Alberta has introduced legislation requiring provincial entities to obtain approval before entering, amending, extending or renewing agreements with the federal government.
The Provincial Priorities Act was tabled in the legislature Wednesday by Premier Danielle Smith. It is framed as a step to prevent federal interference with the Alberta’s priorities.
Smith says the province has had long-standing concerns over federal intrusion into areas of provincial authority, and recent housing deals between Ottawa and some municipalities were the last straw, and that housing deals are unfair because they force cities to upend planning and zoning rules to get the cash, and some cities get the funds while others don’t.
The legislation would also act as a defence against Ottawa “muscling in to fund other ideological priorities that run counter to Alberta’s, such as safe-supply addiction treatment and green power mandates”
School boards, post-secondary institutions, health authorities, municipalities, Crown corporations, and provincial management bodies would all have to follow a new provincial approval process, and failure to do that would make any agreement with the federal government void, the bill says.
Once the law is passed, the province would consult with these entities to decide the best way to organize the review process and set exemptions for funding agreements that would not require the province’s approval.
Currently, Quebec is the only other province or territory with similar legislation that requires provincial approval of intergovernmental agreements between a broad scope of public sector organizations and the federal government.
The Alberta government is hoping to have the new law in effect by 2025
