Justice Department takes hit to funding

Prosecutors still being hired

Few areas of Alberta’s justice system will see an increase in funding, with the department forecasting an overall spending decrease of $3 million this year, and $96 million — or 6.6 per cent — within four years.

Budget forecasts show operating expenses dropping from $1.45 billion in 2018-19 to about $1.36 billion in 2022-23, with the bulk of savings coming from within the court system.

The province is meeting its commitment to hire 50 additional Crown prosecutors, and said it’s increasing funding for drug treatment courts, reviewing victims of crime programs and pledging an additional $50 million over four years for Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams.

Reductions will occur in legal services, court administration and correctional services divisions, while forecast operating expenses for the Victims of Crime Fund and motor vehicle accident claims are flat.

“Alberta’s justice system is based primarily on paper records and decades-old processes,” budget documents state. “Over several years, electronic court records will become the official record, more traffic tickets will be payable online and court operations will be modernized.”

The province slated $20.6 billion per year to provide health services, which includes a previously announced increase of $100 million for a mental health and addictions strategy, $40 million toward an opioid response and $20 million for palliative care.

Funding of $3.9 billion per year will support community and social services — a 7.6 per cent increase over 2018-19 spending — to address human trafficking and sexual exploitation, caseload pressures and a review of programming.