Government of Alberta

Immediate and long-term solutions for homelessness and expanded access to affordable housing—both rented and owned—were delivered to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing by the Alberta Affordable Housing Task Force. The 15-member panel spent 45 days gathering input and compiling the report, and visited nine communities and heard from more than 800 presenters, and received about 600 written submissions.. The government will review the report and respond in May. The task force’s report and the government response will be released publicly at the same time. Theme areas addressed in the report are: · tackling homelessness; · increasing access to affordable housing; · expanding home ownership opportunities for low-income Albertans; · streamlining and integrating government processes and those of non-profit groups across the province; and · promoting participation of stakeholders and community organizations. The task force was established on February 1, 2007, in response to Premier Ed Stelmach‘s mandate letter to the Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Ray Danyluk, asking that a task force be created to develop a plan to increase the availability of affordable housing. This is one of the key actions under Stelmach’s plan to manage growth pressures. Other priorities for the government are to govern with integrity and transparency, manage growth pressures, improve Albertans’ quality of life and promote safe and secure communities. For additional information on the task force, visit www.municipalaffairs.gov.ab.ca. Task force to help lay foundation for long-term prosper The goals of the new Value-Added and Technology Commercialization Task Force are to accelerate Alberta‘s value-added production and increase the commercialization of new ideas and discoveries in the province. The task force will build on the Alberta‘s solid base of research activity, value-added and technology companies, agencies and programs that already support technology commercialization and the discovery and development of innovative value-added products. The task force will create a list of critical actions and best practices to boost growth in these areas, bringing together people with diverse experience to expand and enhance this base. More information on the task force and its activities is available on the Advanced Education and Technology website at www.advancededucation.gov.ab.ca. Agricultural producers receive interim assistance for disaster years Alberta will invest an additional $70 million to supplement the support provided to agriculturalproducers under the Canadian Agricultural Income Stabilization (CAIS) program. This Alberta-only initiative is expected to address ongoing concerns about the effects of back-to-back disasters in agriculture. Producers are encouraged to submit their CAIS Supplementary Information well before Sept. 30 to ensure they receive their potential benefits as quickly as possible. For more information on AFSC - CAIS For more information on this initiative, producers can call the AFSC CAIS Help Line at 1-877-744-7900 or visit www.afsc.ca.

Copyright © 2002 Smoky River Express. All Rights Reserved.
No part may be reproduced without written permission.

View our Privacy Statement.
Send website suggestions to the Webmaster