Alberta is looking to reduce the self-policing powers of elected public school boards and municipal councils. The changes are included in two bills put forward by Premier Danielle Smith's United Conservative government. In one bill, Municipal Affairs Minister Ric McIver proposes pulling local council's codes of conduct and also ending any related ongoing complaints or sanctions that aren't before the courts. McIver says in some cases, codes of conduct have been weaponized to silence dissent on municipal councils. In the second bill, Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides propo

An American man who abducted an Edmonton teen, took her over the U.S. border and subjected her to ``horrific sexual abuse'' has been given a 50-year prison sentence by a U.S. judge. The decision against Noah Madrano was meted in Portland, Ore., almost three years after the teen was located and Madrano was arrested by FBI agents at a hotel in the U.S. state. Earlier this year, the 43-year-old pleaded guilty to sexual abuse and kidnapping charges. The manhunt began in the summer of 2022 after the girl, then 13, failed to show up for class at her junior high school in Edmonton.

Health Minister Adriana LaGrange says Alberta's measles outbreak isn't dire enough for the province's top doctor for public health to address the public, despite mounting calls for the government to do more to stop the spread. Alberta has reported 43 cases of the highly infectious disease over the past month.The Edmonton Zone Medical Staff Association says the spread is a result of government inaction, especially around Alberta's low vaccination rates. The association is calling on the province to improve how it updates the public on the outbreak and develop a vaccination plan.

Alberta's government is taking another step toward giving municipalities the option of ditching the RCMP in favour of a new provincial police service. Public Safety Minister Mike Ellis says an independent Alberta service could step in to help address concerns he's heard about the Mounties' staffing shortages and rising costs. If passed, a proposed bill would mean a new agency must operate under a Crown corporation that would be at arm's length from the government. An extra $6 million has been set aside for the agency's leadership team, but Ellis says if the province shifts about

A man has been charged with arson after the memorial statue of a prominent Canadian solider was destroyed in a community east of Edmonton last month. RCMP say the statue of Sam Steele, which was made of wood, was burned on March 21st in Sherwood Park. Police say they arrested a 23-year-old Sherwood Park man shortly after the incident and he is scheduled to appear in court tomorrow. Steele was a key figure in the North-West Mounted Police and the Canadian military in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Alberta's government will soon tie public hospital funding to the number and type of procedures performed, a move critics warn won't improve the public system and will only accelerate private delivery. Premier Danielle Smith says the new ``activity-based'' model, expected to be implemented for some surgeries in 2026, will drive costs down by fostering competition among public and private providers who will be rewarded for delivering better results. Smith says it will make the system more efficient, lower wait times, provide more transparency and attract more surgeons to the province. Albert

Millions of Canadians are set to receive their final Canada Carbon Rebate payment ahead of the April 28 vote. Residents of eight provinces, including Alberta and Nova Scotia, which had a federal carbon fuel charge, will receive their final Canada Carbon Rebate payment on April 22. In addition, British Columbians will receive their final B.C. Climate Action Tax Credit payment. The federal government will distribute approximately $4 billion in payments under the Canada Carbon Rebate to around 13 million Canadians. According to the Canada Revenue Agency, only those who filed their tax returns be

The mayor of Drumheller, Alberta, says the fate of Tyra the Tyrannosaurus is far from over. The Drumheller Chamber of Commerce plans to dismantle the towering tourist attraction in 2029 after it opened 25 years ago. Tyra brings in about 150-thousand visitors a year and is four times the size of a real Tyrannosaurus. But Mayor Heather Colberg wants to talk to the chamber and thinks an alternate solution can be worked out. She says the community is very fond of Tyra and she is an important part of the town and its tourism industry. Julia Fielding from Travel Drumheller says Tyra i

The Alberta government says it will spend$17 million to plan nine new urgent care centres across the province. Health Minister Adriana LaGrange says the centres will besmaller than hospitals and designed to treat people with urgent but non-life-threatening medical needs, such as broken bones. Alberta has six urgent care centres in operation and LaGrange says the new facilities would help reduce emergency room wait times in hospitals. She says the funding is earmarked for cities across the province, including Edmonton, Calgary, Fort McMurray, Airdrie and Lethbridge. LaGrange s