A legislative committee unanimously signed off on the funding during a meeting Friday.JASON FRANSON/The Canadian Press
Alberta election officials are getting an extra $6.7 million to handle the sudden outburst of recall petitions against legislature members.
A legislative committee unanimously signed off on the funding during a meeting Friday.
It comes a week after chief electoral officer Gordon McClure advised more money was needed to manage the “unprecedented spike” in recall petitions.
McClure’s office has issued 21 recall petitions since the end of October. All but one are against members of Premier Danielle Smith’s United Conservative caucus, including the premier herself.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith facing recall petition
McClure told the committee last week that verifying each petition would cost just over $300,000 and that $1.5-million is needed for shipping and postage of petition documents.
Another $2.4-million was needed to handle staffing costs, McClure had said.
Many of the United Conservative Party MLAs on the committee said Friday they were glad to see Elections Alberta crunch its numbers, as it initially estimated each petition would cost over $1-million to administer.
“The vast majority of that didn’t make sense,” UCP member Scott Cyr said prior to voting.
“We needed him to go back and look at what he was presenting. He did, and we accept that in its entirety.”
Although the committee agreed the funding was necessary, it didn’t prevent members from bickering.
Opposition NDP member Lorne Dach called the governing caucus’ support a “stunning reversal” compared with conversations in the fall, when the UCP-majority committee refused to give McClure extra funding for what was at the time just a handful of recall petitions.
“Perhaps in the spirit of the season we’ve seen a very timely conversion on the road to Damascus,” said Dach.
That prompted Cyr to speak up and say he wanted to “correct the record” by detailing the government’s support of Elections Alberta and its work.
Fellow UCP committee member Chelsae Petrovic agreed, saying, “It wasn’t about not funding this individual. It was about making sure that the dollars were being spent appropriately.”
The recall campaigns cover MLAs from across the province, including three that sit on the committee that approved the funding: UCP members Nolan Dyck and Jackie Lovely and the NDP’s Amanda Chapman.
Their presence prompted the provincial ethics commissioner to write a letter to all committee members Thursday advising that “out of an abundance of caution” it would be best if those facing recall campaigns recused themselves from voting.
Chapman recused herself, while Dyck and Lovely were replaced on the committee for Friday’s meeting by other UCP backbenchers. A caucus spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to questions on whether the absences were connected to the ethics commissioner’s recommendation.
Many of those behind the petitions have said they were campaigning because their representatives have failed to address concerns and viewpoints of constituents.
One commonly cited reason has been the government’s use of the notwithstanding clause to end a provincewide teachers strike in October.
Also Friday, the president of the Alberta Teachers’ Association said it goes to show how Albertans feel about the government’s move.
“I think you’re seeing what Albertans have to say about that,” Jason Schilling told reporters.
Smith and her caucus have repeatedly argued in recent weeks that the recall process is being weaponized by those upset with government policy, saying the process was only meant for acts of serious misconduct or breaches of trust.
The committee also granted McClure’s office an additional $3 million to prepare for a likely referendum next year following the premier’s summer tour with her Alberta Next panel.
The panel made 10 stops across the province and polled Albertans on pre-selected topics ranging from immigration reform to creating a provincial pension plan.
Smith’s panel is expected to deliver a report by the end of the year containing recommendations on which proposals the government should put to a referendum.
While McClure’s funding request was approved in full Friday, the committee did not fully meet his budget request for the next fiscal year, signing off on about $51-million from his requested total of just over $64-million.
Cyr said the amount is still an increase compared with the current budget year, and that the additional money should allow Elections Alberta to start preparing for the 2027 general election.