On Tuesday, March 14, leaders from Alberta nonprofits gathered at the Kahanoff Centre on Tuesday to unveil the sector’s five top priorities for whichever party forms government after the looming election. The Platform Priorities come as the nonprofit sector, which contributes $5.5 billion to Alberta’s economy annually and employs nearly 300,000 Albertans, has struggled in recent years through the pandemic, inflation and surging demand amid a workforce crisis.
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In November 2022, CCVO and our partners sounded the alarm for the nonprofit sector in Alberta. With budget 2023, the alarm is still ringing. After more than three years of doing more with less, Alberta’s nonprofit sector remains in crisis. An Ipsos poll conducted in November 2022 shows 22% of Canadians and 30% of Albertans expect to access charitable services for their basic needs in the next 6 months. Budget 2023 does not address this reality; the strategic requests made by CCVO have not been met, and despite recording a $2.4 Billion surplus, Alberta’s 2023 Budget does not support Alberta’s essential nonprofit sector.
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The provincial budget will drop on February 28 and CCVO has been invited by the Minister of Treasury Board and Finance to an embargoed briefing before the budget is released publicly. We are very pleased to accept that invitation as it will give us time to look at the budget and respond quickly on what it might mean for nonprofits in Alberta. This year is an interesting budget year because the provincial election is in May, just three months away, which means that commitments in the budget should be viewed as an unofficial campaign launch.
Read MoreMembers of Alberta’s nonprofit community stood alongside business leaders at carya Village Commons on Tuesday to call for an urgent one-time cash injection of $30 million from the provincial government to keep the nonprofit sector afloat.
The ask for an urgent, one-time top-up of $30 million comes as nonprofits across Alberta juggle heightened demand for services with increasingly complex client needs while revenues decrease.
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The Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Medal program recognizes outstanding service from Albertans who have dedicated themselves to the community. CCVO is grateful to be able to recognize and present the Medal to 10 Calgary community leaders. The Medal will be awarded to 7,000 Albertans throughout 2022 in recognition of significant contributions to the province.
CCVO has recently released their in-depth analysis of Budget 2022 for nonprofits. Under the theme of “moving forward”, this budget outlined a fiscal plan for the next three years, with the focus on economic recovery in Alberta. In this budget, the Government of Alberta announced three key priorities and outlined their objectives for each priority area in the strategic plan. The budget projects total revenue of approximately $62.6 billion while total expenses, including the COVID-19 Recovery fund, will equal approximately $62,096 billion, leaving a surplus of $511 million.
Read MoreWith the release of the 2022 Alberta Budget yesterday, CCVO will be working on a detailed budget analysis over the coming weeks (read their initial analysis here). On March 22, CCVO will host a presentation and panel discussion focused on the budget, including a walk-through of their detailed analysis by CCVO Research Manager Kirsten Boda. After the presentation of the analysis, CCVO President & CEO Karen Ball will moderate a panel discussion focused on what Budget 2022 means for the nonprofit sector, followed by audience Q&A.
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Budget 2022-23 in Alberta was tabled Thursday, February 24th, 2022. Under the theme of “moving forward”, a fiscal plan was outlined for the next three years (2022-2025) with the focus on economic recovery in Alberta. Alberta Budget 2022-23 is overall a maintenance budget of the province’s investment in the work of Alberta’s community nonprofits. It is not a budget that supports community recovery or that recognizes investment in community prosperity as an important and necessary element of Alberta’s economic recovery, which CCVO outlined in our 2022 budget submission.
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This post covers CCVO’s recent Alberta 2022 pre-budget submission, focused on the recommendation to invest a portion of unallocated Recovery Plan contingency dollars through a strategic Community Recovery Fund. This fund would support community-focused recovery through investment in social infrastructure that will create jobs and spur economic stimulus. The recommendation contained within this submission outlines a role for the Government of Alberta in working collaboratively with nonprofits to meet the Government’s economic recovery goals while supporting efforts for solutions to pressing social issues.
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CCVO recently made a submission to Tanya Fir, Associate Minister of Red Tape Reduction, asking that the Charitable Fund-raising Act is amended to exempt charities and nonprofits from being required to register. With approximately 900 organizations currently registered under the Charitable Fund-raising Act, creating this exemption could significantly reduce the administrative burden on nonprofits, charities, and public servants alike.
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In July 2019, the Alberta government launched a public inquiry into the foreign funding sources of environmental groups who are critical of Alberta’s energy sector policies. Before that, Premier Kenney promised to establish an ‘Energy War Room’ to respond to campaigns directed at Alberta's oil and gas sector. This blog post covers what we know and how we think it might impact the nonprofit sector, particularly organizations that hold charitable status designation through the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
Read MoreNonprofit leaders have expressed the need for a platform that supports a unified voice for the sector and helps address the issues faced by the sector as a whole. Newly launched, The Nonprofit Vote is a nonpartisan platform created to bring light to the strength of Alberta’s nonprofits, while advocating for the support needed to allow them to continue the delivery of key services and community supports throughout the province.
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