With the fall upon us, your ECA advocacy team has spent the summer months preparing for a busy advocacy season, refining our association’s priorities and defining new opportunities for collaboration with the municipal and provincial governments.
Our messaging focuses on building long-term relationships with policymakers and leaders by advancing workforce development initiatives and prioritizing the construction and maintenance of communities' infrastructure and construction needs.
This messaging is especially important at the municipal level, where members of Edmonton City Council have begun discussing budgetary pressures that will have a material impact on capital investments through the next fiscal planning cycle, and the next roster of civic leaders following the Oct. 20, 2025 municipal election.
ECA Strikes Government Relations and Advocacy Working Group
This newly appointed group falls under the Strategies and Engagement Committee of the ECA Board. Struck in February 2024, it aims to provide oversight and guidance to ECA advocacy, lobbying, and public relations activities conducted by the board and senior sta .
Members have an important role in informing ECA’s external outreach initiatives with the City of Edmonton, the Government of Alberta, and the many stakeholders we collaborate with regularly, including our colleagues with the Calgary Construction Association and the Alberta Construction Association.
Among the group's responsibilities are supporting ECA government relations, communications, and public relations tactics, fostering policy and advocacy alignment with stakeholders and other industry associations.
RYAN CHRISTENSEN Delnor Construction
PAUL FEREDAY Cantiro
LINDSAY MUNN Civida
BEN WAGEMAKERS PCL Construction JEN HANCOCK Chandos Construction
BROOKES MERRITT Loyalton Strategies
WARREN SINGH ACA
DAVID JOHNSON ECA
MATT SCHELLENBERGER ECA
In its inaugural meeting, the working group defined the ECA’s advocacy objectives, identified the key issues advance on behalf of members, and how these issues align with the priorities from the ECA and ACA strategic plans.
ECA Advocacy Objectives:
Define ECA value propositions, and increase government’s awareness of them.
ECA Key Issues:
Municipal Investments
A ordability & Cost
Increase member and stakeholder awareness of ECA’s policy positions and advocacy e orts.
Climate Resiliency & Energy E ciency
Equitable & Transparent Procurement
Workforce Development & Supply
Collaborative Delivery Models
Regional Collaboration
Regulatory Equity & Exemptions
Canada-Alberta Job Grant
In August, the ECA was abruptly informed that the Government of Alberta was early closing of this year’s applications for the Canada Alberta Jobs Grant. This valuable program supports workforce development, and its closure resulted from a recent decision by the Government of Canada to reduce Labour Market Transfer funds for provincial government recipients.
This was a frustrating and disappointing decision, and it misaligned with Canada’s need to address labour shortages in our industry. The ECA expressed its position to the ACA, and shared with the Government of Alberta our expectation for more advanced communication in the event of any future disruptions to program funding.
We continue to share member feedback with the Alberta Construction Association on this file, which is meeting with provincial ministers to explore options for re-establishing funding for workforce training and development.
For further information, please review the Government of Alberta news release addressing the closure of the Canada-Alberta Jobs Grant program here: https://lnkd.in/gdXvbCMt. The program is expected to re-open for new applications in the spring of 2025.
Collaboration with the Alberta Construction Association
The Alberta Construction Association is an essential advocacy ally. The ACA o ers dependable advice and support to advance initiatives that improve our industry through a united, diplomatic, and strategic approach to lobbying and government relations.
Your ECA Government Relations and Advocacy Working Group maintains regular contact with the ACA to ensure members’ voices are heard at provincial advocacy tables. This includes meetings with Cabinet Ministers, political sta , and senior civil service members at the Industry Liaison Committee, where the government and our industry convene for regular discussions.
Over the late summer and early fall, these initiatives are advancing the major concerns of prompt payment, contract modernization, and the Canada-Alberta Jobs Grant (see next section).
The ECA continues supporting long-standing advocacy for prompt payment legislation to apply to government contracts under the Public Works Act and to better address non-compliance under the existing legislation.
We also continue to advocate for improvements to risk allocation in provincial contracts. Our collaboration with the ACA ensures the provincial government understands the broad impacts of increased risk on our members, and that ECA member expectations for risk to be shared more equitably in contract language.
Special General Contractor Forum
On September 5, the ECA hosted a morning forum to explore options for increasing participation and competition in construction provincial projects tendered by Alberta Infrastructure.
The forum was a result of feedback garnered through ECA’s direct outreach to members in Spring 2024 - which requested data and experiences highlighting areas for potential improvement in the provincial procurement, project management and evaluation processes - and through direct advocacy engagement between ECA board representatives and members.
Participants detailed experiences that contributed to reduced participation in provincial tenders and discussed collaborative solutions. These solutions included a desire to see more flexibility in contract timelines and contingency budgets and transparency in the bidding process.
The discussion also included valuable perspectives from the ECA board and executive, and representatives from the Alberta Construction Association. Feedback and proposals for improvement will be included in upcoming discussions with the Government of Alberta, including a special meeting arranged by the ACO on Sept. 17, with the Minister of Infrastructure.
City of Edmonton Report on Project Planning and Design
In June, Edmonton City Council unanimously approved a motion by for the administration to prepare an overview of construction projects for which capital funds have not yet been committed for delivery. The council also requested an analysis of the metrics and trends driving project costs.
The ECA’s Government Relations and Advocacy Working Group is developing an engagement plan to help inform the administration’s report, which is due back to City Council in November.
This engagement will also consider how the ECA respond council discussions balancing investments in new construction with the need for capital maintenance and renewal.
Edmonton has earmarked $9.2B for capital infrastructure spending from 2023-2026. This includes $2B approved by the previous council and $1.1B approved for projects beyond 2026. There is approximately $800M remaining in debt room to finish out the current 2023-2026 capital budget cycle.
Last month city administration said next year’s tax increase could be about 13 per cent i f nothing changes.
Coming in Q1
The 2024 Infrastructure Partners Conference is October 7. The event will o er a comprehensive program that includes a reception, awards, plenary and breakout sessions and engagement with the Minister of Infrastructure and representatives from Alberta Infrastructure.
ACA, ECA & CCA Meeting with Premier Danielle Smith, October 17.
Fall event (ACA & LCAs) – Tuesday, November 5th – Federal Building
