ATHABASCA – It’s no secret that life is getting more expensive — from the cost of groceries to the eye-watering price of gas, Albertans are paying more for the things they need on a daily basis.
So, why is it that towns across the province are receiving less money from the government of Alberta than they did a decade ago?
“Both federally and provincially, a fair proportion of the tax taken from the general taxpayer is not returned to the municipalities so that they can look after their infrastructure,” said Town of Athabasca Mayor Rob Balay.
“Funding hasn’t been increased to the level it was 15 years ago, and they’ve been downloading responsibilities like FCSS and policing to municipalities. Guess what, there’s still only one taxpayer.”
Each year, the provincial government collects taxes from municipal governments through education property taxes; in 2024, those totalled to about $2.7 billion throughout Alberta. In return, municipal governments receive capital funding from the province through a program called the Local Government Fiscal Framework (LGFF), which started in 2024 — before that, the funding stream was called the Municipal Sustainability Initiative (MSI).
Communities receive a cut of the funding based on their assessment value and population with the bulk going to Calgary and Edmonton each year. Athabasca received $518,000 out of a total pot of $742 million in 2024.
Between 2014 and 2021, Athabasca received an average of $805,000 a year from the provincial government. From 2022 to 2026 — the province has already let municipalities know how much they’ll receive next year — Athabasca’s total fell to an average of $508,750.
“It really makes it difficult. On top of it all, we’re the only level of government that’s not allowed to run a deficit; we have to run a balanced budget,” said Balay.
Not all negative
In a Feb. 28 statement, Municipal Affairs minister Ric McIver said the province had been working to help municipalities by increasing the consistency of the funding, and pointed out that the LGFF funding had reached an all-time high.
“Municipalities have called for funding that is predictable and tied to provincial revenue growth, and this year’s allocation of LGFF answers that call,” said McIver.
“Providing public infrastructure for Albertans is a team effort and not the sole responsibility of a municipality. This is why Budget 2025’s capital plan invests an all-time high of $26.1 billion to deliver and enhance the public infrastructure that Alberta families depend on.”
Athabasca’s 2025 LGFF funding total is $575,000, the most it has received under the new model and the highest provincial funding has been since 2021.
Another win for municipalities across the province was the increase in the Grants in Place of Taxes (GIPOT) program, which provides money to municipalities in place of property tax on provincially owned buildings like courthouses.
Following a 2024 resolution from Alberta Municipalities (ABMuni), a group that represents roughly 85 per cent of the provinces towns, cities, and villages, the province announced it would return the program to 75 per cent of property taxes this year, and 100 per cent in 2026.
For Athabasca, that increase will equate to about $25,000 in 2025, and then again in 2026, when the town will receive roughly $100,000 from the province in lieu of taxes.
