Alberta, along with other provinces and territories in Canada, is undergoing the process of preparing for the legalization of cannabis in Canada, and municipalities within these provinces and territories also have questions and concerns in regard to legal marijuana. In Alberta, the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA) is one group helping cities to find these answers.
AUMA represents cities, towns, villages, summer villages, and specialized municipalities in Alberta, as well as the association’s associate and affiliate members, and has been active on the subject of legalization for some time now. Some issues of concern that AUMA is focussed on, says President Lisa Holmes, are how legalization will impact local laws and bylaws, costs to public education, and costs with enforcement being passed on to municipalities.
AUMA has called for a ‘measured pace’ in regard to implementation of new cannabis laws. Holmes also says that AUMA will be sitting in on a provincial roundtable that is looking into municipal issues and concerns around legalization. AUMA also has a surveyout for Albertans on cannabis legalization that is open until July 31.
Lift had a chance to interview AUMA’s president Lisa Holmes recently to discuss the process and progress of this subject. Below is our interview.
What sort of feedback have munis of all sizes been giving on this issue thus far? What are the major concerns and related solutions to address these concerns?
Municipalities know that this is a very complex issue as it spans health and safety concerns, especially for youth. As legalization requires that federal, provincial and municipal governments work in close partnership to create a comprehensive and effective regulatory framework, we are very concerned with the short implementation timeframes.
In particular, municipalities are concerned that they won’t be able to establish local bylaws until federal and provincial regulations have been communicated, and that the other orders of government will underestimate the importance of ensuring the bylaws prior to implementation. We are also concerned about the conflicting information that we receive about the ability to define and test for impairment. While we are prepared to do our part to design a system that works within the federal legislation, we are concerned that the costs of public education, enforcement and social programs will be downloaded onto local governments and therefore on the shoulders of the taxpayers.
We have already shared our concerns with the federal and provincial governments. Specifically, we have cited concerns with product potency and labelling and the long-term effects of consumption. We need to ensure that municipalities can establish bylaws to control where and how marijuana is sold and consumed. As well, building codes need to be in place to regulate the growth of marijuana, especially in dwellings like condominiums and rental property so that the property owners are protected when other residents choose to grow marijuana.
A further concern was related to property assessment and taxation. Currently in Alberta’s Municipal Government Act (MGA), there is a different model for assessment of farm facilities between urban and rural municipalities. In rural municipalities (e.g. counties), farm buildings are fully exempt from assessment, while in urban municipalities (e.g. cities), they are assessed at 50 percent of their market value for agricultural use.
The change that came forward in Bill 21, an amendment to the MGA (expected to be in force this fall) is that all farm buildings will be exempt from assessment. This means that farm buildings in urban areas (e.g. greenhouses and marijuana grow operations) will not be assessed or charged municipal property tax or education property tax. Farm buildings include any improvement other than a residence that is used for farming operations (the raising, production and sale of agricultural products).
AUMA does not support exempting the assessment for all farm buildings. If the province will not reconsider this position, then AUMA suggests that the following changes are required:
- Several classes of agriculture facilities (e.g. marijuana grow operations, greenhouses, hemp industry, and intensive agriculture operations) should be given a separate classification (e.g. treated as a pharmaceutical) so that they are not exempt from assessment.
- Allow new provisions to separate out greenhouse components of horticultural and commercial space so that the commercial space can be taxed appropriately.
Our rationale is that:
- Municipalities should have the ability to assess and tax all properties within their boundaries.
- All property should be assessed on the basis of market value principles. Tax exemptions can then be provided with full awareness of the financial benefit of the exemption to the property owner. These exemptions should be periodically reviewed to determine that they are still appropriate.
- Agricultural buildings (in urban areas in particular) should not be exempt as they consume municipal services (e.g. roads, sewer, water, policing, fire, etc.) and those costs will have to be borne by other property owners which is not fair.
- Further, this provision may create a disincentive for municipalities to zone land for agricultural uses.
- AUMA’s recommended changes enable the province to continue to exempt traditional farm buildings, while ensuring commercial facilities within urban areas in particular have to pay taxes since they consume municipal services.
In what ways is AUMA engaging with the federal government and other provinces to determine best practices for Alberta municipalities?
With respect to marijuana legalization, AUMA was the first municipal association in Canada to get engaged in identifying issues and concerns, and also brought FCM and other associations into the required advocacy. AUMA issued a news release to raise awareness of the difficulties with the 2018 date and the need for comprehensive municipal engagement. We also highlighted the complex health and safety issues that need to be resolved before legalization takes place.
We shared our concerns with federal and provincial officials, and stressed the importance of comprehensive federal, provincial and municipal legislation to regulate the production, distribution, and consumption of marijuana. The province heard our message and responded by inviting AUMA to sit at a provincial roundtable that is examining municipal issues and concerns around legalization.
Through the roundtable, we will be closely involved in the provincial consultations to ensure municipal concerns are considered in the development of provincial legislation and regulations, and the associated education and enforcement actions.
We have identified opportunities for joint advocacy with other organizations as well, such as the Alberta School Board Association, which recently passed a resolution advocating for measures to protect students in the legislation around the legalization of marijuana. We will also be hosting an education session on this topic at our November convention so that we can further inform our members, particularly those who are newly elected.
Most recently, the AUMA responded to the Alberta Government’s survey on marijuana legislation, utilizing feedback from our own survey as well as feedback generated during discussions at the Mayors’ Caucus in Okotoks this past June.
The AUMA continues to participate in ongoing roundtable discussions hosted by the province that include subject-matter experts. This phase of the province’s discussions will continue until July 31, and information gathered will be used to develop the province’s cannabis framework, which will outline proposed next steps for Alberta. The AUMA will have further opportunity to provide feedback when the draft framework is released this fall.
Is AUMA aware of any online distribution options that would allow for access to rural areas?
The AUMA is looking to federal and provincial governments for information regarding regulations around sales and distribution as they would with other substances, e.g. alcohol. It’s important to note that Bill C-45 is based on legislation and regulations for alcohol and the provinces and territories will determine how distribution and retail sales are handled. Bill C-45 does contain a provision to allow sales by mail in provinces that lack a regulated retail system. We are not currently aware of online distribution options and these would be subject to the provincial framework currently under development.
credit:420intel.com