NDP to review campaign rules
Third-party advertisers not subject to spending limits or disclosure laws
Alberta’s NDP government says it will take a hard look at third-party advertisers in municipal politics — but not before October’s civic elections.
The recent activities of an anonymously funded conservative advocacy group, Save Calgary — which is targeting Mayor Naheed Nenshi and a number of council incumbents — has prompted calls for rules for third parties operating in municipal politics.
The NDP government is receptive to the idea, saying in a statement Tuesday that “conservatives are using third parties to get around the law.”
“These actions are concerning, which is why we are actively looking for solutions,” government spokesman Matt Dykstra, on behalf of democratic renewal minister Christina Gray, said in an email.
“Given the effect this is having at the municipal level, we also encourage municipalities to come forward with their ideas on how to tackle this.”
However, Dykstra acknowledged that a long-awaited review of municipal campaign finance rules will only take place after the fall elections.
Under the Local Authorities Election Act, there is a $5,000 limit on how much an individual can contribute to a municipal candidate, and candidates must disclose after the campaign the names of all donors who gave more than $100.
There are no such rules for thirdparty groups.
Alberta Liberal Leader David Khan said Tuesday that groups such as Save Calgary “are free to spend as much as they can raise to try to influence our municipal elections without any accountability and transparency, and that is fundamentally undemocratic.”
He criticized the NDP government for not dealing with the issue sooner.
But Nenshi says while there should be new rules on third-party advertisers in municipal elections, the window has closed for action by the province right now.
He said he would give the NDP a “tiny bit of a pass” for not moving sooner on municipal campaign finance reform because it would have resulted in changes too close to this year’s vote.
“If they changed the laws just a few months before the election, that would give a huge advantage to incumbents who had been fundraising under the previous rules for three years or more,” Nenshi said.
“After discussion with the thenmunicipal affairs minister, it was decided that might be too disruptive ... I’m really looking forward to the provincial government moving very quickly in the first seating in 2018 of this legislature to fix the campaign finance rules.”
Nenshi said he believed Calgarians will reject the campaign activities of third-party groups “operating through a legal loophole.”
Hadyn Place, spokesman for Save Calgary, said Tuesday there is a reasonable debate to be had over regulations for third-party groups in city politics.
“But we’re acting completely within the rules that exist and we don’t think it’s an illegitimate way of getting a message out,” he said.
Place said the group has spent little money so far. It has launched billboards and plans radio advertisements.
Since taking office in 2015, the Notley government has banned union and corporate donations to provincial parties, slashed donation limits and introduced campaign spending ceilings. It has also beefed up disclosure rules for third-party advertisers, though critics such as Khan have called for tougher rules for so-called political action committees.
The Alberta Urban Municipalities Association in 2016 passed a resolution asking the government to eliminate union and corporate donations at the municipal level and require disclosure from third-party advertisers. However, it acknowledged at the time the changes should only come into effect after this year’s elections.