Alberta government proposes new ‘police-like’ agency, will operate independently

The Alberta government is proposing a new independent agency with “police-like functions” to operate alongside local police agencies across the province.

In a news release on Wednesday, the province said proposed amendments to the Public Safety Statutes Amendment Act of 2024 will establish a new organization that would take on responsibility for functions carried out by the Alberta Sheriffs.

The Alberta government said the updates, if passed, will “improve the government’s ability to respond to communities’ requests for additional law enforcement.” The province said the agency will be independent from the government, like all of Alberta’s police services, but will have the authority and jurisdiction to support the RCMP, municipal police services and First Nations police services across Alberta.

The new agency will also be subject to a civilian oversight board which will have a role similar to local police commissions, according to the province.

“These changes are part of a broader paradigm shift that reimagines police as an extension of the community rather than as an arm of the state,” said Mike Ellis, Alberta’s public safety minister. “Having a new police agency perform these functions under the legal framework of policing legislation will ensure they’re carried out with transparency, accountability and independence which Albertans should expect from law enforcement.”