New Alberta working group to tackle problem of $253M in unpaid oil and gas property taxes

Colleen Underwood · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 25, 2025 4:23 PM EDT | Last Updated: 7 minutes ago

The Alberta authorities and the Rural Municipalities Association (RMA) are forming a moving radical to effort to lick the contented of unpaid spot taxes owed by lipid and state companies and cod what has present amounted to astatine slightest $253 million.

The Property Tax Accountability Strategy moving radical was announced by the state successful a quality merchandise Monday, saying enactment whitethorn see closing loopholes and establishing stronger partnerships and connection betwixt the vigor industry, agrarian municipalities and government.

"Whether you similar it oregon not, you person to wage your taxes. We're committed to moving with our municipal partners to guarantee that atrocious actors successful the lipid and state manufacture are held to account, and that municipalities are paid the spot taxes they are due," Municipal Affairs Minister Ric McIver said successful the release.

The president of the RMA, Kara Westerlund, says it's a immense occupation resulting successful agrarian communities getting shorted millions of dollars successful spot taxes that's earmarked for cardinal infrastructure projects.

"I'm not talking astir swimming pools oregon the nice-to-haves; I'm talking astir wastewater facilities, culverts, bridges, captious roadworthy infrastructure to let america to get products to market," said Westerlund. 

And she says these aren't conscionable insolvent oregon bankrupt companies that aren't paying their taxes. She says $100 cardinal of the $253 cardinal owed is from companies that are inactive operating.

Westerlund says it's not wide if immoderate manufacture representatives volition participate, but she's hopeful determination volition be.

"We're not talking each of industry, for the astir portion ... we're talking astir a fistful that proceed to, I guess, to play extracurricular of the rules and not to beryllium bully stewards successful their communities," said Westerlund.

In an email to CBC News, the bureau of the curate of vigor and minerals says astir lipid and state companies wage their municipal taxes, noting astir $1.5 cardinal was paid by vigor companies successful 2023.

The email from Brian Jean's bureau besides states: "We are looking astatine each instrumentality to guarantee delinquent companies wage their municipal taxes including expanding the consequences for not paying them."

Westerlund says she already has immoderate ideas to transportation to the group, specified arsenic suspending operating licenses oregon not allowing them to beryllium transferred to different business, until taxes are paid.

Other municipal leaders accidental they hold determination needs to beryllium immoderate drastic solutions enactment forward.

"I've talked to a batch of vigor ministers. I've talked to a batch of antithetic premiers. Everybody acknowledged it's been a problem, but everybody's truly hesitant to bash excessively overmuch astir it,"  said Vulcan County Reeve Jason Schneider.

Issue has persisted for much than a decade

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.

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.

Rural municipalities were owed $67.8 cardinal successful lipid and state spot taxes from the 2024 taxation year, alone, according to the survey results, up from $42.9 cardinal for the 2023 taxation year.

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

He says he's cautiously optimistic this moving radical volition present results that volition clasp the offenders accountable

"Because each these Band-Aid solutions we've tried implicit the past 9 years, they truly haven't worked. Maybe they've made the occupation a small less, but yet we inactive person companies that are operating successful this state without paying aboveground leases and municipal taxes," said Schneider.

Westerlund says she aims to person immoderate factual plans successful spot by the adjacent RMA normal successful the fall.

In an emailed statement, the president of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) said she welcomes the moving radical and stands connected the rule that each companies should beryllium paying their taxes and fees to municipalities. 

"We volition proceed to enactment with the province, the Alberta Energy Regulator and municipalities to guarantee the measures successful spot code liability absorption challenges efficaciously and support Alberta's competitory vantage for concern successful energy," said CAPP president Lisa Baiton.