Alberta Politics & Government Thread 3.0

[Locke]

Originally Posted by The Big Chill

Previously there was a grant that everyone qualifies for regardless of income at any licensed day care or home. In addition to that there was a subsidy you could apply for based on income. They are now getting rid of the subsidy portion and just doing a flat rate for everybody. That new flat rate works out to be a higher number for lower income families who qualified for the full subsidy, and a lower number for higher income families who partially qualified or didn’t qualify at all.

A family of two teachers will now pay 350ish per month per kid, whereas before they would have paid more due to not qualifying for that full subsidy.

Well, the schedule looked like if you had a family income of ~$175K or over you wouldnt qualify at all? Or it would be minimal at best, again, if you could even get a spot at a licensed daycare or dayhome.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Locke

Well, the schedule looked like if you had a family income of ~$175K or over you wouldnt qualify at all? Or it would be minimal at best, again, if you could even get a spot at a licensed daycare or dayhome.

There’s nothing to qualify for now

[The Big Chill]

Originally Posted by Locke

Well, the schedule looked like if you had a family income of ~$175K or over you wouldnt qualify at all? Or it would be minimal at best, again, if you could even get a spot at a licensed daycare or dayhome.

They would qualify for the grant portion (before and after these changes take place) if they can find a spot at a licensed place, and that would almost certainly be cheaper then any unlicensed place.

I know the daycare we are currently at has a long wait list, and I’d guess most are the same. There was a mad rush to get a spot in these places when the program launched.

[Monahammer]

The new proposal really favours newer spaces with higher costs, too. If your kids were attending an older daycare with lower costs already, you are likely going to pay more per child under the new program. I'm paying more for one but less for the other in the new system, for example, which is a bit weird but overall it's a wash. I feel for the people at my daycare who were receiving the provincial subsidy, as they will now all be paying more by a couple hundred bucks a month.

Essentially, they took away $10 a day daycare for the poorest people, which was already in place, while giving $15 a day daycare to everyone at once.

I think it's a revolting way of doing it even though I actually slightly benefit ($20 a month or something, lol).

[TheIronMaiden]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Amazing to have a persecution complex where conservatives have reigned for 50 of the last 54 years.

Amazing or pathetic?

Albertans feeling hard done by makes no sense to me except for play ground cry baby behavior.

[calf]

My kids are at an older daycare. Oldest is in before/after school care, so there's no subsidy (which is another matter).

My youngest is pre-k. Our monthly cost is going from $420/month to $350/month, going from getting only the base grant to getting the new flat rate. My buddy who's at a newer daycare is going from $650/month to $350/month. Both our families are doing well - the savings are good, but the current fees certainly aren't breaking us like how higher fees for lower income people will starting in April.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by calf

My kids are at an older daycare. Oldest is in before/after school care, so there's no subsidy (which is another matter).

My youngest is pre-k. Our monthly cost is going from $420/month to $350/month, going from getting only the base grant to getting the new flat rate. My buddy who's at a newer daycare is going from $650/month to $350/month. Both our families are doing well - the savings are good, but the current fees certainly aren't breaking us like how higher fees for lower income people will starting in April.

What’s crazy is how the UCP were basically bragging about hurting lower income people most. The whole “people were sending their kids to daycare just because it was cheap, or even free!” Like yeah guys, you’re talking about the lowest of the lowest income bracket. People who previously could not afford to work if they had to send their kids to daycare.

[woob]

UCP - ###### the poors.

[PaperBagger'14]

Originally Posted by calf

My kids are at an older daycare. Oldest is in before/after school care, so there's no subsidy (which is another matter).

My youngest is pre-k. Our monthly cost is going from $420/month to $350/month, going from getting only the base grant to getting the new flat rate. My buddy who's at a newer daycare is going from $650/month to $350/month. Both our families are doing well - the savings are good, but the current fees certainly aren't breaking us like how higher fees for lower income people will starting in April.

Has it been confirmed all the low income subsidies have been removed? My son’s daycare didn’t have any info to share from the government as of last Friday. They said it would take a few weeks before all the details would be out.

A Quick Look on the AB government website does show that there are still subsidies for families earning less than $180000 per year. Whether it’s better or not for low income earners I’m not sure.

https://www.alberta.ca/child-care-subsidy

[belsarius]

Originally Posted by PaperBagger'14

Has it been confirmed all the low income subsidies have been removed? My son’s daycare didn’t have any info to share from the government as of last Friday. They said it would take a few weeks before all the details would be out.

A Quick Look on the AB government website does show that there are still subsidies for families earning less than $180000 per year. Whether it’s better or not for low income earners I’m not sure.

https://www.alberta.ca/child-care-subsidy

Alberta will transition to the flat fee system on April 1. eligible families with existing child care subsidies will continue to have subsidy coverage until March 31, 2025. During this time, parents of subsidized children 0 to kindergarten age (including those in kindergarten and also attending child care during regular school hours) will pay less for child care through:

They still exist until March 31 is how I read this. As of April 1, they are gone.

[PaperBagger'14]

Originally Posted by belsarius

They still exist until March 31 is how I read this. As of April 1, they are gone.

Ahh I skimmed over that line, looks like you’re right.

[Charcot]

It looks like the fire from scandal uncovered by the Breakdown is getting more fuel.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/cana...cal-contracts/

“ Premier Danielle Smith’s government dismissed the head of Alberta Health Services two days before she was scheduled to meet with the province’s Auditor-General to discuss her investigation into procurement contracts and deals for private surgical facilities, according to a letter obtained by The Globe and Mail.

The letter also alleges that the Premier’s then-chief of staff interfered in AHS contract negotiations.

Alberta terminated Athana Mentzelopoulos as AHS’s chief executive on Jan. 8, replacing her with Andre Tremblay, the deputy minister of health. Ms. Mentzelopoulos, in a lengthy letter from her lawyer to AHS’s interim general counsel on Jan. 20, alleges that she was fired because she launched “an internal investigation and forensic audit” into AHS’s contracts and procurement processes.”

[edslunch]

Originally Posted by Charcot

It looks like the fire from scandal uncovered by the Breakdown is getting more fuel.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/cana...cal-contracts/

“ Premier Danielle Smith’s government dismissed the head of Alberta Health Services two days before she was scheduled to meet with the province’s Auditor-General to discuss her investigation into procurement contracts and deals for private surgical facilities, according to a letter obtained by The Globe and Mail.

The letter also alleges that the Premier’s then-chief of staff interfered in AHS contract negotiations.

Alberta terminated Athana Mentzelopoulos as AHS’s chief executive on Jan. 8, replacing her with Andre Tremblay, the deputy minister of health. Ms. Mentzelopoulos, in a lengthy letter from her lawyer to AHS’s interim general counsel on Jan. 20, alleges that she was fired because she launched “an internal investigation and forensic audit” into AHS’s contracts and procurement processes.”

And the board recommended taking her findings to the RCMP. Now all fired.

[Roughneck]

Government hired her

Government pressured her to accept contracts for Turkish acetomineofen comparables and surgery conglomerates

She investigated the contracts and reported to the AHS board who recommended she go to police

Government fires her

Government fires the board

Is that about right?

[malcolmk14]

Low income people are currently being subsidized to the point where their daycare costs are under $200 or even $0. They will now be paying $325 for full-time care. Doesn't seem like that much but if you're low income and have three daycare-aged kids suddenly you go from paying nothing (or nearly nothing) to paying $1000 a month. That's significant.

Higher income people who aren't currently receiving subsidy will also pay $325 a month. At the moment we pay $1100 a month for one child and we will now be paying under 30% of that. I don't think that's equitable or right.

[The Fisher Account]

All my O&G bros are passing along the Jordan Peterson Alberta video. Good grief.

[Fuzz]

I don't know what specifically that is, but I assume brain poison.

[Looch City]

Originally Posted by The Fisher Account

All my O&G bros are passing along the Jordan Peterson Alberta video. Good grief.

What's he saying now lol, Berta is safe heaven for true conservatives?

[Torture]

If we lived in normal times this would be enough for a Premier to resign.

[PepsiFree]

We’re stuck with Smith it seems but the one bonus is we can openly laugh at any UCP voter who pretends to care about corruption, fair elections, government waste, people struggling to get by, or just Canada in general.

Especially as they seem very occupied in the federal thread pretending this things, but have somehow forgotten the Alberta government exists.