Alberta President of Treasury Board and Minister of Finance, Travis Toews, presented the provincial budget on February 25, 2021.
In the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic recession, and tumbling oil and gas prices, the budget is big on tackling the COVID-19 pandemic, and economic recovery.
“Budget 2021 ensures health-care funding to see all Albertans through the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, it lays the foundation for economic growth and job creation while carefully managing Albertans’ hard-earned tax dollars. It’s a budget that protects our health-care system and positions Alberta to emerge from COVID-19 stronger than ever,” Travis Toews, President of Treasury Board and Minister of Finance.
With expenses expected to exceed revenue, the year will end in a financial deficit of over 18 Billion, the minister said. A deficit of $18.2 billion is targeted for 2021-22, and deficits of $11 billion and $8 billion are targeted for 2022-23 and 2023-24 respectively.
As expenses already surpass revenue as shown in the budget, cuts, cuts, and more cuts appear to be the spirit of the budget, drawing quick reactions from the mayors of Alberta’s largest cities – Edmonton and Calgary.
“For a budget focused on health, recovery and finding savings, I am confounded and disappointed that the Province is not prepared to work with Edmonton on supportive housing and has cut critical infrastructure funding to our city,” Edmonton Mayor, Don Iveson.
“Today’s AB budget cuts almost $160M from the city, preventing us from building needed infrastructure and creating jobs when we most need them. Even more troubling, it’s a missed opportunity. Coming back from the pandemic will be hard, and we need a roadmap. We didn’t get that. Cuts to post-secondary education are particularly troubling. This is a time when we need to double down on education, training, and innovation, not make it harder for people to access it. We still have the highest unemployment rate in Canada, and nearly one in three downtown buildings are vacant. There is nothing in this budget to address that. Calgary’s recovery, and downtown in particular, must be the focus of Alberta’s economic recovery,” Naheed Nenshi, Mayor of Calgary.
This budget that cuts support to cities runs the risk to cities increasing property taxes to meetup with the shortfall, thereby leading to increase in taxes, contrary to what the minister was saying in his presentation. “Jason Kenney’s budget slashes funding for municipalities by $750 million by the end of 2023. This will mean higher property taxes for each and every Albertan. Jason Kenney is raising taxes, and he knows it. Thanks to his sneaky bracket creep scheme in Budget 2021, Albertans will be paying $100 million more in income tax this year. Broken promise. More and more young people are fleeing Alberta. Why? Because of Jason Kenney’s decisions. Budget 2021 raises tuition on students by $100 million and cuts $140 million from Alberta universities and colleges,” Rachel Notley, Alberta Official Opposition Leader.
Learn more: https://www.alberta.ca/budget.aspx
