Tragic Death of Jim Prentice

I was totally shocked when I heard that former Alberta Premier Jim Prentice was killed in a plane crash last night near Kelowna, B.C. 

I was a big supporter of Premier Prentice.  I had the opportunity to talk to him on a couple of occasions, and I was impressed with his ability to see a reasonable compromise between groups that seemed otherwise at loggerheads.  I truly believe he would have become one of Alberta's best premiers ever, had he won the last election. 

That loss really hurt Jim and he dropped out of the political fray for a long time.  He was enjoying his private life and his family now he was semi-retired. 

My sincere condolences to his family and many friends both here in Alberta and in Ottawa.

Alberta's New Government

Were you shocked by the results of yesterday's provincial election?  I certainly was.

I was predicting a PC win with a smaller majority (around 50 MLAs) with a strong NDP Opposition.  Boy, did I get it wrong!  This is only the second time in Alberta's history that we've elected a left leaning government.

Our first was the Alberta Liberal government in Alberta's infant years as a province, back in 1905.  Ever since the Liberals were voted out in the 1920s, we've always chosen a right leaning government starting with the UFA (United Farmers of Alberta), then Social Credit and onto Peter Lougheed's Progressive Conservatives.  That four decade Progressive Conservative dynasty ended last night.

One politician I lament losing is Jim Prentice.  I realize that some of last night's results were partially of his making, but I believe the man is a true Albertan - and has always had the best interests of this province at heart.

I refuse to blow taps on this province I love.  People are citing NDP screw-ups in other provinces as a prediction of what will happen here.  I disagree.

Alberta is absolutely nothing like the other Canadian provinces which have elected NDP governments.  Our economy is strong here, despite the blip in oil prices.  They'll recover!  They always have.  Alberta's economy is still the envy of the rest of this great nation.

I say: give the Alberta NDP Government a chance.  I'm sure they will work hard to keep Alberta on top!  I believe the sun will continue to shine on this province.  And congratulations to Premier-Elect Rachel Notley!  I'm looking forward to working with you, and your new government, in the near future.

Election Day Tomorrow!

Tomorrow (May 5th) is the big day!  We've heard all the candidates and all the party leaders speak about their vision of what Alberta should look like over the next four years.

Now it's our turn! 

Over the past few weeks, I've had the privilege of meeting with the candidates or their designates for our constituency, Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills.  In my opinion, we are especially fortunate to have a very strong and dedicated field of candidates running for election here - from every party!  As voters, it is our job to pick the one who best represents the Alberta we would like to see, and vote for them.

Two weeks ago, I asked some questions of the candidates here on my blog.  I received a number of answers, from most of the candidates.  I will republish a list of who responded to my five questions and what they said.  I urge you to read them over again.

The polls open tomorrow morning at 9:00 a.m, at the Beiseker Community Centre.  They will be open until 8:00 p.m.  

Check that card you received in the mail a while back from Elections Alberta, and it will tell you where you are to vote.  If you've lost that card, take all the ID you can find with you (picture ID is the best) and know your physical address (street address or land description).  The folks at the polling station should be able to help you.

Remember, you are choosing Alberta's provincial legislative make-up for the next four years!  And if you don't get out and vote tomorrow, you have no right to complain about our provincial government come Wednesday!

Vote for what you want - but please vote!

Questions for the Candidates: Heritage Savings Trust Fund

Back more than forty years ago, then-new Progressive Conservative Premier Peter Lougheed created the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund.

The fund was designed to be an investment in Alberta's future, and make funds available for those "rainy days" which occasionally strike this province.  I fully supported this fund, but I've never heard a definition of what would qualify as a "rainy day!"  By my calculation, we've had a couple of "rainy days" over the past few years yet I don't believe  the Fund was used to help any Albertans though those rough times.

We've heard the Prentice PCs talk about strengthening the Heritage Trust Fund, but I'd like to know what the other parties would do.

Question #4;  If your party forms Alberta's next government, what are you going to do with our Heritage Trust Fund and who and how will decide how it is spent,and by what criteria? 

Questions for the Candidates: Economic Diversification & Foreign Ownership

Question #3 addresses economic diversification.  This tends to be something I believe is important.

All parties in Alberta have paid lip service to the idea that our economy must move away from its dependence on petroleum.  But I have yet to hear of anything concrete.

I also fear that any attempt to develop other sources of revenue in our province, especially those exploiting natural resources, will end up in the same hopeless mess that petroleum is in now.

Even though Alberta's gas and oil reserves are found beneath our feet, we have little or no control over its exploitation and distribution. I see most of our petroleum industry owned and controlled by foreign interests.  The price Albertans pay for gasoline processed from our Alberta oil is seemingly decided by folks in Houston, Denver, and Beijing -- not Calgary.

Oil companies take home some huge profits from our oil and gas reserves, higher than almost everywhere else in the world!  What's to prevent any new industries, created to diversify our economy, from going the same way?

Question #3;  If your party forms Alberta's next government, how will you ensure that your efforts to diversify our economy will not turn into another foreign ownership fiasco like the petroleum industry?

Questions for the Candidates: Tangible Capital Assets

Today, I have a question for the provincial candidates in Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills about Tangible Capital Assets! 

For the last few years, Alberta municipalities have had to include a list of all their Tangible Capital Assets (TCAs) and the depreciation of those assets when building next year's budget.  For large municipalities, this isn't a hardship - but for smaller ones it can really hurt.

Let's say a town of 1500 Albertans wants a new public building.  They are given a provincial grant to build a multi-million dollar facility in their town.  That building must now be listed as a capital asset - and its depreciation calculated into the town's budgeting process.

According to the Municipal Government Act, the municipality cannot operate with a deficit budget, so they may have to raise taxes considerably to cover that amount - even though they didn't fund the project in the first place!  Smaller municipalities, like Beiseker, are the most vulnerable.

Question #2;  If elected as a government, will your party address this serious error in calculating a municipality's property taxes and financial status - and remove the TCA depreciation from the mix?

Questions for the Candidates: Airdrie Hospital

Each day this week, I will suggest a question for he candidates in Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills in the upcoming provincial election, slated for May 5th.

They are in no particular order; one is not more important that another.  But the answers are important to all of us here in this area!

Question #1;  If your party forms Alberta's next government, how does party plan to address the Airdrie Hospital debacle?

When the answer comes back, I'll be looking for specifics.  A city of 50,000+ - and growing by the day - must have a fully operational hospital!  I'm expecting to hear how they plan to revise/update the province's hospital building program to include Airdrie?  I'm also expecting to hear about a proposal for a three level plan involving the Feds, the province and the city to get things rolling.

I know times are tough financially, but the health situation in Airdrie is getting tougher by the day, too!