Bill 9 amended the Workers’ Compensation Act to expand presumptive cancer coverage to all firefighters who served during the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire.

Alberta’s governing UCP is rejecting calls from Opposition New Democrats to amend a bill before MLAs that expands presumptive cancer coverage to all firefighters who served during the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfires.

The government’s Bill 9 — the Red Tape Reduction Statutes Amendment Act, 2023 — was tabled in the legislature last week and could be debated in second reading sometime this week.

The bill removes the current latency periods, or the number of years that a firefighter has been on the job.

That change will only take effect on the date of royal assent, should the bill be passed.

On Monday, NDP labour critic Christina Gray said she planned to propose amendments to the bill that would mean those protections would be offered retroactively.

“What the UCP have brought forward fails to meet the needs of firefighters on a number of fronts,” Gray said at a Monday news conference.

“The last thing that (firefighters) need or that their families need is to have to worry about whether they will have Workers’ Compensation Board coverage or not.”

Gray said she also wanted to expand the number of cancers covered by the legislation and to also add respiratory illnesses to the list of conditions.

Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction Minister Dale Nally indicated his party would reject those amendments, and called on the NDP to support the legislation as it stands.

“The issue of retroactivity is that it opens up a host of other issues,” he told reporters.

“It won’t just be for Fort McMurray, it could then be applied to everything. So it comes with some challenges.”

He said retroactivity is currently an issue in only two cases, although that number could increase in the years to come,

“We are confident that those two can be dealt with through a fairness process review.”

Alberta Professional Fire Fighters and Paramedics Association president Matt Osborne spoke in favour of the bill when it was announced last Wednesday but on Monday he joined the NDP to back the call for retroactivity.

“We need to make sure that firefighters who are already battling cancer and these issues are looked after equally,” he said, adding that Bill 9 represents “a big step forward.”

“It is difficult enough when you’re battling cancer, and then at the same time you also need to prove a WCB claim to look after you and your family.”

Public schools just beyond the city limits are bursting at the seams with student growth, but no new construction funding in this year’s budget means further space crunches and crowding, officials say.

Public schools just beyond the city limits are bursting at the seams with student growth, but no new construction funding in this year’s budget means further space crunches and crowding, officials say.

“Our expectation was that we would get construction funding for at least a couple of the projects we’ve been advocating for . . . but we are very disappointed,” said Norma Lang, board chair at Rocky View Schools.

“We have not been able to keep up with enrolment, which has been triggered by huge population growth in our communities — some are among the fastest-growing municipalities in Canada.”

Lang said that in the past two decades, Chestermere’s population has gone up by 429 per cent, Airdrie by 256 per cent, and Cochrane by 171 per cent.

Rocky View requested construction funding for a new K-8 school in Airdrie, as well as a list of other priorities in Cochrane and Chestermere, but only received design funding for Airdrie.

Alberta Education did approve full construction funding for an independent francophone school in Airdrie.

Lang said she is especially frustrated after Rocky View’s strong advocacy and meetings with UCP government officials, noting that it takes about four years to build a school even after construction approval, and design funding offers no guarantee of building funds the following year.

“By 2026, we will have more students than spaces,” Lang said.

“That’s hard on students and their learning,” she added, noting more schools are using common spaces such as gyms, libraries and cafeterias for classrooms.

Rocky View requested construction funding for a new K-8 school in Airdrie, as well as a list of other priorities in Cochrane and Chestermere, but only received design funding for Airdrie.

Alberta Education did approve full construction funding for an independent francophone school in Airdrie.

Lang said she is especially frustrated after Rocky View’s strong advocacy and meetings with UCP government officials, noting that it takes about four years to build a school even after construction approval, and design funding offers no guarantee of building funds the following year.

“By 2026, we will have more students than spaces,” Lang said.

“That’s hard on students and their learning,” she added, noting more schools are using common spaces such as gyms, libraries and cafeterias for classrooms.

“From FSD’s perspective, we are in an untenable position. Our class sizes are the largest they have been,” Letendre said.

“Today, we are not only looking at a school that is bursting at the seams for at least the next four years, but also our students will continue to come into a high school that is overcrowded, negatively impacting the rich, meaningful learning experiences they all deserve.”

Last week, Alberta Education announced as much as $1.6 billion in capital funding for 58 school projects across the province over the next three years. Of that, up to $372 million will go toward 13 projects that received full construction funding for new schools or modernizations this year.

Education Minister Adriana LaGrange has said the UCP government is funding education at record levels and considers each application for capital funding through a detailed 10-step process.

“We are committed to building schools to help address enrolment growth, classroom complexity and modernizing schools to support 21st-century learning,” LaGrange said at last week’s announcement.

We must build on the past and look towards the future with ambition.
Alberta has among the slowest wage growth in Canada. Under the UCP, capital investment stalled.

We will reinvigorate Alberta’s investment climate. There are massive job creation opportunities – which the UCP is not seizing.

Our proposals will create over 47,000 good-paying jobs and attract an estimated $20 Billion in private sector investment.

Our strategy:

1. Create an Alberta’s Future Tax Credit targeting growth in emerging industrial sectors
2. Supercharge the Alberta Petrochemical Incentive Program we created when in government
3. Use Performance Fast Pass to speed up the approvals of projects for responsible companies
4. Consult with Indigenous communities on expansion of the Alberta Indigenous Opportunity Corporation
5. Repeal Danielle Smith’s job-killing, anti-Canadian Sovereignty Act

The historic incentives in the United States’ Inflation Reduction Act is pulling billions of dollars of investment south.

Alberta must compete. Decisions we make this year will have long-lasting implications for Alberta’s future.

“Universal access to free prescription contraception in Alberta will ensure that women are more in control of their lives, and more in control of their own economic future,” said Notley, marking International Women’s Day

Alberta’s Opposition NDP is promising universal access to free prescription birth control if elected to government in May.

Leader Rachel Notley made the pledge Wednesday at a news conference in Edmonton, saying the program would be modelled after British Columbia’s recent move to cover contraceptives beginning April 1 — a first in the country.

“Universal access to free prescription contraception in Alberta will ensure that women are more in control of their lives, and more in control of their own economic future,” Notley said while recognizing International Women’s Day.

The program will cover oral hormone pills, commonly known as the pill, injections, under-the-skin implants, copper and hormonal intrauterine devices, also known as IUDs, and Plan B — the morning after pill.

Notley estimated that for those who don’t have prescription plans, the proposed program for women could save individuals up to $500 a year.

The question of why provincial funds for Calgary’s downtown were left off the latest budget has been answered by Alberta’s premier.

But documents from the city refute her reasoning.

“It just so happens that we didn’t receive our priority list from the City of Calgary,” Premier Danielle Smith said at an unrelated news conference Monday.

On Thursday at the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, Finance Minister Travis Toews said there was no “business case” presented to the province for funding to go to the downtown of the province’s largest city.

“I’m meeting tomorrow with (Edmonton) Mayor (Amarjeet) Sohi. Mayor Sohi did write me a letter and told me what his priorities are for Edmonton,” Smith added Monday. “And so I’m looking forward to meeting with (Calgary) Mayor (Jyoti) Gondek to find out what her priorities are and I hope we’ll be able to come to a conclusion on that.”

But three and a half months ago, Gondek sent a seven-page budget submission for the province to consider ahead of the 2023-24 budget that was released last week.

Gondek’s Nov. 14, 2022, letter highlighted seven recommendations: “broad” municipal finance reform, enhancing Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) funding, committing to a Bow River reservoir options study, contribution to a multisport fieldhouse, committing funds to income supports and the low-income transit pass, improving access to affordable housing, and a request to match the city’s $100-million investment in the downtown revitalization plan.

That letter was addressed to Toews and CCed to Smith.

“It is a little complicated for me to explain why I would give $100 million to a Toronto-based REIT (real estate investment trust) so that they can renovate their building,” Smith said midday Monday. “I accept that that’s a bit of a complicated argument to be made. And all the minister said is, show me the business case for that.”

The city’s revitalization framework caps funding for any project. For example, a trio of downtown towers got $31.7 million in April 2022 for office-to-residential conversions.

Calgary will get “full construction” funding for only one new school and one modernization as part of the UCP government’s Budget 2023 approvals announced Wednesday.

Among the 58 new projects touted by Education Minister Adriana LaGrange, only 13 complete builds are approved for funding, while others are on a series of lists defined as getting “design,” “planning” or “pre-planning” funds, with no clear commitment as to when money for construction will arrive.

As part of the 13 provincewide projects, the Calgary Catholic School District will get full construction funding for a K-9 school in Nolan Hill, addressing only one of seven top priorities in its three-year capital plan.

The Calgary Board of Education will get modernization funding for upgrades at John Diefenbaker High School — a $29-million project that has been on the board’s priority list for 13 years — addressing only one of four top priorities in its three-year plan

“We are committed to building schools to help address enrolment growth, classroom complexity and modernizing schools to support 21st century learning,” LaGrange said at the announcement in CCSD’s St. Gianna School in Auburn Bay.

Twenty-five projects remain on planning, pre-planning lists

Other projects within the full construction funding list include a new francophone school in Airdrie and a new Catholic school in Okotoks, as well as projects in Lethbridge, Edmonton and others in rural communities.

Another 20 projects were listed for design funding, but again only one Calgary project was included — a Catholic high school in Rangeview, which has been on CCSD’s capital planning list for years.

Meanwhile, a further 25 projects remained on planning and pre-planning lists, defined as funded for site analysis, scope development and conceptual planning. Among those were five CBE projects and three CCSD projects, including the new west high school that Catholic parents have been demanding for more than a decade.

#yyc #calgary #ableg

The Alberta Emergency Alert test sounded off at least five times on Wednesday, but I wonder if anyone in the UCP government actually noticed.

After all, there’s been a five-alarm fire roaring in downtown Calgary for years, yet the provincial government has done little to help.

And there are no clear signs in this week’s provincial budget that aid is on the way.

Last year, the Kenney government allocated $5 million to the cause of Calgary’s downtown. It was, in the words of Calgary’s mayor, a “pittance.”