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1. 1990s put Alberta’s fiscal problems into alarming perspective

   As a share of the provincial economy, Alberta's recent deficits are larger than those incurred in the early ’90s. ...

2. Kenney government must learn from fiscal mistakes—and successes—of the past

   Alberta's deficit this year will be the largest in history, relative to the size of the provincial economy, at 6.9 per cent of GDP. ...

3. Lessons for Fiscal Reform from the Klein Era

   Alberta is facing serious fiscal challenges, including a historic deficit and rapid debt accumulation that extend beyond the COVID shock. This is not the first time Alberta’s finances have been in trouble. Today’s situation has parallels to the ...

4. Another pipeline setback, another blow to Alberta government finances

   Appeared in the Calgary Sun, June 10, 2020 Alberta’s fiscal situation has been deteriorating for a decade, and the COVID-induced recession has dealt another major blow to the province’s finances. Premier Kenney recently predicted the budget deficit could ...

5. Mounting government debt threatens Alberta’s fiscal status among provinces

   Appeared in the Edmonton Journal, May 5, 2020 Recently, RBC Economics published a report on provincial finances. The report, which is clear, concise and highly informative, estimates that all the provinces taken together will this year run a cumulative ...

6. Kenney government squanders opportunity to strengthen path to balanced budget

   In its recent budget, the Alberta government projected it will collect more revenue over the next few years than originally forecasted in its first budget last year. That’s good news for a province trying to balance its budget. But this ...

7. Alberta’s finances still rapidly eroding

   The Government of Alberta has been burning through financial assets at an alarming pace ever since the 2008 financial crisis. While the provincial economy quickly recovered from that short-but-deep recession, successive governments still ...

8. Complacency about Alberta’s debt is a dangerous mistake

   Appeared in the Edmonton Sun, January 22, 2020 Alberta is racking up debt faster than any other province in Canada, and proponents of complacency are making a dangerous mistake. It’s widely known that Alberta’s finances are a mess. This year, the ...

9. Painful decade for Alberta finances finally over

   Appeared in the Edmonton Journal, January 7, 2020 As we begin the 2020s, let’s hope it’s a better decade for Alberta government finances, which took a beating over the last 10 years. Here’s a quick recap. The province entered the decade in an enviable ...

10. What’s Changed, By How Much, and What Remains to be Done: An Analysis of Alberta’s Budget

    Since 2008/09, Alberta has run a nearly uninterrupted string of budget deficits. This bulletin analyzes the recently tabled 2019 Alberta budget to assess the extent to which it represents a change of course from the policy approach that has ...