ABmunis' Municipal Governance Committee highlights
Alberta Municipalities’ Municipal Governance Committee held its third meeting since the start of the committee’s term on April 26.
The committee received a presentation from the City of Calgary about its experience issuing a municipal bond to fund future infrastructure plans. A municipality’s credit rating, financial position, and the amount of capital it wants to raise are key factors in a municipality’s ability to secure an interest rate that is competitive with those offered by the Government of Alberta. ABmunis will develop informational material for members on opportunities for municipal bonds.
The Alberta Ombudsman’s Office gave a presentation on procedural fairness and how municipalities can use the Alberta Ombudsman when a complainant is critical of the municipality’s process in decision-making.
The committee also provided input on ABmunis’ current work on:
- Plans to conduct financial research
- ABmunis’ response to Municipal Affairs survey on intermunicipal collaboration frameworks
- Municipal Affairs review of the assessment models for regulated property
- ABmunis’ review of Bill 18 – the Provincial Priorities Act.
And with the provincial government’s introduction of Bill 20 on April 25, the committee was keen to dig into the details of the proposed changes to the Municipal Government Act and Local Authorities Election Act.
The Municipal Governance Committee will meet again on July 5, when it will review all resolutions that have been submitted by members for consideration at our 2024 Convention. After that, applications will open for new appointments to all of ABmunis’ policy committees for the 2024-2025 term.
