New Municipal Affairs mandate letter released

On Monday, September 22, Premier Danielle Smith issued a series of Ministerial mandate letters, including one for Municipal Affairs. The revised mandate letter contains a dozen directives, namely: 

• Maintain and build relationships of trust, partnership, and open dialogue with municipal leaders across the province and bring feedback and solutions from these discussions with municipal leaders to Caucus and Cabinet for timely consideration and action.
• Continue working with municipalities and local businesses to benchmark, measure and reduce the time it takes to approve permits to create a more attractive business investment environment.
• Work collaboratively with municipalities to eliminate conflicts between provincial policy and municipal bylaws and policy.
• Review and engage on how the government can support urban development that meets young Albertans’ goals of home ownership in safe, affordable, attractive, livable family-friendly communities that reflect Alberta’s distinct values and heritage.
• Review and make recommendations to strengthen Alberta’s municipalities to ensure all Albertans are served by strong viable communities with the appropriate capacity to efficiently and effectively deliver necessary services.
• In consultation with municipalities and the business community, explore and make recommendations for ways to limit excessive municipal property tax increases for businesses and residents.
• Develop and implement a strategy to protect Albertans from specialized municipal taxes directed at homes that are not a primary residence.
• Complete development of an ‘Automatic Yes’ permitting program which will set shortened approval timeframes for all permitting overseen by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs coupled with an automatic approval for applications that are not rejected prior to the lapse of the maximum allowable assessment period.
• Streamline approval processes and reduce impediments for all permitting overseen by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs to enable the timely development of affordable housing.
• Complete work on a universal code of conduct for elected municipal officials and senior municipal staff that strengthens decorum and protects the freedom of speech of elected members, while ensuring an elected member cannot be impeded from fulfilling their duties as an elected representative by their elected colleagues.
• Review and provide recommendations regarding how to strengthen the role of elected municipal officials as the key policy and decision makers and supervisors of unelected municipal officials in municipal governments.
• Conduct a review of compensation and benefits for municipal officials to ensure taxpayer dollars are being respected and compensation levels are commensurate with time commitment and responsibility, including through the establishment of a municipal salary disclosure.

The list of commitments is substantive. ABmunis will continue to engage with the province in a spirit of partnership and open dialogue, advocating for ABmunis member interests and respect for municipal autonomy.