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Prentice says Alberta will not have provincial sales tax as long as he’s premier

April 16, 2015 By Admin

The Canadian Press

Published on: April 14, 2015
Last Updated: April 14, 2015 9:04 AM MDT

EDMONTON — Premier Jim Prentice says there will not be a provincial sales tax as long as he is the leader of Alberta.

Prentice says Albertans have told him they don’t want the tax and he agrees with them.

Alberta is the only province without such a levy, but Prentice said earlier this year he would consider it if there were widespread support.

Opposition leaders, however, say Albertans need to be careful about promises from Prentice.

They have all noted that he also promised to follow Alberta’s fixed election law, only to drop the writ a year early.

Prentice says his budget sets a 10-year financial path for Alberta and he needs a mandate to implement it.

Canadian Press

Filed Under: News

Wildrose demands Prentice divulge details of deal for golf course

April 16, 2015 By Admin

The Canadian Press

Published on: April 13, 2015
Last Updated: April 13, 2015 8:50 PM MDT

The Kananaskis Country Golf Course, three years before the 2013 flood.

Kananaskis Country Golf Course / Calgary Herald

Alberta’s Wildrose party says Premier Jim Prentice needs to come clean on a contract for the publicly owned Kananaskis Country Golf Course.

The party says in a news release that the contract to repair the flood-damaged course needs to be made public because of questions surrounding it.

The deal, signed last July, has seen more than $5 million being paid to a private operator to cover expenses and losses after the 36-hole course was damaged by extensive flooding.

The operator, Kan-Alta Golf Management Ltd., is a donor to the governing Progressive Conservatives.

When the deal made headlines last month, Prentice ordered a stop to all payments ahead of an independent review.

Prentice says it’s not appropriate for the province to be in — quote —”the golf course business.”

The Canadian Press

Filed Under: News

Jim Prentice acknowledges Albertans are unhappy with the PC party

April 16, 2015 By Admin

April 13, 2015

By Staff The Canadian Press

CALGARY – Progressive Conservative Leader Jim Prentice says he knows there is a certain level of public anger being directed at his party.

In a speech to about 200 supporters in Calgary, the incumbent premier said Albertans have not been happy with PC governments that lost sight of party values.

He says his government will not make the mistakes of the past and will earn back the trust of voters.

FULL COVERAGE: Decision Alberta 2015

But he warns there are tough times ahead and there will be items on the public wish list that will go unfulfilled.

Prentice is attempting to extend the PC party’s four-decade dynasty, having just brought down a budget that hikes taxes and runs a record $5-billion deficit.

He has spent the first week of the election campaign touting the spending plan, while challenging the opposition parties to provide more than just the bare bones of ideas on how to deal with low oil prices.

Filed Under: News

Crowsnest Pass council opposes transmission line

April 16, 2015 By Admin

Pincher Creek Voice

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Chris Davis

In a correspondence dated March 16, 2015, Crowsnest Pass Mayor Blair Painter expressed Crowsnest Pass Council’s opposition to the Alta link Castle Rock Ridge to Chapel Rock Transmission Project.

The correspondence was addressed to the following:

Alberta Electric System Operator – Stakeholder Relations
Mr. John Barlow, M.P. for Macleod, House of Commons, Ottawa
The Honourable Jim Prentice, Premier of Alberta
Mr. Pat Stier, MLA for Livingstone-Macleod
Honourable Frank Oberle, Minister of Energy
Mr. John Grove, Municipal and Community Relations Manager, South, Altalink
ReeveBrian Hammond, MD of Pincher Creek
Reeve Cameron Gardner, MD of Ranchland
Mayor Don Anderberg, Town of Pincher Creek

According to the correspondence, CNP council received a petition by “in excess of 166 persons” opposed to the alignment route east of the Bellevue “adjacent to an existing transmission line on the eastern boundary of the Municipality”.

“After a considerable debate on the alignment option, Council was of the opinion that there are several considerations they must identify as significant disadvantages to this proposed hydro line construction project.”

The perceived disadvantages include (taken directly from the correspondence):

Our community has not been properly consulted on the effect of the towers on our community. This project has been called the “Castle Rock Ridge to Chapel Rock Transmission Project”. Both of these areas are not even close to the Crowsnest Pass. It was only when Altalink presented to Council, and we demanded that they do a consultation in our community, did a consultation happen. Originally they had no intention of holding a consultation in our community even though we are directly affected. There needs to be an extension in order for all citizens in our community to express their views on this project.
The Community of Bellevue has a population of over 2,800 people within 1.1 square kilometer, whereas the total population of the MD of Pincher Creek is approximately 3,100 people with a density of .9 per square kilometer. Therefore, our community is at a much greater impact than the MD of Pincher Creek in regards to visual impact and wind noise within this community .
The planned corridor for this project will go through some very tough terrain and will jeopardize and threaten many species in this South Saskatchewan Regional Plan (SSRP) identified subalpine region, including the Limber Pine and a major wildlife corridor. The SSRP also talks about “appropriately considering land uses and values”. The Alberta Government is “committed to responsible development”, and this is not responsible development when it threatens to dramatically effect a whole community. The proposed route contradicts Alberta’s objective to diversify our economy from oil to tourism.
Our community relies heavily on the tourism industry as our only source of business revenue, and with over 10,000 vehicles passing through a day, clear sight lines are imperative. The transmission line would be in full view of the multimillion dollar Frank Slide Interpretive Centre while tourists view the historic “Frank Slide”.
The siting of the towers and line on a prominent height of land on the boundary of a community of 800 land owners will be a significant deterrent for future subdivision and development within the Community of Bellevue, and will cause a significant devaluation or reduction of assessed value of the personal properties adjacent to the line route.
The Council has been advised by property owners who live in close proximity to existing such line right-of-ways of the wind noise, and constant irritation caused by the sound from the towers and the lines that are very close to this residential community.
The Council is of the opinion that the other three proposed line route options pose a significant lesser risk to a much more sparsely populated area, than the route option north of Bellevue.
In the Crowsnest Pass the major marketing advantage is the view from the valley, and the valley is already a major corridor for the railway, highway, hydro transmission lines and pipelines. Since we are considered a “Gateway” to Alberta, a major management issue in the valley is the control of invasive weeds along all of these right-of-ways, and all too often the Municipality is left to conduct operations to control and eradicate these weed infestations with no help or recognition of the problem from the owners of these right-of-ways. In the last three years, Alberta Transportation and Canadian Pacific have started to realize the issues with invasive weeds and have started to recognize the cost to control invasive species of weeds, but the pipeline companies and the hydro companies have been less than reactive to the problem.
The Municipality is one of the only communities and part of the Crown of the Continent initiative and partnership which strives to sustain the remarkable landscape of this area.

“In the opinion of the Municipal Council of the Crowsnest Pass, the proposed alignment for the Transmission Line is a detriment to one most marketable feature and landscape of the Municipality and the area, which is the purity of the site lines and scenery. Therefore, we the Municipal Council will go on record as being opposed to routing of this Transmission Line through the Municipality.”

Filed Under: News

Surface rights group taking issue to court Lease payment concerns have group looking for financial support from Alberta landowners

April 13, 2015 By Admin

APRIL 9, 2015 THE WESTERN PRODUCER

BY PAUL COWLEY FREELANCE WRITER RED DEER

An Alberta surface rights group plans to fight to ensure that landowners don’t lose lease payments from bankrupt oil companies. Don Bester, president of the Alberta Surface Rights Group, accuses the provincial board that oversees surface rights issues of changing a longstanding practice of guaranteeing annual surface lease payments. The practice ensured that landownersweren’t left out of pocket when oil or gas companies went out of business. Bester said the board “erred in an interpretation of law” in a 2014 case involving Drayton Valley-area farmers Doug and Marg Lemke and Petroglobe Inc. The Lemkes argued that the insolvent company owed them $3,700 in lease payments. However, the Surface Rights Board rejected their application to seek compensation through the board. “The (Alberta) Surface Rights Board claimed the Bank and Insolvency Act superseded the Alberta Surface Rights Act, although it is veryclear that this is not the case,” said Bester.

He said the board would previously order companies that were defaulting on their payments to pay up or be stripped of their mineral rights. The board could provide compensation to landowners if no agreement was reached with the company. Bester said the implications extend beyond lease payments to farmers. There is also the question of who will be responsible for cleaning up former well sites.

“To us, it’s one of the more important issues we have faced,” he said. Municipalities also stand to lose thousands of dollars in taxes that oil and gas companies pay on the land on which their pipelines and facilities are located, he added. Alberta Surface Rights Board counsel Karen Sinclair-Santos said there has been no change in legislation or the board’s options for dealing with

companies that are behind on their payments. These options include suspension or termination orders for the site in question and board-issued directions to pay. Each case is dealt with on its own

facts, which can be complicated in cases of bankruptcy or receivership. She said the board can still offer compensation.

“Each time an application comes before the board, it makes its decision on the particular facts. There’s no guideline directing a board member to make a decision in a particular way.” There have been a number of decisions where the board has recognized that Bankruptcy Act provisions halt enforcement actions under the surface rights legislation. Sinclair-Santos said landowners who aren’t satisfied with the board’s decision can seek a judicial review.

Bester said taking the board to court is expected to cost as much as $30,000. The group is hoping to raise money to wage its fight by appealing to those potentially affected, including the counties of Red Deer, Clearwater, Knee hill and Mountain View. “We’re on the fundraising trail.” Clearwater County chief administrative officer Ron Leaf said assessment staff are not expecting any changes that will affect pipeline tax collection, which can be complicated when oil or gas companies are in arrears because they do not own the land on which their pipeline sits.

Filed Under: News

Who’s really running the province?

April 13, 2015 By Admin

Lethbridge Herald

By Letter to the Editor on April 11, 2015.

A recent Crowsnest Pass Herald article entitled “Council takes a firm stand against AltaLink” made me sit up and take special notice.

Particularly eye-opening were the comments attributed to AltaLink’s John Grove, who is reported to have told Crowsnest Pass municipal council “to refrain from sending a letter (to government officials) outlining É opposition to the project.”

The referenced project: AltaLink’s proposed $750-million Castle Rock Ridge to Chapel Rock transmission line.

Crowsnest Pass Mayor Blair Painter is reported to have said, “Grove suggested we not send the letter as it might jeopardize our relations with Edmonton.”

Reading the mayor’s statement, I have to believe AltaLink has revealed that all its community consultation, open houses, route-finding exercises, environmental assessments and other work is mere window dressing. It appears AltaLink believes it can do whatever it wants, and that the Government of Alberta will stand behind this outcome, regardless of the wishes of Albertans.

What, exactly, did AltaLink’s John Grove say and, perhaps more importantly, what message was he attempting to communicate?

The article raises many questions, such as: Does the Government of Alberta use its power to punish people who express concerns with industrial development?

Is AltaLink’s CEO Alberta’s de facto premier?

Do Premier Prentice and AltaLink’s CEO sit behind the same desk and to whom are we speaking when we address either?

If cash-strapped Albertans don’t want to pay $750-million for a transmission line many reviewers don’t feel is necessary, to whom do they address their concerns?

David McIntyre

Crowsnest Pass

Filed Under: News

Too much government control?

April 13, 2015 By Admin

Lethbridge Herald

By Letter to the Editor on April 11, 2015.

Deeper skims into disposable income and net pay don’t heighten our standard of living. Can “progressive” taxes address Alberta’s debt? This idea of the solution is one big facet of the problem.

A little government is necessary, but we have way more than that. Taxation is government greed. Instead of preparing for bad times, policy-makers run up the usual expenses and bill us. They use, elsewhere, predatory measures against personal finances to cover an unaffordable status quo.

The government of Cyprus seized private savings two years ago to avert bankruptcy. The Greek government now plunders its own citizen’s pensions so it can meet IMF and EU obligations. Poor households, already without nearly 86 per cent of their former income, lose a further nine per cent to tax increases.

The next involuntary forfeiture introduces a change in account-holder status: depositors become “creditors” to whom the system owes money. Good luck collecting! The policy’s ideal because it leaves people without recourse.

U.S. Civil Asset Forfeiture laws are so abused that Ottawa issued a travel advisory against carrying large amounts of cash into the United States. Victims have a poor track record of getting it back.

In Alberta we haven’t reached those extremes – but we’re on that road, and the latest budget didn’t roll back the general hit.

Jim Prentice gesturally cut caucus pay by five per cent. If he’d cut 25 per cent, he would’ve been serious. If the budget had phased out unseen cadres of deputies, assistants, executives and managers, secretariats and commissions, he’d have fully changed the game. What we see instead is that Prentice fronts a self-protective establishment. We had no direct say when it broke its own law against going back into debt; we’re at its whim on the new election. Among the first acts of a trustworthy Opposition administration should be to open all the books, and show us how the money’s gone.

Freedom’s sticker shock, maybe … but the more beholden to government we are, the less freedom we really have.

Tom Yeoman

Lethbridge

Filed Under: News

Alberta premier promises to double size of Heritage Fund for future generations

April 13, 2015 By Admin

By Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press on April 10, 2015.

CALGARY – Progressive Conservative Leader Jim Prentice cited the legacy of former premier Peter Lougheed as he promised again to double the size of the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund over the next 10 years.

Prentice noted that previous Tory governments lost their way with the $17-billion fund and he wants to return it to its original purpose – saving revenues for future generations.

“When (Lougheed) was a young man he worked for a time in a place called Tulsa, Okla., and he saw what happened to that community when the oil resources were spent and the economy was in decline,” Prentice said Friday.

“And Peter Lougheed vowed that would never happen in our Alberta. There are those who think our resources are infinite and our energy resources are endless and the dollars that we receive are endless.

“The truth is our resources are not endless and the abundance of them isn’t the only factor we need to consider.”

For decades the Alberta government has been skimming the investment income earned from the fund and transferring it to general revenues for program spending.

Under Prentice’s plan, which was first announced in last month’s budget, 25 per cent of all provincial energy revenues would be saved in the Heritage Fund starting in 2019-2020.

Prentice said that should double the size of the fund by 2024-2025.

“We will reduce our dependency on energy revenue by year four and five. We will have that dependency down to 50 per cent, which is the appropriate balance,” said Prentice.

“If we carry forward on that basis we will have the Heritage Fund at a figure like $30 billion by year 10 and after that it will really start to accelerate.”

Wildrose Leader Brian Jean announced a financial blueprint Thursday in which he promised to slash management jobs in government and health care, defer some capital projects and avoid tax hikes to balance the budget by 2017.

Prentice said with a $7 billion revenue shortfall this year and $6 billion next year that just isn’t realistic.

“Who are they proposing to cut? They talk about cutting infrastructure … which communities are they planning to cut those projects in and who are they talking about cutting in terms of front line services?”

Follow @BillGraveland on Twitter

Filed Under: News

Alberta premier protecting the interests of the rich

April 13, 2015 By Admin

Lethbridge Herald

By Letter to the Editor on April 8, 2015.

Wake up, Albertans! It is time to start fighting against the dictatorship we have. No opposition, no democracy, our opinions are not listened to, nobody protects us from the abuses the government is doing against the citizens.

We have learned about dictatorships in another countries but now we have one in our house. Premier Prentice is protecting wealthy companies’ interests by making us pay for every single service. Are we to blame for the low gas prices? We have saved some pennies by getting the gas at a low price. Now Prentice is making Albertans pay to keep rich people’s privileges, by bringing the gas prices higher. But that is not enough for him; he brings out premiums for health care, taking away more than we have saved.

The federal Conservatives are bringing down Canada’s international reputation by military intervention in other countries to fight terrorism, an idea created by the real terrorists in the Canadian government. Harper and Prentice are the real terrorists. Their political decisions are against human rights. When is this abuse to stop? Albertans have the answer.

Roberto Hernandez

Lethbridge

Filed Under: News

So much for fixed election dates

April 13, 2015 By Admin

By Lethbridge Herald Opinon on April 8, 2015.

Rules do give premier the power to call an election ahead of Election Act schedule

It was a good idea at the time.

Alberta’s Election Act set the stage for regular elections every four years.

Under the legislation, Premier Jim Prentice had until next spring to wait and face the electorate. Rules dictated an election had to be called in the fourth calendar year following polling day in the most recent general election. That would have meant Albertans would vote for their next government between March 1 and May 31 of 2016.

Of course, that is not going to happen. An election has been called, and Alberta will head to the polls this May instead.

The act also stipulates the Lieutenant Governor’s powers are not impacted, meaning the power to dissolve the Legislature is still in the hands of the Lieutenant Governor. Section 38.1 (1) states that power can be used, in Her Majesty’s name, when the Lieutenant Governor sees fit.

In reality, it is whenever the premier sees fit, as it is the province’s top politician who makes the request, and in this case, Prentice has decided to strike when the iron is hot, and when his opponents are most vulnerable.

No doubt, the Progressive Conservatives are in the driver’s seat. With 70 seats at dissolution, thanks in part to the defections of 11 Wildrose members who crossed the floor, the stage is set to return Canada’s longest-ruling political dynasty to power once again.

Time will tell whether Albertans – upset the provincial budget levied a host of tax and fee increases on the public, once again avoided touching the sacred cow of corporate taxes and also refused to hike oil and gas royalties – will be enough to derail the PCs.

Opposition parties have been buoyed by recent polls, which suggest gains have been made by the Wildrose and Alberta NDP, and the challenge Prentice faces with a $5-billion deficit is very real. Over four decades into power, the PCs have yet to develop a plan to wean Alberta off its resource revenue, and spending has been a major issue, as the province spends $1,300 more per capita than any other jurisdiction in Canada.

Those realities are staring the premier in the face, and party faithful know full well the dangers of letting those issues grow and fester for another year. A 2016 election, of course, would allow the province’s other political entities time to regroup, with new leaders in tow, develop more complete platforms and formulate a plan to take on the PC juggernaut

That was the intent of the Election Act. It was to level the playing field, give Albertans and its political parties a fixed election period and in general, boost the level of democratic transparency.

Unfortunately, the result has been the exact opposite. A chain reaction set off by Danielle Smith’s floor crossing has created a situation where every opposition party has a new leader. Smith, one election removed from leading in the polls until very late in the game in the battle against Alison Redford, is now out of the political game, and her former party must now rely on a new leader and a new slate of candidates in many ridings.

Fixed election dates would have prevented the manipulation of the system for the benefit of the party in power. Instead, we are left with a business-as-usual approach.

Time will tell if the calculated gamble by Prentice and company will pay off.

Filed Under: News