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- Starting in fall 2026, Alberta will include citizenship status and health card numbers on all new and renewed driver’s licences. Citizens will have a marker indicating their status, while non-citizens, including permanent residents, will not. To obtain or renew a licence, individuals will need to provide proof of citizenship or immigration status, though existing licences will remain valid without this requirement. Premier Danielle Smith claims it will streamline identity verification, enhance election security by ensuring only citizens vote, and improve oversight of health card use. Officials noted there are currently more registered health card numbers than residents, which is under investigation. The policy follows the launch of the Alberta Wallet app, which allows residents to store digital versions of government-issued documents, starting with a mobile health card.
- Alberta has announced it will maintain its industrial carbon price at $95 per tonne in 2026, postponing the planned increase to $110 per tonne and diverging from the federal schedule. Premier Danielle Smith and Environment Minister Rebecca Schulz emphasized the freeze is intended to provide stability and economic relief for industry. Under federal rules, provinces can set their own industrial carbon pricing, but Ottawa’s backstop applies if provincial rates fall behind, raising questions about whether Prime Minister Mark Carney will enforce the higher federal price. Smith stated she is negotiating with Carney to ensure future increases do not harm projects or jobs while maintaining the effectiveness of carbon pricing. Environmental groups have urged Ottawa to enforce the federal rate, criticizing Alberta’s move as undermining climate policy. Federal officials indicated a willingness to collaborate with Alberta on a balanced approach that supports workers and competitiveness.
- Premier Danielle Smith has directed Jobs Minister Joseph Schow to use all legal and policy tools to give the Province more control over immigration, emphasizing that Canadian citizens should have first access to jobs and young people should be prioritized over temporary foreign workers. The mandate letter focuses on economic migrants who can contribute to Alberta’s growth, though specifics on how this will be achieved have not been provided. Smith and her Alberta Next panel are consulting the public on whether the Province should create its own immigration system and restrict services for newcomers not approved by Alberta. Town hall feedback has largely supported these ideas, though some attendees and academics have criticized the government for blaming immigrants for housing, education, and health-care pressures. Opposition and newcomer advocacy groups argue the approach is heavy-handed and divisive.
- Alberta’s government is planning to invoke the Charter’s notwithstanding clause this fall to uphold three laws affecting transgender people, according to a leaked memo. The legislation addresses school pronoun changes, bans transgender athletes from competing in female amateur sports, and limits things like puberty blockers for youth. Legal challenges are underway, with 2SLGBTQ+ advocacy groups calling the laws discriminatory. Premier Danielle Smith has said the clause may be used if necessary and expressed confidence the laws could withstand a Charter challenge. The notwithstanding clause allows governments to override certain Charter protections for up to five years, though it is rarely used. Alberta has directed officials to prepare legal analyses and briefing materials ahead of cabinet consideration in late October. Similar use of the clause occurred in Saskatchewan’s school pronoun law, which is also being contested in court.
- Negotiations between the Alberta government and the Alberta Teachers’ Association have resumed with under three weeks before a potential provincewide strike on October 6th. The government has presented a new offer, while the union is responding to its latest proposal, though details of either offer have not been disclosed. The return to bargaining follows the resolution of a government complaint accusing the union of bad-faith bargaining, which centred on a misleading union communication about negotiators’ authority. Outstanding issues now focus on pay increases and COVID-19 vaccines for teachers, with the province offering a 12% raise over four years and plans to hire 3,000 more teachers. The union has warned that the pay hike and staffing additions are insufficient to address overcrowded classrooms and years of stagnant salaries. Both sides are running separate ad campaigns to sway public opinion, emphasizing their perspectives on student welfare and bargaining priorities. Union chair Peter MacKay resigned during negotiations, though the union says this will not affect its bargaining strategy. The looming strike threatens to disrupt education for over 700,000 students in Alberta’s 2,500 schools.