Albertans will have a chance to have their say this week on how public dollars should be allocated in the next provincial budget.
On Monday, the government announced that Finance Minister Joe Ceci will host a pair of town halls this week, which “will give people the opportunity to ask questions and provide their views on the provincial budget.”
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“Last year, we saw the recovery in Alberta’s economy grow with new jobs and a decreasing deficit,” Ceci said. “Our government continues to be on track to balance the budget as planned in 2023, without sacrificing our health care or education.
“I’m looking forward to hearing directly from Albertans about their fiscal priorities, as we work to diversify the economy and create good jobs.”
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The first town hall will be held on Wednesday evening and will be open to callers from anywhere in the province north of Red Deer. The second town hall will take place Thursday evening and be open to callers from Red Deer and all communities south of that city. Both town halls are scheduled to run from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Here’s how the town halls will work:
- Albertans can sign up here for a call or dial in shortly before the telephone town halls begin. People can also listen and participate online
- Albertans with a publicly listed landline will automatically receive a call (publicly listed telephone numbers that are not on the national or provincial “do not call list” will be dialed and invited to participate in the call)
- Participants can choose to register online in advance
- Cellphone users and other interested participants may dial into the call toll-free at 1-877-229-8493, and enter the code 115500 at least 10 minutes before the start of the town hall, or they can register online to be called
- A question-and-answer period will follow after opening remarks for each town hall and the conversations will be moderated
The government said it will not save any personal information in connection with the town halls.
“Participants’ comments will help frame decisions for Budget 2019,” the government said in a news release. “Albertans can continue to provide their comments for the budget online until Feb. 10.”
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The pre-budget consultations come at a time when Alberta’s political parties are gearing up for the next provincial election. An election has to be held sometime between March and May. That means Premier Rachel Notley could drop the writ at any time.
Last month, Alberta’s NDP government announced that the legislature will sit on March 18 for a throne speech.
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