieguy847]

There is no defending this. We all need to remember that by enacting a bill like this it allows the pendulum to swing both ways.
WHICH MEANS that any provincial govt in power, including the ndps... could toss out a county councillor that, say, is against ANYTHING.
The councillors that maybe vote against / for rainbow painted sidewalks.. could be ousted.

Against capital gains taxes or maybe a newly implemented PST? Ousted.

This is a dangerous game. There needs to be some separation between federal, provincial and municipal powers.... the lines are already blurred but this will make it worse....

[AlbertaFarmer5]

I think a lot of power hungry tyrants tend to forget that key fact. Any heavy handed controls they want enacted to fulfill their political agenda and control the opposition could then be used against them by a future government with different political views.

[WiltonRanch]

I’m no Albertan but this interference at the provincial level is hypocritical as the same ones pushing it are the loudest critics of federal interference in provincial matters.

Yeah kinda shitty when your mayors and councils might be lefties but so what. The province can’t punt em.

[TSIPP]

What happens when a counsellor has severe dementia and nobody in that area wants the job? I really think the province needs to stay out of municipal politics but once in a while someone with clout needs to step in.

[jazz]

Would rather have Smith run my local council that have Trudeau come in and bribe them.