Alberta Record

· Bill / Election Rules Amendment · enacted

Bill 54 — Citizen Initiative Act: Increased Signature Threshold and Procedural Changes

Significantly increases the signature threshold required for citizen initiative petitions and alters various procedural timelines and the Chief Electoral Officer's role in referring questions to the Court.

Moderate impactElection rulesCivil libertiesThe public, directlyCourtsIndependent watchdogs

What changed

  • The signature requirement for initiative petitions is changed to "at least 10% of the total number of votes cast in the previous general election," replacing previous specific percentages and electoral division requirements. (Section 5(7)(a) of Bill 54, amending Citizen Initiative Act s. 6)
  • The period for collecting signatures for an initiative petition is extended from 90 days to 120 days. (Section 5(6) of Bill 54, amending Citizen Initiative Act s. 4(4))
  • The Chief Electoral Officer's (CEO) determination period for whether an initiative petition meets requirements is shortened from 60 days to 21 days. (Section 5(9) of Bill 54, amending Citizen Initiative Act s. 10)
  • A new framework is established for the CEO to state a question to the Court regarding a proposal's conformity, replacing previous repealed subsections. (Section 5(3), (4) of Bill 54, amending Citizen Initiative Act s. 2 and adding s. 2.1)

Why it matters

  • The increased signature threshold makes it significantly more difficult for citizens to successfully launch initiative petitions, potentially reducing direct democratic participation.
  • Changes to timelines and the CEO's role in court referrals alter the administrative burden and judicial oversight of the initiative process.
  • This represents a restriction on the framework for direct citizen participation in law-making.

Other governance concerns

  • Direct democracy
  • Citizen participation
  • Access to justice

Primary sources (1)

Secondary sources (4)