The road to Alberta's Bill 20
It is quite unfortunate that the never-ending antics of federal and provincial politics have kept us distracted from municipal politics. Most tend to think municipalities just look after the boring local stuff like roads, parks, utilities, public transportation, and recreation centers. However, much like provincial and especially federal government, municipalities have taken on much more than they ever should have.
Around eighteen months ago, alarm bells started going off like mad in our rural communities. Municipalities all across the province were updating their Development and Area Structure Plans along with Land Use Bylaws. It seemed quite sudden and very strange, especially when folks took a harder look into what was going into these documents. Words like sustainable, renewable, alternative, and biodiversity were being used to describe what may or may not be approved. Everything from the number of animals per acre, to types of outbuildings, to having more than one residence on a property was being overhauled. In some cases, the increased power given to ‘authorities’ to enter someone’s property was outrageous. In short, it looked like these Land Use Bylaws were being used to shut down small and medium sized farm operations.
More digging revealed more of the plot. Some time ago, an organization called Green Space Alliance snuck in to our province. Despite having a very small staff, they were hired by several municipalities to help ‘update’ Land Use Bylaw documents. A trail led from there to an organization called ICLEI (International Council for Local Environment Initiatives), which has ties to UNESCO, which is connected with the WEF.
Federal tax dollars, funneled through ICLEI and their counterparts, were funding plans to make sure municipalities were toting the ESG line by adopting ‘Smart Cities’, ‘Walkable Communities’, ’15-Minute Cities’, and ‘net zero communities’ along with every DEI initiative available. This is what’s behind the push for ‘renewable energy’ projects on our valuable farmland and natural green spaces. It also tries to sway what can and cannot be produced on that land. Pronouns found in every signature line of every municipal staff member, multi-colored flags and rainbow sidewalks everywhere, as well as books in our libraries that should never have been published are also part of this push.
It’s all connected. Not only did the WEF ‘penetrate the cabinet’ of the Liberal party, through the Librano’s connections, it also penetrated our Municipalities. It should also be noted that many of the municipal bylaw changes to facilitate this were either passed, or crept in, during covid.
Ah, covid… the political science experiment that surpassed all others. Albertans were just starting to see the light after the Notley/Trudeau politically induced recession, then Premier Kenney decided to implement politically motivated mandates. Why so many Albertans went along with it for so long I’ll never understand. It cost many of us dearly, and not just financially. It also cost the Premier his job, and rightfully so. We got a new Premier who appreciated just how slighted Albertans were feeling. She also recognized the independence movement was gaining momentum again.
The Constitution clearly states what is federal jurisdiction and what is provincial. Unfortunately, for several decades provincial leaders allowed the federal government to creep in where they had no business being. Not a separatist herself, Premier Smith hoped the Alberta Sovereignty Act may help. The Trudeau government had an epic meltdown and, of course, accused our provincial government of spreading misinformation and disinformation. It was quite entertaining. Since then, the Premier and her Cabinet have been doing a good job of pushing our Prime Minister and his Cabinet out of provincial jurisdiction back into federal where they belong. Trudeau and his cronies aren’t happy about this so came up with another plan.
There’s a ‘national housing crisis’ and who is going to say no to building ‘affordable housing’? Federal connections to municipalities had already been made through all the ‘green’ funding over the years; it was time to pick up the phone again. Given the mayors of both our major cities are BFFs with the Liberals, they were the logical first calls. However, neither mayor is well liked by their constituents. Given Edmonton’s mayor is the less hated of the two, though not by much, they began there. The plan was to change land use bylaws in that city to allow for ‘blanket up zoning’. This would mean where once a bungalow stood a four or eightplex could, and residents would no longer need to be advised of any upcoming change. This didn’t go over well with Edmontonians, but Council passed the bylaw anyway. Money to build those multi-family units will come from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation, an arm of the federal government. That’s not good.
After the recall dust settled in Calgary, the same thing was tried there. Most Calgarians don’t trust their mayor and the majority of council members at all. When the public hearing was announced, so many people signed up to speak, two weeks were needed to accommodate. But even after all that, it’s likely to pass regardless. That’s always what happens at these public hearings around zoning.
Recognizing explicit federal overreach in our province again, our Premier and her Cabinet announced Bill 20. The Left lost their minds. It was beautiful to watch. Municipalities exist as a ‘child of the province’ and most of the bill tidies up the Municipal Government Act. It also facilitates three very important tasks Albertans on all sides of the political spectrum should embrace. First, it forces the federal government to remove itself from our municipalities. Many of our municipal governments aren’t going to like that because they all cry poor when, really, most just have a spending problem that needs fixing. The second thing it does is allows the provincial cabinet to change land use bylaws it deems necessary. This could give Albertans another tool to use when Councils don’t listen to the needs and wants of the people. The third change is the process of how councillors can be removed from their position. This also could give Albertans another tool to use when Councillors get stupid.
For too long politics has sacrificed the needs of the people in order to advance the wants of the politicians. The federal government, in particular, has been crossing lines it has no business crossing in hopes of erasing them all together. This has put us at a crossroads and I’m not sure enough people realize how perilous the wrong decision may be. The House of Commons is quickly morphing into the House of Communism. If we stay on this ‘federal government knows best’ path, it’s more than possible the covid mandates will seem like child splay. However, if we continue on the path our provincial government has started, which is to appreciate and respect the Constitution and rightful delineation between all three levels of government, no matter who is in government, everyone will benefit.
While Bill 20 isn’t perfect and regulations are needed to clarify how it will be implemented, the intent behind it should be welcomed.
