Alberta premier promises new process to clamp down on delinquent oil and gas operators

Wallis Snowdon · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 19, 2025 3:59 PM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is promising caller consequences for lipid and state operators who neglect to wage their municipal taxes, arsenic delinquent companies proceed to autumn down connected payments.

A caller complaints process volition spot Municipal Affairs enactment arsenic a middleman betwixt determination governments and the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), Smith said Wednesday during an code to the Rural Municipalities of Alberta outpouring normal successful Edmonton.

The strategy for collections volition trust connected municipalities to rapidly constituent the digit astatine companies who person failed to wage up.

"You volition beryllium the aboriginal informing strategy for america that determination is simply a atrocious histrion retired there," Smith said.

"We invited you telling america if idiosyncratic is not paying their taxes due to the fact that I tin archer you, immoderate of the things that we've observed, we are going to stop." 

Consultations that began past twelvemonth person shown Alberta's existent process to cod outstanding debts "isn't working," Smith said.

A subordinate survey for the RMA, which represents 69 counties and municipal districts, recovered that, arsenic of Dec. 31, 2024, astatine slightest $253.9 cardinal of municipal spot taxes person gone unpaid by lipid and state companies.

Details of the caller enforcement process are expected to beryllium released successful a mates of weeks.

'Get it paid'

The caller strategy volition trust connected the AER to marque a telephone connected immoderate outstanding measure and "get it paid," Smith said. 

"That, oregon determination volition beryllium consequences. And determination are a batch of tools astatine AER to person consequences," Smith said. 

"We had a model for however we wanted it done, but we had immoderate process steps missing. We're going to hole those process steps." 

For much than a decade, municipalities person been calling connected the state to assistance them cod unpaid taxes. Amid a surge successful manufacture insolvencies, the RMA has said its members person fewer ways to clasp companies accountable and recoup their losses.

In 2024 alone, unpaid lipid and state spot taxes owed to agrarian municipalities grew by $67.8 million, much than 50 per cent higher than the outstanding taxes owed the twelvemonth before. 

The state has antecedently promised to ace down with improved reporting measures, urging municipalities to supply institution names and nominate operators for enforcement. 

On Wednesday, Smith blamed procedural issues for the mounting losses municipalities face.  She urged section authorities leaders to enactment much intimately with state to cod connected their debts.

Describing however the caller argumentation volition work, she said that erstwhile a institution falls down connected its taxes, the municipality should instantly notify Municipal Affairs, which volition verify it and guardant it to the AER.

More regular reporting to the ministry volition guarantee the regulator tin enactment rapidly to circumvent permits and withhold approvals for companies successful mediocre fiscal standing, Smith said.

"I had been told that you were benignant of bundling them up and sending them each 90 days," Smith said of the existent arrears reports being filed by municipalities.

"That's portion of the problem. If you nonstop a full heap of them each astatine once, it's hard to verify them and past with the transition of time, you're not getting paid successful a timely way." 

'No recourse'

It isn't wide however the argumentation would change AER enforcement measures. The authorities has antecedently directed the regulator to not contented caller lipid good licences oregon licence transfers to companies that beryllium much than $20,000 successful unpaid spot taxes. 

The RMA has described the contented arsenic a increasing crisis, and has called connected the state to found a moving radical to make a spot taxation accountability strategy to code the contented of unpaid lipid and state taxes. Municipal leaders accidental authorities measures to day person fallen short, leaving agrarian municipalities to enarthrosis the increasing fiscal burden.

In an interrogation Tuesday, Vulcan County Reeve Jason Schneider said the state needs to adjacent loopholes successful the strategy that let delinquent companies to proceed to operate.

He said determination is presently nary mechanics for municipal governments to compel payments oregon enactment arsenic a creditor successful bankruptcy proceedings earlier insolvent companies "disappear" from Alberta.

"There is nary recourse," helium said. "As a municipality we conscionable person to beryllium backmost and anticipation that the cheque comes successful the mail." 

Schneider said Vulcan County, southeast of Calgary, is owed much than $9 cardinal successful unpaid taxes. In effect to the shortfall, services to residents person been chopped by 30 per cent, helium said.

"We had to fto radical go, we had to trim what we bash and it hurt. It wounded a lot." 

On Wednesday, Municipal Affairs Minister Ric McIver told the RMA normal the state shares those frustrations.

Any different business, extracurricular the vigor industry, that does not wage its taxation measure would beryllium forced to unopen down, McIver said.

"The atrocious actors persist," helium said. "They springiness the full manufacture a atrocious estimation and I don't cognize wherefore they're allowed to support operating. I conscionable don't."