Alberta
Canada’s largest fireworks show of the year set for Calgary, Edmonton, Lethbridge, and Red Deer to celebrate the Stampede
News Release from The Calgary Stampede
Calgary Stampede to Light up the Night Sky Across Alberta!
The Calgary Stampede is proud to celebrate the resilience and determination of our great province through a province-wide fireworks display on Friday, July 9. The Fireworks Spectacular presented by Bell, will take place in Lethbridge, Red Deer, Edmonton and Calgary and we invite all Albertans to join together in celebration as we light up the night sky in recognition of our shared goals and bright future for our province. This incredible display will be a must-see, as the largest and most sophisticated firework event produced in Canada this year.
Since 1912, fireworks have played an important role in Stampede celebrations. Taking place in coordination with the fireworks of the Calgary Stampede Evening Show performance on the first night of Stampede 2021, the sparkling world-class display will occur simultaneously in all four participating cities to a synchronized musical soundtrack.
“This is our way of lighting up the Alberta skies and providing the opportunity to celebrate together,” says Steve McDonough, President & Chairman of the Stampede Board. “Thousands of Albertans will be able to view this amazing firework show from their own neighbourhood at the same time, with the same soundtrack on July 9th.”
“On behalf of Lethbridge City Council, we congratulate our friends in Calgary for their creativity and collaboration on this fireworks spectacular. We look forward to helping celebrate the beginning of the Calgary Stampede with what is sure to be a brilliant display of fireworks for residents and visitors to enjoy,” says Mayor Chris Spearman of the City of Lethbridge.
“The Calgary Stampede is leading the way in the return to community life in our province. Red Deer is honoured to be a part of this initiative to celebrate our Western heritage together,” says Red Deer Mayor, Tara Veer. “Albertans have been hit hard by the pandemic, but together we can rebuild and demonstrate our resilience on July 9th.”
The pyro-technical experts from Fireworks Spectaculars Canada, an Alberta based company, are familiar with all four cities, and bring their award winning and awe-inspiring team together across the province to create this magical moment to kick-off the 2021 Stampede.
“At this stage, we have to think about how we get major events up and running again. The Calgary Stampede is leading the way and, one by one, other events will follow. As Explore Edmonton takes over management of K-Days in Edmonton, we are watching and learning from our friends at the Stampede. This will mark the beginning of recovery for the events sector and it marks a milestone moment for Alberta as we emerge from the pandemic,” says Maggie Davison, Interim CEO, Explore Edmonton
“As we move hopefully into our post-pandemic future, this fireworks display will allow us to safely honour what we’ve been though, to express our gratitude to all the essential workers who gotten us through, and to look forward with optimism,” says Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi
The Fireworks Spectacular presented by Bell will feature four identical, world-class firework displays in each city – Calgary, Edmonton, Red Deer and Lethbridge – starting at 11 p.m. on July 9. Albertans are invited to participate in this in this free, family-friendly celebration with specific viewing locations and information available at CalgaryStampede.com. It will also be broadcast live on CTV Calgary, CTV2 and CTVNews.ca beginning at 11 p.m., so that you can watch from the comfort of your own home. Tune in as we light up the night sky to celebrate Stampede Spirit across Alberta. We thank our community partners Explore Edmonton, The City of Red Deer, Westerner Park and Lethbridge & District Exhibition. This is a celebration of our province, and at the Calgary Stampede we believe we are Greatest Together.
Watch in person from your seat at the 2021 Calgary Stampede Evening Show! Evening Show and Rodeo tickets are now available and include admission into Stampede Park the day of the show. New in 2021, a VIP, full-service, outdoor experience that will put you in the heart of the action on the Grandstand tarmac. Reserve a table for your group of four or six people to enjoy the experience in a brand-new way! To book your Evening Show, Rodeo or VIP Tarmac tickets, or to purchase general Park admission for days you are not attending the Evening Show or Rodeo, go to CalgaryStampede.com
About the Calgary Stampede
The Calgary Stampede celebrates the people, the animals, the land, the traditions and the values that make up the unique spirit of the west. The Calgary Stampede contributes to the quality of life in Calgary and southern Alberta through our world-renowned Stampede, year-round facilities, western events and several youth and agriculture programs. Exemplifying the theme We’re Greatest Together, we are a volunteer-supported, not-for-profit community organization that preserves and celebrates our western heritage, cultures and community spirit. All revenue is reinvested into Calgary Stampede programs and facilities.
Alberta
Alberta government should create flat 8% personal and business income tax rate in Alberta
From the Fraser Institute
By Tegan Hill
If the Smith government reversed the 2015 personal income tax rate increases and instituted a flat 8 per cent tax rate, it would help restore Alberta’s position as one of the lowest tax jurisdictions in North America
Over the past decade, Alberta has gone from one of the most competitive tax jurisdictions in North America to one of the least competitive. And while the Smith government has promised to create a new 8 per cent tax bracket on personal income below $60,000, it simply isn’t enough to restore Alberta’s tax competitiveness. Instead, the government should institute a flat 8 per cent personal and business income tax rate.
Back in 2014, Alberta had a single 10 per cent personal and business income tax rate. As a result, it had the lowest top combined (federal and provincial/state) personal income tax rate and business income tax rate in North America. This was a powerful advantage that made Alberta an attractive place to start a business, work and invest.
In 2015, however, the provincial NDP government replaced the single personal income tax rate of 10 percent with a five-bracket system including a top rate of 15 per cent, so today Alberta has the 10th-highest personal income tax rate in North America. The government also increased Alberta’s 10 per cent business income tax rate to 12 per cent (although in 2019 the Kenney government began reducing the rate to today’s 8 per cent).
If the Smith government reversed the 2015 personal income tax rate increases and instituted a flat 8 per cent tax rate, it would help restore Alberta’s position as one of the lowest tax jurisdictions in North America, all while saving Alberta taxpayers $1,573 (on average) annually.
And a truly integrated flat tax system would not only apply a uniform tax 8 per cent rate to all sources of income (including personal and business), it would eliminate tax credits, deductions and exemptions, which reduce the cost of investments in certain areas, increasing the relative cost of investment in others. As a result, resources may go to areas where they are not most productive, leading to a less efficient allocation of resources than if these tax incentives did not exist.
Put differently, tax incentives can artificially change the relative attractiveness of goods and services leading to sub-optimal allocation. A flat tax system would not only improve tax efficiency by reducing these tax-based economic distortions, it would also reduce administration costs (expenses incurred by governments due to tax collection and enforcement regulations) and compliance costs (expenses incurred by individuals and businesses to comply with tax regulations).
Finally, a flat tax system would also help avoid negative incentives that come with a progressive marginal tax system. Currently, Albertans are taxed at higher rates as their income increases, which can discourage additional work, savings and investment. A flat tax system would maintain “progressivity” as the proportion of taxes paid would still increase with income, but minimize the disincentive to work more and earn more (increasing savings and investment) because Albertans would face the same tax rate regardless of how their income increases. In sum, flat tax systems encourage stronger economic growth, higher tax revenues and a more robust economy.
To stimulate strong economic growth and leave more money in the pockets of Albertans, the Smith government should go beyond its current commitment to create a new tax bracket on income under $60,000 and institute a flat 8 per cent personal and business income tax rate.
Author:
Alberta
Province to stop municipalities overcharging on utility bills
Making utility bills more affordableAlberta’s government is taking action to protect Alberta’s ratepayers by introducing legislation to lower and stabilize local access fees. Affordability is a top priority for Alberta’s government, with the cost of utilities being a large focus. By introducing legislation to help reduce the cost of utility bills, the government is continuing to follow through on its commitment to make life more affordable for Albertans. This is in addition to the new short-term measures to prevent spikes in electricity prices and will help ensure long-term affordability for Albertans’ basic household expenses.
Local access fees are functioning as a regressive municipal tax that consumers pay on their utility bills. It is unacceptable for municipalities to be raking in hundreds of millions in surplus revenue off the backs of Alberta’s ratepayers and cause their utility bills to be unpredictable costs by tying their fees to a variable rate. Calgarians paid $240 in local access fees on average in 2023, compared to the $75 on average in Edmonton, thanks to Calgary’s formula relying on a variable rate. This led to $186 million more in fees being collected by the City of Calgary than expected.
To protect Alberta’s ratepayers, the Government of Alberta is introducing the Utilities Affordability Statutes Amendment Act, 2024. If passed, this legislation would promote long-term affordability and predictability for utility bills by prohibiting the use of variable rates when calculating municipalities’ local access fees. Variable rates are highly volatile, which results in wildly fluctuating electricity bills. When municipalities use this rate to calculate their local access fees, it results in higher bills for Albertans and less certainty in families’ budgets. These proposed changes would standardize how municipal fees are calculated across the province, and align with most municipalities’ current formulas.
If passed, the Utilities Affordability Statutes Amendment Act, 2024 would prevent municipalities from attempting to take advantage of Alberta’s ratepayers in the future. It would amend sections of the Electric Utilities Act and Gas Utilities Act to ensure that the Alberta Utilities Commission has stronger regulatory oversight on how these municipal fees are calculated and applied, ensuring Alberta ratepayer’s best interests are protected.
If passed, this legislation would also amend sections of the Alberta Utilities Commission Act, the Electric Utilities Act, Government Organizations Act and the Regulated Rate Option Stability Act to replace the terms “Regulated Rate Option”, “RRO”, and “Regulated Rate Provider” with “Rate of Last Resort” and “Rate of Last Resort Provider” as applicable. Quick facts
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