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Cutting Red Tape

We’re cutting red tape by one-third to reduce costs, speed up approvals, and make life easier for hard-working Albertans and businesses.

Table of contents

Making government work better

Removing needless red tape – such as duplicate processes and rules that do not add protections – will save time, money, and resources while still protecting the environment, keeping Albertans safe and healthy, and upholding fiscal accountability.

Our goal is to make it easier for people to get the government services they need and reduce the regulatory burden on job creators to encourage investment, boost Alberta’s competitiveness, and get more Albertans back to work.

Have an idea?

If you’ve come across a government process that’s too complex, takes too long, serves no purpose, or is duplicative or wasteful, let us know about it. Submissions will be reviewed and sent to the responsible ministry for consideration and follow up.

Email us your idea

Industry engagement

In addition to receiving feedback from the general public, we have established 9 industry panels to solicit specific feedback from key industries and the non-profit sector. The panels meet biannually and report key findings to the associate minister.

Learn about industry panels

Highlights

We have completed hundreds of red tape reduction initiatives. More than half respond to ideas submitted by Albertans, recommendations from key stakeholders and industry panels, as well as platform commitments. Current efforts have produced hundreds of millions in savings for Alberta’s job creators and government.

Key accomplishments

Licence Plate Stickers: Modernized the delivery of vehicle registry services by eliminating the use of licence plate stickers that mark the month and year of vehicle registration, saving government about $1.2 million per year.

Liquor Modernization: Gave responsible Albertans and Alberta businesses more options when choosing to purchase, consume, produce and sell alcohol.

COVID-19 Response: Provided more options to access services online including expanded MyHealth Records,  allowing patients and health care providers to connect through secure messaging and video visits, expanding the use of electronic signatures, and enabling organizations such as businesses, non-profits and condominium corporations to meet virtually, send electronic meeting notices or conduct votes electronically.

Regulatory Transformation Project (RTP): Introduced an integrated online system called the Digital Regulatory Assurance System (DRAS). While ensuring Alberta’s high environmental standards are maintained, DRAS streamlined and reduced backlogs of environmental approval and application processing times under the Water Act, Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act, and the Public Lands Act.

Occupational Health and Safety Act: Simplified language and removed unnecessary barriers for job creators without reducing workers’ safety, rights or protections. This included providing flexible requirements for health and safety committees and representatives, allowing employers to tailor the committees in ways that better fit their worksites.

Routine Comingled Abandonment: Undertaken by the Alberta Energy Regulator to streamline well closure activities; the completed first phase of this project has resulted in an estimated $584 million in savings to the oil and gas industry.

Municipal Government Act: Amendments allow the Minister of Municipal Affairs to set firm timelines for subdivision and development in larger municipalities. Made it easier for residential developers to move their projects forwards, stimulating investment and job creation in the construction industry.

Alberta Innovates: Reduced the administrative burden for the innovation sector, enabling easier access to $150 million in annual funding, while allowing Alberta entrepreneurs and researchers to spend less time on paperwork and more time on developing innovative solutions that can drive economic growth and recovery.

Responding to feedback

Over 500 red tape reduction initiatives have been completed to date. Nearly 200 of these completed initiatives address recommendations from industry panels, priority stakeholders and the public.

What Albertans say

Both prospective adoptive parents and birth parents need to know they are in safe hands with the adoption agency they choose to represent them. These changes will help make sure Albertans have the information they need to make the best choice for them.”

- Sheryl Proulx, Executive Director, Adoption Options

We are grateful to Minister Wilson and the Alberta government for eliminating the AITE card. We felt the old card was discriminatory and we are thankful to have an ally in the province. This upholds our treaty rights and we appreciate this step forward.”

- Ken Alook, Member of Council, Bigstone Cree Nation

Alberta’s Municipal Stimulus Program (MSP) created new opportunities for communities to invest in infrastructure projects like bridges, water systems and public transit while creating employment and economic activity during the COVID disruption.  Alberta municipalities are leaders in red tape reduction, allowing businesses to create economic growth and those same municipalities look forward to sharing and partnering with the provincial government to remove unnecessary barriers for businesses to thrive across our province.”

- Angela Duncan, AUMA Interim President

The Alberta energy sector is the most important industry in the country. It employs hundreds of thousands of workers that develop the cleanest energy anywhere in the world. The Alberta Government’s focus on red tape reduction is critical for the industry’s ability to create jobs and attract capital. By making approval processes for projects more efficient, energy service contractors can hire more Albertans while operating under a strong regulatory system the public can trust. As the global demand for energy increases, Alberta is well positioned to be the world’s choice for responsible energy resources.”

- Mark A. Scholz, President & CEO, Canadian Association of Energy Contractors

News

It's the law

  • Photo of Dale Nally

    Dale Nally

    Dale Nally, Minister of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction, leads Alberta's aggressive efforts to eliminate burdensome regulations, improve small business competitiveness, and get Alberta's economy moving.

The Red Tape Reduction Act was passed in 2019 that enables government to:

  • create an inventory of current regulations and assess if they are effective
  • focus on outcomes instead of processes to ensure all regulations are necessary, effective, efficient and proportional to their intended outcome
  • develop red tape reduction plans in all departments to make sure current and new regulations are free of red tape
  • coordinate cross-government activities and report on outcomes to make this initiative fully transparent to Albertans

The Red Tape Reduction Implementation Acts make necessary legislation changes.

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