Implementing Budget 2023

• Amendments help improve affordability for Alberta students by implementing a 2% cap on tuition increases for domestic students at the institutional level for all public post-secondary institutions (except the Banff Centre) for 2024-25 and future academic years.

• The amendments also create regulation-making authority to designate private career colleges as independent academic institutions.

Amendments create a new agri-processing tax credit program to help attract large-scale investment, diversify the economy and create jobs for Albertans.

• Amendments see Alberta cover dental, drug, vision and other supplemental health benefits for children adopted in Alberta, whether from the government system or through a private, licensed agency.

• The amendments also boost the adoption expenses tax credit for Alberta families and help subsidize adoption costs for some families adopting through licensed adoption agencies.

• Amendments tie future municipal funding levels more closely to provincial revenues.

  • Municipal funding amounts starting in 2025-26 will increase or decrease at 100% of the percentage change in provincial revenues from 3 years prior, rather than 50% as legislated.

Amendments legislate a new fiscal framework, building fiscal stability and helping secure Alberta’s future prosperity. The new fiscal framework will:

• require annual balanced budgets, except in specific circumstances like an unexpected disaster or decline in revenue, with limitations on in-year and year-over-year increases in expense

• set policies for the allocation of surplus cash with at least half going toward debt repayment

  • The rest will be allocated to a new Alberta Fund, which will be used only to fund additional contributions to the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund (Heritage Fund), additional debt repayment and one-time spending initiatives.

Amendments streamline the process to further grow the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund (Heritage Fund) by requiring Treasury Board approval instead of Legislative Assembly approval when transferring money from the General Revenue Fund to the Heritage Fund.

• Amendments enable changes to Alberta’s charitable tax credit rate to come into effect for 2023.

  • A private member’s bill passed last year changing the provincial tax credit rate for the first $200 of donations from 10% to 60%.

  • Amendments enable the new charitable tax credit rate to come into effect retroactively on January 1, 2023, since changes to Alberta’s tax credits must be legislated for the full calendar year.

• Amendments reduce red tape by implementing the “access equals delivery model” in Alberta, meaning required disclosure documents can be delivered electronically as opposed to by mail.

• Additional amendments allow the Alberta Securities Commission to carry out enforcement proceedings more effectively by reducing the ability for companies to use the appeal process to avoid enforcement.

Amendments give credit unions new opportunities to generate revenue and take advantage of more flexible regulations to support their operations by:

• expanding the definition of membership to allow credit unions to do business with non-members and non-resident members

• authorizing the Credit Union Deposit Guarantee Corporation to approve credit union arrangements (for example, the purchase of one credit union by another credit union)

• amending the notice period for general meetings from a maximum of 40 to 50 days

• providing more flexibility to collect interest on loans on intervals that exceed 3 months

• amending the common share redemption limit of 10% to allow redemptions in excess of 10% in cases of amalgamations

• authorizing the Credit Union Deposit Guarantee Corporation to set periodicity, and content, of financial and statistical related reporting requirements for credit unions

Amendments strengthen the leadership of Horse Racing Alberta, allowing more public and industry representation to ensure this vibrant part of Alberta’s economy thrives with fewer barriers.

• The number of people on the Horse Racing Alberta board will increase by one person to 15 board members.

  • The Government of Alberta will have one single observer on the board, down from 2.

  • One additional public member will be appointed based on competencies in areas where there may be gaps in expertise.

  • One additional non-voting industry representative will be added, agreed upon and appointed by all other racing breed associations (outside of Thoroughbred and Standardbred) in the province.

• Membership on the Horse Racing Appeal Tribunal will be restructured into a pool of 5 to 7 adjudicators who will sit on 3-member panels. This will allow increased flexibility in filling panels and reduce wait-times and delays for having appeals heard.

  • The current appeal tribunal has 3 members.

  • The current quorum requirement of 2 members will be maintained.

• Amendments also allow minor infractions to be determined through objections to judges at the racetrack, which will reduce the caseload of the Horse Racing Appeal Tribunal and minimize wait times for having major appeals heard by the tribunal.