"Right Direction," ABMunis on Meeting with Premier after 3 Years
In a first face-to-face meeting in over three years with any Alberta Premier, Alberta Municipalities met with Premier Danielle Smith earlier this week in Edmonton. This significant meeting between the municipal organization and the Premier marks a hopeful turn in the strained relationship between the provincial government and municipal leaders, following months of tension over recent legislation.
Tyler Gandam, President of Alberta Municipalities, who lead a delegation of Board members attended the meeting and later spoke to Municipal Affairs, at the Annual Federation of Canadian Municipalities Convention in Calgary. He attributed the successful arrangement of this long-overdue meeting to persistent advocacy efforts by both the organization and concerned Albertans, particularly surrounding the controversial Bills 18, 20, and 21.
“It was a good meeting with the Premier,” Gandam said. “It was great with her and Minister Ric McIver.”
The meeting, described by Gandam as productive, provided a platform for open dialogue and promises of future collaboration. Premier Smith and Minister McIver assured municipal leaders that they would be consulted on impactful legislation moving forward. This pledge is a marked departure from previous practices where municipalities often found themselves voicing concerns only after legislation had already been passed including Bills 18, 20, and 21 in the last two months.
“They did tell me that moving forward, if there's legislation that has this kind of impact on municipalities, there would be some meeting time, some consultation, likely between the first and second reading, as opposed to waiting until the bill is passed and then coming and talking to us about our concerns,” Gandam stated.
The assurances given during the meeting have sparked optimism among the board members in attendance. Gandam emphasized the importance of municipalities in the legislative process, particularly concerning Bills 18, 20, and 21, passed in late May.
“The fact that they're telling us they'll meet with us moving forward is encouraging,” Gandam added.
Looking ahead, Gandam highlighted that the Premier expressed a keen interest in the resolutions that municipalities discuss at their fall convention in Red Deer. “The Premier also said that she would meet with us following our fall convention and wants to hear what we're going to be working on regarding resolutions,” he shared.
Gandam remains hopeful that this meeting marks the beginning of a new era of regular, constructive meetings between Alberta Municipalities and the provincial leadership.
“We're getting hopefully regular meetings with the Premier, which is a shift in the right direction, especially for Alberta municipalities, who have a big stake in this,” Gandam concluded.
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