After huge backlash from mayors and councilors across Alberta, the province is promising to amend the bill to give local governments significant new powers.
Municipal Affairs Minister Rick McIver said in a statement Thursday that he plans to work with municipalities to allay their concerns about the bill, and amendments will be made.
Bill 20, introduced in parliament a week ago, gives Alberta's cabinet the power to remove municipal councilors and mayors and repeal or amend local bylaws.
The bill would also allow for the creation of regional political parties in Edmonton and Calgary as pilot projects.
This bill, the “Municipal Ordinance Amendment Act,'' amends both the Local Government Election Law and the City Autonomy Law.
In a statement Thursday, McIver argued that the proposed legislation would increase transparency in local elections and increase accountability for local elected officials.
But he said changes to the bill would be made to reassure local governments that the cabinet would only dismiss local politicians as a “last resort” and that changing or repealing bylaws would not be done “lightly”. He said he intends to work with local governments to achieve this goal.
“The role of elected officials comes with great responsibilities and expectations. It strengthens accountability for staff and Congress,” McIver said.
A spokesperson for the minister said he would not be available for a press conference this week.
The announcement of Bill 20 sparked significant backlash from local government officials and political experts earlier this week.
Alberta Mayor Tyler Gundam called it a “power grab” and Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi deemed it an “attack on local democracy.”
On Thursday, Sohi told reporters that despite promises of amendments, he still believes Bill 20 should be scrapped completely.
“We don't need political parties at the local level. Let the people decide who they want to elect, and then let the local electorate make decisions for the voters who elected us,” the mayor said. Ta.
Sohi said that if the government insists on exercising control over local elected officials, that power should only be exercised in extremely rare cases, and that such decisions should be made within Parliament, not Cabinet. He said that it should be decided.
“The Cabinet is not accountable to voters. The Cabinet makes decisions in secret,” Sohi said.
“There is no basis behind these decisions and there is no ability for the public to directly engage with the Cabinet.”
