Bill tabled that looks to provide transparency on funding for infrastructure projects

Curious about how the Government of Alberta decides which infrastructure projects go ahead?

The Infrastructure Accountability Act, or Bill 73, tabled in the Alberta Legislature on Monday should answer this question.

“The Infrastructure Accountability Act provides accountability and transparency for how the government invests in infrastructure projects that put people to work and which house the public services we rely on daily,” said Prasad Panda, Minister of Infrastructure.

“It ensures our government is being strategic in how it manages public infrastructure in the best interest of Alberta taxpayers.”

There will be six criteria included in the bill to evaluate how a capital project will:

• Address health, safety and compliance needs;
• align with government priorities and strategies;
• foster economic activity and create jobs;
• improve program delivery and services;
• consider life-cycle costs and whether it will generate a return on investment;
• and enhance the resiliency of communities.

“The only thing this bill does is reaffirm the criteria by which any government should be selecting infrastructure projects,” stated NDP Infrastructure Critic Thomas Dang, following the introduction of Bill 73.

“Nothing in this bill requires the UCP to apply it to the upcoming Budget 2022 Capital Plan. Delaying the implementation of the bill means the UCP can continue their mismanagement of the province’s finances in an attempt to try to buy Albertans’ votes as we head into the next election.”

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This criterion isn’t new though, as the Alberta Government has piloted this legislation in previous budgets. What’s new is they are making these criteria public, showing how they prioritize different projects such as roads or schools.

“We know that every investment into public infrastructure furthers Alberta’s recovery plan and fuels future economic growth, not only by creating construction jobs today but by making communities more attractive for future growth,” said Panda.

However, there won’t be a list of projects, or their progress made available to the public, and they won’t be scored or rated. Instead, if you’re curious where money is being spent, you’ll have to take a look at the governments annual capital plan.

“Increased transparency around infrastructure planning and spending are always welcome. However, this bill comes too late to protect Albertans from the UCP’s bad spending decisions,” said Dang.

“The UCP government already gambled away $1.3 billion of Albertans’ money on Keystone XL without any consultation or transparency. In addition, they’ve funded infrastructure projects in UCP-held ridings that didn’t even appear on their own capital plan list, while delaying critically necessary projects like the South Edmonton Hospital.”