Alberta Wants to Remove ‘Weaponization’ of Disciplinary Codes by School Boards, City Councils

Minister of Municipal Affairs Ric McIver and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith in Edmonton on April 10, 2024. The Canadian Press/Jason Franson

The Alberta government has introduced two bills curbing the power of school boards and municipalities to punish elected officials over alleged code of conduct violations.

Bill 50, the Municipal Affairs Statutes Amendment Act, removes municipal codes of conduct and halts any sanctions or complaints not currently before the courts.

“In some cases, we’ve seen these codes become weaponized amongst council members instead of promoting harmony, and codes of conduct have sometimes been used by council members to harass and sideline their colleagues over political disagreements,” Municipal Affairs Minister Ric McIver said during an April 8 news conference.

In one case, the mayor of Medicine Hat was sanctioned in 2023 after a disagreement with the city manager.

Following an interaction between the two during a 2023 council meeting, one councillor filed a complaint against the mayor, saying she violated the code of conduct by getting a personal legal opinion over the dispute and by failing to treat the city manager “with dignity, courtesy and respect,” court documents said.

After the mayor was sanctioned, a judicial review reversed the decision, eliminating most of the sanctions but requiring the mayor to apologize.

The Court of King’s Bench justice said most of the sanctions were “disproportionate and unreasonable.”

The new legislation will set province-wide council meeting procedures after consultations and establish an independent ethics commission, McIver told reporters.

Alberta Municipalities president Tyler Gandam agreed that codes of conduct are sometimes misused but is concerned that current complaints and sanctions could be discontinued, leaving municipalities no process for dealing with them or any that arise before the new process is in place.

The bill passed first reading on April 8.

Changes to Education Bill

The government also introduced legislation to the Education Act that would prevent school boards from removing a trustee over alleged code of conduct violations.

Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides said Bill 51 responds to members of the public, who have told the government they want trustees to be accountable to voters.

“Voters should always have the final say over who their representative is or is not, and so by making these changes, we'll ensure that a school board doesn’t have the ability to override the will” of the electorate, he said during a news conference.

The government received at least one public petition calling for changes. It involved the removal of a Red Deer Catholic school trustee in 2023 over social media comments she made about gender issues. The trustee was sanctioned and the Court of King’s Bench upheld the board’s decision in November 2024.

The trustee appealed the court decision in January.

NDP Opposition education critic Amanda Chapman said Alberta parents don’t want school boards’ discipline processes restricted, saying removal of a trustee would be difficult under the new process.

“What they’re doing is ensuring that under no circumstances and with no kind of violation could a trustee ever be removed from office,” Chapman said.

Bill 51 was introduced and passed first reading on April 8.

The Canadian Press contributed to this article.