Hyggen welcomes grant increase from province in proposed budget

By Al Beeber - Lethbridge Herald on March 7, 2025.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDabeeber@lethbridgeherald.com

The Alberta government is planning to increase its Grants in Place of Taxes program by more than $17 million if its 2025 budget is approved.
That funding will rise to more than $55 million from $38 million, covering 75 per cent of the municipal tax value of eligible provincial properties in 2025. In 2026, GIPOT will cover 100 per cent of the  amount that would be paid to municipalities if provincial properties  were taxable. This will increase total funding to more than $75 million.
GIPOT is paid to 167 Alberta municipalities, including Lethbridge.
Minister of Municipal Affairs Ric MicIver made the announcement on Thursday. If the money is approved, it will provide Alberta municipalities with what the government calls “a stable and reliable  source of funding to help them deliver the essential services which  their residents depend on.”
Properties belonging to the provincial government are exempt from municipal taxes and to account for that loss in revenue, municipalities receive a discretionary grant rather than taxes to be applied to those properties.
The increase is especially important for Lethbridge, said Mayor Blaine Hyggen Thursday morning after McIver’s announcement, because of the number of government-owned properties here.
“GIPOT is huge,” said Hyggen, because for five years starting in 2018, the province reduced the amount it paid the City of Lethbridge from $1.2 million to $585,000 annually.
“It’s almost a 50 per cent reduction across the five years,” said Hyggen. “That decrease resulted in about half a million dollars annually. The restoration of this grant in place of taxes will help with pressures.”
In 2025, the province will increase the amount it gives the City by 25 per cent, meaning about another $290,000 coming here and next year, the amount will be back to 100 per cent, said Hyggen.
“That’s one win from the province,” because other municipalities have 10 to 12 per cent government buildings while Lethbridge’s figure is 18 per cent.
“When we got that hit of 50 per cent, that was huge and so this is big  for us,” added Hyggen.
In a media statement, McIver said, “We heard clearly from municipalities that they need more stable  funding to deliver local services effectively while avoiding property  tax increases. Boosting GIPOT shows how our government is doing its  part to help our municipal partners fund the municipal services their  residents rely on.”
Tyler Gandam, president of Alberta  Municipalities, echoed Hyggen’s sentiments on the change.
“We appreciate that the provincial government heard and responded to our sustained collective call for a return to full GIPOT funding as quickly as possible,” said Gandam.
The mayor also noted that while Lethbridge wasn’t specifically included in the budget’s allotment of $540 million for water and wastewater projects, it still could get money from the pot.
“There’s the chance we could still see that water/wastewater infrastructure through that pot of money,” said Hyggen. But given the cost of the first phase of the City’s projects, he said it doesn’t look promising in light of the total available amount of money.
Hyggen, as well as Councillors John Middleton-Hope and Jenn Schmidt-Rempel, along with City Manager Lloyd Brierley, are in Edmonton this week for the Alberta Municipalities (AM) 2025 Spring Municipal Leaders’ Caucus where this and other topics will be further discussed.

3
-2