(ID 261569790 © Mary Wandler | Dreamstime.com)

By rdnewsNOW Staff

MUNICIPAL GROUP REACTIONS

Who’s footing the bill?: Municipal groups call for government action on unpaid oil and gas taxes

Mar 19, 2025 | 3:09 PM

Alberta Municipalities (ABmunis) has released a statement expressing concern about unpaid oil and gas property taxes, as the financial burden gets passed to municipalities and their residents instead.

A member survey recently conducted by the Rural Municipalities of Alberta (RMA) found that as of Dec. 31, 2024, at least $253.9 million in municipal property taxes have gone unpaid by oil and gas companies. ABmunis says annual amounts owed have landed in this range for the last five years.

—

READ MORE

• Rural Municipalities of Alberta call for government action on unpaid oil and gas property taxes
• RMA skeptical about reporting oil and gas companies for unpaid municipal taxes
• Alberta to relax rule on buying oil, gas wells if municipal taxes unpaid
• Red Deer County writes off $2.3 million in unpaid oil and gas taxes; total now $8 million

$20K grants available: TELUS STORYHIVE Pan-Asian Edition opens applications April 1

Mar 18, 2025

What's Happening in Lethbridge this week: February 10-16, 2025

Feb 10, 2025

What's Happening in Lethbridge this week: January 29-February 2, 2025

Jan 29, 2025

—

“When these taxes go unpaid, municipalities do not have the funds needed to maintain their local infrastructure and pay for services that residents and other businesses expect their local government to deliver,” the organization shares.

ABmunis supports the RMA with its ongoing efforts to address this issue, as other property owners face stiff penalties if they fail to pay their taxes. Oil and gas companies, on the other hand, can take advantage of legislative and regulatory loopholes, the group says, creating an unfair status quo.

“Oil and gas companies play a vital role in Alberta’s economy, but that doesn’t entitle them to be excluded from paying whatever municipal property taxes they owe,” comments ABmunis President Tyler Gandam. “We ask the provincial government to work with municipal associations, industry and other relevant stakeholders to close legislative and enforcement gaps and ensure delinquent companies are held accountable and ultimately pay their taxes.”

ABmunis also calls on the provincial government to establish a working group to design a solution to this chronic issue, and on oil and gas industry associations that have not yet paid their taxes to do so.

The statement was issued in response to a Globe and Mail story published on March 17, which outlines allegedly proposed government actions aimed at tackling the cleanup costs for aging wells.

The Alberta New Democrat’s (NDP) shadow minister for energy and minerals, Nagwan Al-Guneid, also issued a statement in response to the article and the property tax challenge.

“Taxpayers should never be left responsible for billions of dollars in unpaid bills from bankrupt oil and gas companies. The UCP government must uphold the Polluter Pays principle in Alberta to protect Albertans, landowners, and municipalities from footing this multi-billion-dollar bill,” he said.

He added, Albertans have been clear about not wanting bankrupt oil companies to receive billions from the government under R-Star.

The NDP also addressed a Globe and Mail report citing information about Alberta Energy Regulator board member David Yager.

“This new leaked scheme by David Yager shows this government hasn’t learned their lesson. Mr. Yager sits on the Alberta Energy Regulator’s board, and the regulator must remain at arm’s length from the government,” said Al-Guneid. “It’s unacceptable that a UCP insider and AER member wants to bail out bankrupt oil and gas companies.”

Finally, Nenshi said that if the government intends to abandon the Polluters Pay principle, it should be upfront about the decision.

Premier Danielle Smith says the plan for cleaning up abandoned oil wells will be made public in two weeks. She says public funding won’t be needed for the initiatives, but the Canadian Press reports that the draft document leaked to media explicitly states the opposite.

Smith adds, no official decision has been made but she is interested to see how the public feels.

Related: Alberta Premier Smith says plan for orphan well cleanup coming next month

With files from the Canadian Press.

For local news delivered daily to your email inbox, subscribe for free to the Lethbridge News Now newsletter here. You can also download the Lethbridge News Now mobile app in the Google Play and the Apple App Stores.