An organization representing large public libraries across Canada warns Alberta’s proposed bill affecting libraries threatens “unprecedented” government overreach into organizations meant to be shielded from political control. The Canadian Urban Libraries Council is urging United Conservative Premier Danielle Smith’s government to ditch its proposed changes to Alberta’s law governing libraries in a bill currently before […]

Last summer, an IJF investigation revealed that the amount of overtime worked by paramedics in Edmonton had increased by 81 per cent since 2021. The story was republished by several media outlets across Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative. A day later, staff from Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s office and the Ministry of Hospital and […]

Critics of Alberta’s proposed rule changes to public libraries say the true danger lies in giving the province power to dictate access and potentially snoop on which books people are checking out. James Turk, director of the Centre for Free Expression at Toronto Metropolitan University, says the government’s stated reason for the bill – to […]

The Town of Strathmore is implementing clerical changes to better align with current provincial legislation. During the April 1 council meeting, all three readings of the new Designated Officer Bylaw were passed unanimously.  “On June 11 of last year, the Freedom of Information Act (FOI) was replaced with the Access to Information Act and administration […]

Alberta’s premier and education minister held a private meeting in February to discuss school funding and education policy.  Documents released through an access to information request show that attendees included a number of right-wing think tanks and groups involved in a campaign to “conservatize” Alberta school boards, as well as private and religious school associations. […]

The Alberta government introduced legislation Thursday to ensure children won’t be able to access sexually graphic images in books at public libraries. Municipal Affairs Minister Dan Williams stressed at a news conference that the government isn’t banning books. He held up a page of a graphic novel with a sexually explicit example of the images […]

COCHRANE – Cochrane is making changes after a third-party audit uncovered serious confidentiality breaches. Investigative Risk Management (IRM) found unauthorized access to closed meeting recordings, the improper sharing of legally privileged information, and major failures in records management among senior staff and some council members. According to a summary of the investigation, concerns about records […]

RCMP in Alberta are warning people to be careful if they get a call out of the blue asking them if they want to upgrade their phone. Police say fraudsters are cold calling people asking if they want an upgrade. They say it all sounds very legitimate and the fraudsters will try to pry personal […]

A third recall petition against a member of Alberta’s legislature has failed, while another has been withdrawn. Casey Klein says her campaign against United Conservative Party backbencher Nolan Dyck gathered just over 1,000 signatures, roughly 10 per cent of what was needed by Thursday’s deadline. Klein, a resident of Grande Prairie, about 460 kilometres northwest […]

The IJF has identified nearly 600 Alberta companies responsible for millions of dollars of municipal tax arrears and unpaid leases to landowners. Unpaid oil and gas property taxes have created an increasingly large burden for local governments in Alberta. Rural municipalities reported companies owed $81 million in cumulative tax arrears in 2018. As of the […]

Though many AI tools have been approved for use in Calgary’s schools, robots won’t be teaching the city’s students. Both the Calgary Board of Education (CBE) and Calgary Catholic School District (CCSD), have approved the use of AI tools for teachers, citing the technology’s ability to rapidly personalize texts and create engaging lessons. In a […]

Alberta’s Opposition is calling for action and more transparency in the wake of a prolonged mouse infestation at one of Edmonton’s biggest long-term care homes. Covenant Health, along with Assisted Living Minister Jason Nixon, declined requests from The Canadian Press to provide the most recent health inspection report for the Edmonton General Continuing Care Centre, […]