Budget 2025
By Chantelle de Jonge Chestermere-Strathmore MLA
Last month, Alberta’s government introduced Budget 2025 – a plan that meets the challenges of today and delivers real tax relief for hardworking Albertans. With these tax cuts, our government is keeping an election promise to reduce the tax burden on Albertans and make life more affordable. The last thing families need is a government that raises taxes, erodes our competitive advantage, and drives up the cost of living.
Recently, an NDP opposition MLA during a meeting of the Resource Stewardship Committee, questioned the value of cutting taxes for hardworking Albertans and dismissed the annual savings made possible by tax cuts in Budget 2025. While another NDP MLA floated the idea of bringing British Columbia–style taxation to Alberta – a plan that would add more than $20 billion in new taxes, including steep hikes to income taxes and a seven per cent Provincial Sales Tax.
Albertans are proud to live in the only province without a sales tax and under a government that will not change that. Any attempt to impose a provincial sales tax would undermine a foundational economic advantage. These reckless proposals demonstrate how the NDP Opposition remains completely disconnected from the concerns of everyday Albertans.
During their time in government, the NDP introduced a $1.4 billion carbon tax, which raised taxes on everything while imposing an additional $1,500 burden on Albertan families each year – the same amount that families will save from the Budget 2025 tax cuts. Their refusal to recognize the benefits of tax relief and failure to acknowledge how higher taxes impact families, proves they would rather make life more difficult and take more money from Albertans than support real affordability measures.
Our government understands that every dollar left in the hands of Albertans helps us build a stronger future. We will always fight for Albertans and strive to lower costs, putting money back into Albertan’s pockets and supporting the delivery of vital services. Budget 2025 tax cuts will save families up to $1,500 per year, and individuals up to $750, helping them plan for the future and manage rising costs driven by federal policies and trade uncertainty.
We are also meeting the challenge of families by increasing financial support for caregivers who offer their homes for children and youth in care. To help ease cost-of-living challenges, Budget 2025 invests $3.1 million to increase rates by two per cent for foster and kinship caregivers. The increase will help cover day-to-day expenses such as food and clothing as well as provide additional support for caregivers who care for children with more complex needs.
Alberta’s government continues to make investments that enhance caregiver well-being, address cost-of-living and recruitment challenges, and increase stability for children and youth in care. These investments include funding to make counselling supports more accessible for foster caregivers, the refer-a-foster-caregiver program to grow Alberta’s pool of licensed foster families, and new supports to help foster caregivers provide care, stability and connection for young adults aging out of care.
As always, please feel free to reach out to my office with your feedback and questions (Chestermere.Strathmore@assembly.ab.ca).