Province reminds motorists of impaired laws (alcohol and cannabis) for a safer long weekend on the highways

From the Province of Alberta

Plan ahead this long weekend to avoid tragedy

Albertans are reminded to drive safe and sober as they take to the roads over the long weekend.

Driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs puts people at serious risk of injury and death. Cannabis, prescription drugs or over-the-counter medication can be just as dangerous behind the wheel as alcohol, especially when taken in any combination.

Daily traffic volumes tend to increase on Alberta highways during long weekends. During the summer months, long weekends experience about 50 per cent more fatalities and 15 per cent more injuries than the rest of the year.

Impaired driving facts

The federal government updated Canada’s impaired driving laws in 2018.
Any amount of alcohol can cause impairment.
Having a BAC of 0.08 or over within two hours of driving is a criminal offence.
In Alberta, and in most other Canadian jurisdictions, a driver with a BAC between 0.05 and 0.079 may face provincial consequences through the Immediate Roadside Suspension Program.
Cannabis limits are measured using nanograms of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in blood.
Criminal penalties for cannabis are:
- Over 2 ng/ml but less that 5ng/ml of THC in blood:
  - Maximum $1,000 fine (summary conviction)
- 5 ng/ml or more THC in blood:
  - 1st offence: Minimum $1,000 fine
  - 2nd offence: Mandatory 30 days imprisonment
  - 3rd and subsequent offence(s): Mandatory 120 days imprisonment
- 2.5 ng/ml or more THC combined with 50 mg/100ml or more alcohol (in blood):
  - 1st offence: Minimum $1,000 fine
  - 2nd offence: Mandatory 30 days imprisonment
  - 3rd and subsequent offence(s): Mandatory 120 days imprisonment
- Refusing to comply with a demand for a sample:
  - 1st offence: Minimum $2,000 fine
  - 2nd offence: Mandatory 30 days imprisonment
  - 3rd and subsequent offence(s): Mandatory 120 days imprisonment
Having the prohibited level of alcohol, THC, or other impairing drugs in your blood within two hours of driving is an offence.
On average, 6,000 people were convicted of impaired driving in Alberta each year for the last five years (April 2015 to March 2019).
Over a 10-year period, from 2008 to 2017, 855 people died in Alberta as a result of alcohol- or drug-impaired driving, and nearly 13,000 people were injured.

Related Topics:Alberta RCMP feature impaired driving

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After 15 years as a TV reporter with Global and CBC and as news director of RDTV in Red Deer, Duane set out on his own 2008 as a visual storyteller. During this period, he became fascinated with a burgeoning online world and how it could better serve local communities. This fascination led to Todayville, launched in 2016.

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Alberta

REPORT: Alberta municipalities hit with $37 million carbon tax tab in 2023

Published on November 24, 2024

Todayville

Grande Prairie. Getty Images photo

From the Canadian Energy Centre

By Laura Mitchell

Federal cash grab driving costs for local governments, driving up property taxes

New data shows the painful economic impact of the federal carbon tax on municipalities.

Municipalities in Alberta paid out more than $37 million in federal carbon taxes in 2023, based on a recent survey commissioned by Alberta Municipal Affairs, with data provided to the Canadian Energy Centre.

About $760,000 of that came from the City of Grande Prairie. In a statement, Mayor Jackie Clayton said “if the carbon tax were removed, City property taxes could be reduced by 0.6 per cent, providing direct financial relief to residents and businesses in Grande Prairie.”

Conducted in October, the survey asked municipal districts, towns and cities in Alberta to disclose the amount of carbon tax paid out for the heating and electrifying of municipal assets and fuel for fleet vehicles.

With these funds, Alberta municipalities could have hired 7,789 high school students at $15 per hour last year with the amount paid to Ottawa.

The cost on municipalities includes:

Lloydminster: $422,248

Calgary: $1,230,300 (estimate)

Medicine Hat: $876,237

Lethbridge: $1,398,000 (estimate)

Grande Prairie: $757,562

Crowsnest Pass: $71,100

Red Deer: $1,495,945

Bonnyville: $19,484

Hinton: $66,829

Several municipalities also noted substantial indirect costs from the carbon tax, including higher rates from vendors that serve the municipality – like gravel truck drivers and road repair providers – passing increased fuel prices onto local governments.

The rising price for materials and goods like traffic lights, steel, lumber and cement, due to higher transportation costs are also hitting the bottom line for local governments.

The City of Grande Prairie paid out $89 million in goods and services in 2023, and the indirect costs of the carbon tax “have had an inflationary impact on those expenses” in addition to the direct costs of the tax.

In her press conference announcing Alberta’s challenge to the federal carbon tax on Oct. 29, 2024, Premier Danielle Smith addressed the pressures the carbon tax places on municipal bottom lines.

“In 2023 alone, the City of Calgary could have hired an additional 112 police officers or firefighters for the amount they sent to Ottawa for the carbon tax,” she said.

In a statement issued on Oct. 7, 2024, Ontario Conservative MP Ryan Williams, shadow minister for international trade, said this issue is nationwide.

“In Belleville, Ontario, the impact of the carbon tax is particularly notable. The city faces an extra $410,000 annually in costs – a burden that directly translates to an increase of 0.37 per cent on residents’ property tax bills.”

There is no rebate yet provided on retail carbon pricing for towns, cities and counties.

In October, the council in Belleville passed a motion asking the federal government to return in full all carbon taxes paid by municipalities in Canada.

The unaltered reproduction of this content is free of charge with attribution to the Canadian Energy Centre.

Alberta

MAiD In Alberta: Province surveying Albertans about assisted suicide policies

Published on November 23, 2024

Government of Alberta

Alberta’s government is launching a public engagement to gather input about legislation and policies around assisted suicide, also referred to as medical assistance in dying (MAID).

Medical assistance in dying is a process that allows an eligible person to receive assistance from a medical practitioner in ending their life. To be found eligible, a person must be suffering from a serious and permanent medical condition.

Alberta’s government is reviewing how MAID is regulated to ensure there is a consistent process as well as oversight that protects vulnerable Albertans, specifically those living with disabilities or suffering from mental health challenges. An online survey is now open for Albertans to share their views and experiences with MAID until Dec. 20.

“We recognize that medical assistance in dying is a very complex and often personal issue and is an important, sensitive and emotional matter for patients and their families. It is important to ensure this process has the necessary supports to protect the most vulnerable. I encourage Albertans who have experience with and opinions on MAID to take this survey.”

Mickey Amery, Minister of Justice and Attorney General

In addition to the online survey, Alberta’s government will also be engaging directly with academics, medical associations, public bodies, religious organizations, regulatory bodies, advocacy groups and others that have an interest in and/or working relationship to the MAID process, health care, disabilities and mental health care.

Feedback gathered through this process will help inform the Alberta government’s planning and policy decision making, including potential legislative changes regarding MAID in Alberta.

“Our government has been clear that we do not support the provision of medically assisted suicide for vulnerable Albertans facing mental illness as their primary purpose for seeking their own death. Instead, our goal is to build a continuum of care where vulnerable Albertans can live in long-term health and fulfilment. We look forward to the feedback of Albertans as we proceed with this important issue.”

Dan Williams, Minister of Mental Health and Addiction

“As MAID is a federally legislated and regulated program that touches the lives of many Albertans, our priority is to ensure we have robust safeguards to protect vulnerable individuals. Albertans’ insights will be essential in developing thoughtful policies on this complex issue.”

Adriana LaGrange, Minister of Health

The federal Criminal Code sets out the MAID eligibility criteria, procedural safeguards and reporting obligations. The federal government has paused MAID eligibility for individuals with a mental illness as their sole underlying medical condition until March 2027 to ensure the provincial health care systems have processes and supports in place. Alberta’s government does not support expanding MAID eligibility to include those facing depression or mental illness and continues to call on the federal government to end this policy altogether.