Alberta Premier Danielle Smith speaks during a press conference in Edmonton on May 15.JASON FRANSON/The Canadian Press
Albertans expected Danielle Smith to fight Ottawa on issues such as climate and fiscal policy. They didn’t expect the Alberta Premier would do so much battling with municipalities in her own province.
Her government says Bill 20, the Municipal Affairs Statutes Amendment Act, will make elections fairer and elected municipal officials more accountable. Instead, the legislation is a ham-handed power grab for obscure ends, even with recent amendments. Those changes only came after significant backlash – including from the rural municipalities that Ms. Smith often counts as allies. It makes the bill both poor policy and politics.
There are solutions in search of problems in this far-ranging bill passed in the legislature last month (but not in force yet, as regulations are still in development). When it comes to municipal political culture in Alberta, parties have not been a thing, even as – contrary to the province’s image – left-leaning mayoral candidates have often bested more conservative rivals. Yet Bill 20 creates a pilot project to enable political parties in Edmonton and Calgary.
Bill 20 also reintroduces union and corporation donations to local campaigns – something not allowed in either Alberta or federal elections, because of both groups’ outsized ability to contribute. Likewise, American-style election integrity concerns figure prominently in the bill. Some of it appears relatively harmless: prohibiting electronic tabulators in favour of counting votes by hand is tedious and is a nod to disinformation about machines. But it could reassure a small group of voters. More worrying is the move to disallow vouching for a voter’s ID, which could exclude some marginalized people from the democratic process.
At the heart of concerns about the bill is the scope it gives the provincial government to meddle in municipal affairs.
Bill 20, as originally introduced in April, said cabinet could dismiss a person from a city council if it believes it’s in the public interest. Previously cabinet could only remove a sitting councillor in very specific circumstances and through “a very cumbersome process,” Ms. Smith told The Globe and Mail editorial board.
After widespread condemnation, and listening on the part of Municipal Affairs Minister Ric McIver, this part was amended in May so cabinet is allowed only to order a vote on removing someone from council. This would be, the government said, for when cabinet decides councillors are “unwilling, unable, or refusing to do the job” or “if cabinet considers such a vote to be in the public interest by taking into consideration illegal or unethical behaviour by a councillor.”
Secondly, Bill 20 allows the province to force a municipality to amend or repeal a bylaw. The gentlest of guardrails have been added with the May amendments: this can take place when a bylaw exceeds the powers granted under the Municipal Government Act, or conflicts with the Canadian Constitution. It can also happen when the government of the day believes the bylaw is contrary to “provincial policy.”
The Premier told The Globe Bill 20 will keep municipalities “focused on what it is they have the power to do under the Municipal Government Act.”
But it all goes too far. Removing a sitting councillor or interfering in bylaws is an extreme step. It should be a cumbersome process for the provincial government. Paul McLauchlin, president of the Rural Municipalities of Alberta, said what is in the public interest and what is contrary to provincial policy are “weasel words” that allow the provincial government to do as it pleases. CBC has had to seek clarity from Ms. Smith that she wouldn’t use Bill 20 to kibosh Calgary’s controversial blanket rezoning plan.
On the surface, Bill 20 is a baffling move for a premier who often talks about freedom, and the need for governments to stay in their jurisdictional lanes. It makes more sense with the realization this government is about asserting provincial power, up and down. The Smith government is likely to feel it has room to act at this moment, as conservatism is riding high and her province’s progressive mayors are low in polls.
In the end, Bill 20 is likely to be a lose-lose for municipalities and the United Conservative Party itself. It could add to mistrust in democratic institutions by making municipal voters feel their ballots don’t count for much, and councillors are mere vassals. And if the province wants to reign supreme, it better get used to pothole complaints. It will eventually wear the blame when things go wrong in cities and towns, too.