Budget highlights

Budget 2023 increases health operating expense by $965 million (4.1%) from the 2022-23 forecast, to a total of $24.5 billion. New funding will go to priority areas to directly improve services important to Albertans by:

• decreasing emergency room wait times
• improving ambulance response times
• reducing wait times for surgeries
• empowering front-line workers to deliver health care

We are investing more money than ever in emergency medical services (EMS) to improve ambulance response times. 

• $196 million in operating expense over 3 years will strengthen EMS by hiring more staff and implementing recommendations made by the Alberta EMS Provincial Advisory Committee.
• $15 million over 3 years for new EMS vehicles and to replace or upgrade related equipment.

We continue to expand and modernize hospitals and other facilities to protect quality health care, grow system capacity and support the best front-line health-care workers in the world. Budget 2023 provides $4.2 billion over 3 years for health care-related infrastructure.

• $105 million over 3 years for the Rural Health Facilities Revitalization Program, with $75 million in additional funding to support new capital projects in rural Alberta.
• $105 million over 3 years for Medical Device Reprocessing (MDR) upgrades, including $96 million in new funding, which will provide needed MDR upgrades in Calgary, Edmonton, Fort McMurray, St. Albert and Westlock.
• $310 million over 3 years in capital funding to modernize continuing care facilities, provide culturally appropriate care for Indigenous peoples, and add new spaces in priority communities having greatest need.
• $120 million in 2024-25 will support new continuing care projects in Calgary and Edmonton.

Budget 2023 allocates $158 million in 2023-24 towards workforce planning to increase the number of health-care professionals in Alberta by:

• expanding physician training
• recruiting more internationally educated physicians and nurses

Under the Alberta Medical Association agreement, over $250 million over 4 years, beginning in 2022-23, is allocated for:

• recruitment and retention programs
• program-specific funding to support physicians, particularly family doctors in rural areas

Budget 2023 makes important investments to reduce wait times and boost access to surgeries.

• $237 million over 3 years for the Alberta Surgical Initiative Capital Program, including $120 million in new funding to support additional projects in AHS-owned facilities, will increase surgical capacity and help reduce wait times. 
• These projects will happen in communities across Alberta, such as Brooks, Calgary, Camrose, Crowsnest Pass, Edmonton, Fort Saskatchewan, Grande Prairie, Innisfail, Olds, Pincher Creek, Ponoka, Red Deer, St. Albert, Stettler and Taber.

• We are investing $243 million over 3 years through the Modernizing Alberta’s Primary Health Care System (MAPS) initiative to improve primary health care in Alberta.
• Areas of improvements and recommendations will be provided to the Minister of Health by the 3 advisory panels in spring 2023. 

Budget 2023 is making life more affordable for Alberta’s post-secondary students and graduates.

• Making tuition more predictable by implementing a 2% cap on increases for 2024-25 and future academic years.
• Making it easier to pay back student loans by:
  • reducing Alberta Student Loan interest rates to prime
  • increasing the Repayment Assistance Plan qualification criteria to $40,000 of income, from $25,000
  • extending the grace period of Alberta Student Loan repayments to 12 months from 6 months, making Alberta a leader in Canada for repayment obligations

Budget 2023 leaves more money in the pockets of Alberta families struggling with the high cost of living so parents don't have to choose between filling up the car and putting food on the table. 

• Maintaining our commitment to make child care accessible and affordable for families by reducing average fees to $15 per day in 2023-24 and $10 per day by 2026.
• Indexing personal income tax brackets for the 2022 tax year, with tax bracket thresholds and credit amounts increasing by 2% for 2022 and an additional 6% for 2023, meaning:
  • many Albertans have seen lower tax withholdings on their 2023 paycheques
  • many Albertans will receive larger refunds or owe less tax when they file their 2022 tax returns
• Providing $361 million more over 3 years in support of the Affordability Action Plan to:
  • index the Alberta Child and Family Benefit to inflation, increasing benefit amounts by 6% in 2023
  • provide $100 per month for 6 months for each child under 18 if their parents' or guardians' adjusted total household income in 2021 was below $180,000

Budget 2023 is supporting in-Alberta adoptions to help parents grow or start their families. 

• Increasing the provincial adoption expense tax credit to $18,210 to match the federal threshold in 2023. This claim can be made by families adopting within Alberta or adopting internationally.
• $12 million more over 3 years to support adoptions of children including:
  • extending supplementary health benefits for children adopted from government care or through licensed adoption agencies 
  • providing $6,000 in grant funding to prospective adoptive parents making less than $180,000 a year who are pursuing adoption through a licensed adoption agency in Alberta

Budget 2023 is ensuring that seniors and vulnerable Albertans have the support they need to afford everyday necessities.

• Increasing Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH), Income Support and Alberta Seniors Benefit by 6% in 2023, and indexing them to keep pace with inflation.
• Providing $600 over 6 months to AISH, Income Support, and Persons with Developmental Disabilities (PDD) clients, along with seniors whose household incomes were below $180,000 in 2021.
• Providing $20 million over 2 years to food banks and civil society organizations working to provide food security for vulnerable Albertans, of which $5 million each year is to match private donations.
• Investing $22 million over 2 years for low-income transit pass programs in more communities, including $9 million to extend the Calgary and Edmonton low-income transit pass pilots an additional year.
• Providing 6,900 more households with an affordable place to call home by increasing funding by $187.5 million.

Budget 2023 includes $102 million per year to increase the wages of more than 20,000 social sector workers beginning in 2023-24.

• This funding builds on the $24 million provided to service providers in February to support wage increases retroactive to January 1, 2023.
• We are also providing $8 million in 2023-24 for disability service providers to address increasing administrative costs.

• $1.2 billion annually in operating expense for Public Safety and Emergency Services, an increase from the forecast of $1.1 billion. 
• $709 million for public security in 2023-24, an increase of $84 million from the 2022-23 forecast, to fund contract policing and the sheriff’s branch, help municipalities and fight organized and serious crime.
• $34 million more in 2023-24, $37 million in 2024-25, and $40 million in 2025-26 for correctional services, which includes support to continue creating and expanding therapeutic living units at corrections facilities so inmates can access mental health and addiction treatment and recovery programs while in jail or prison.
• $20 million over 3 years to better protect and assist survivors and victims of human trafficking by:
  • increasing access to the specialized services needed to start the healing journey and reduce the risk of re-exploitation
  • supporting the establishment of an Alberta Office to Combat Trafficking in Persons and a Centre of Excellence for research and data collection
• $3 million over 3 years to expand the Rural Sexual Assault Support project so sexual assault survivors can receive essential health-care services in both rural and urban communities from health-care providers specifically trained to administer sexual assault evidence kit exams.

• $65 million over 3 years to strengthen First Nations policing:
  • improve community and officer safety
  • enhance policing services for Lakeshore Regional Police Service, Blood Tribe Police Service and Tsuut’ina Nation Police Service
  • fund a new First Nation police service for Siksika Nation
  • add up to 35 new policing positions across the province
• $2 million for continued policing on the 8 Metis Settlements in Alberta.
• $5 million in 2023-24 in new funding will support an Indigenous-led response to the ongoing crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people.

• $83 million over 2 years for the new Red Deer Justice Centre.
• $5 million in 2023-24 for planning for the Edmonton Law Courts and the Sherwood Park Courthouse facilities.
• $15 million over 2 years to operate the newly created Chief Provincial Firearms Office to help preserve Alberta’s firearms heritage and protect public safety by:
  • conducting timely investigations of licence eligibility for Alberta firearms owners, including rigorous background checks and continuous eligibility assessments
  • providing $7 million to hire 40 new positions to reduce wait times on applications and transfers of legal firearms
  • providing outreach and education to communities
  • focusing on special investigations and target firearms trafficking and 3D printing of firearms

Building on Alberta’s strong foundations, including low taxes, a skilled and educated workforce, and an efficient regulatory environment, Budget 2023 enhances Alberta’s business climate even further by making strategic investments that support key and emerging sectors.

• $2.3 billion over 3 years for key projects and programs that expand and improve Alberta’s road and bridge network, a key component of Alberta’s growing economy.
• $369 million over 3 years for Alberta’s Broadband Strategy, supporting businesses in remote areas.
• $100 million over 3 years in increased funding for the Film and Television Tax Credit.
• $54 million more per year for the Alberta Petrochemicals Incentive Program starting in 2025-26 to support Air Products’ clean hydrogen facility – part of our work to make Alberta a global leader in petrochemical production, bring long-term investments and create thousands of jobs.
• $30 million in 2023-24 for the Red Deer Airport Expansion, providing additional services to the region and supporting job creation and future investment.
• $23 million over 3 years for the Aboriginal Business Investment Fund to support community-owned, Indigenous business initiatives - a 50% funding increase.
• $24.5 million in 2023-24 for the Alberta Technology and Innovation Strategy.
• $10 million over 3 years for rural business supports and economic development capacity building initiatives.
• $10 million over 2 years for rural tourism investment programming.
• $9 million over 3 years for the Northern and Regional Economic Development program to support Alberta municipalities, Indigenous communities and non-profit organizations with projects that promote regional economic growth and diversification.
• $4 million increase in 2023-24 to the Alberta Media Fund to help meet the growing demand for small-budget, Alberta-made productions.
• $687,000 in additional funding for the Alberta Enterprise Corporation (AEC) to manage new fund investments and for the Start Alberta platform.

Budget 2023 ensures Albertans have the skills, knowledge and training to fill jobs in key sectors.

• $176 million in 2025-26 for the Alberta at Work initiative to continue to help address labour shortages in key economic sectors.
• $95 million for Career and Employment Services to ensure Albertans who are looking for work have access to the resources and tools they need to gain new skills and rejoin the workforce.
• $95 million over 3 years to help address the shortage of health-care workers in the province.
• $59 million over 3 years to support lab services and program expansion at the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Veterinary Medicine.
• $111 million more over 3 years to support targeted post-secondary enrolment expansion in highest demand sectors, such as non-trade construction, energy, technology and business.
• $35 million in 2024-26 for MacEwan University’s new building for the School of Business.
• $6 million over 3 years to help Mount Royal University develop a Bachelor of Aviation program.
• $4.5 million over 3 years for an Air Access Bursary for students in high-demand aviation programs.
• $500,000 in 2023-24 to develop an Aviation Centre of Excellence in partnership with WestJet.

With the lowest general corporate income tax rate in Canada, more corporations and large companies are investing in Alberta, creating well-paying jobs and contributing to the province’s high quality of life.

Budget 2023 lays the groundwork for improved competitiveness, boosted investment and more jobs for Albertans.

• $15 million annually for the Investment and Growth Fund.
• $5 million annually for an ongoing advertising campaign to attract new businesses, individuals and families to the province.
• The Alberta Agri-Processing Investment Tax Credit will provide a non-refundable tax credit of 12% of eligible capital expenditures for corporations investing $10 million or more to build or expand agri-processing facilities in Alberta.

To secure the long-term sustainability of government programs, a new fiscal framework will be introduced to guide government decision-making in fiscal planning and use of surpluses.

• Mandate annual balanced budgets, with exceptions allowed for unexpected disaster costs or a sharp decline in revenue to ensure continued government support to Albertans.
• Limit year-over-year increases in operating expense to population growth and inflation.
• Limit in-year expense increases to a budgeted and voted contingency, with certain exceptions.
• Set surplus cash policies to allocate:
  • at least 50% to repay debt maturing that fiscal year
  • remaining cash in the new Alberta Fund used to:
    • pay down the debt
    • make additional deposits into the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund
    • fund one-time initiatives that do not lead to permanent increases in government spending

The new fiscal framework would provide the government flexibility to invest in areas and services important to Albertans, but adds more rigour around expense decisions.

Setting limits would challenge the government to focus on improving the services and programs Albertans rely on while continuing to use hard-earned tax dollars wisely.

The government continues its commitment to 3 fiscal anchors set in 2019.

1. Budget 2023 maintains balance. Surpluses are targeted for the next 3 years:
   • $2.4 billion in 2023-24
   • $2 billion in 2024-25
   • $1.4 billion in 2025-26
2. Budget 2023 keeps the net debt-to-GDP ratio below 30%, at 10.2% in 2023-24.
   • $13.4 billion was used to pay down provincial debt in 2022-23
   • $1.4 billion is expected to be used in 2023-24 to pay it down further
3. Taxpayer-supported debt is forecast to be $78.3 billion at the end of 2023-24, which is $17.3 billion lower than was estimated in Budget 2022.

We successfully brought expense levels in line with or below the per-capita average of comparator provinces to keep programs sustainable for future generations. This includes successful public sector settlements that achieved reasonable wage increases to many workers that are fair to both them and taxpayers.

• Government will introduce legislative changes to propose the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund keeps 100% of its annual net earnings in the fund.
  • Right now, any net income other than the amount needed for inflation-proofing is transferred to the General Revenue Fund.
  • This change would result in significant annual growth in the Heritage Fund.