Lethbridge City Hall

By Lara Fominoff

AUMA votes to support two of four Lethbridge resolutions

Oct 11, 2019 | 1:18 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – The City of Lethbridge is batting .500 after two of its four resolutions were passed at the recent Alberta Urban Municipalities Association Convention in Edmonton (Sept.25-27).

The AUMA convention, which features more than 1,100 elected officials, business owners and administrators, takes place once a year. It advocates for solutions to municipal issues and identifies/develops opportunities for community building.

At this year’s meeting, Mayor Chris Spearman said the City presented four resolutions to members; two of which were adopted by an 80 per cent margin, including creating a provincial drug strategy that recognized local needs and creating more friendly provincial home ownership policies.

But there were two resolutions that did not pass, garnering only about 40 per cent of the vote. The one that Spearman particularly hoped would gain traction included making organ donation automatic, for every resident in the hopes of increasing organs and tissue available. The legislation is expected to take effect in mid-2020.

Residents would have to “opt out” of the program if they didn’t wish to participate. Spearman said that defeat was tough, especially given the effect former Humboldt Broncos Player and Lethbridge resident Logan Boulet had around the world.

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Not long before the Humboldt Broncos bus crash killed 16 members of the team including Boulet, he signed a donor card. At least six lives were saved when his organs were donated. In the months that followed, tens of thousands of people signed up to become organ donors.

The rationale for defeating the resolution, explained Spearman, was one of individual rights. People should have the right to make the choice to donate.

“I respect the decision. But there are thousands of Albertans that die unnecessarily every year because they’re on waiting lists, waiting for organs which would otherwise be satisfied.”

He says only about 15 per cent of Albertans sign donor cards, and it’s something that needs to change.

“Sometimes you have pass or propose legislation which infringes on individual rights in order that other people can have a full life or even access to life in this case.”

The fourth resolution that was voted down was to include an increasing about of used plastic in the creation of new plastic products in the province. Spearman hoped that would give the province another source for disposal of plastics which are collected in municipal recycling programs.

The resolutions that did pass will become AUMA policy and the organization will advocate for them on behalf of municipalities.