New citizen initiative puts forward referendum question on use of public money for private schools amid teacher strike

By MEDICINE HAT NEWS on October 8, 2025.

newsdesk@medicinehatnews.com

A citizen initiative application for a policy proposal regarding the allocation of public funds to private schools was approved Tuesday.

The initiative proposes a referendum question on whether the Alberta government should continue to allocate public funds to private schools.

As required by the Citizen Initiative Act, the province has issued a Notice of Initiative Petition and posted it to the Elections Alberta webpage.

The application posits that “a strong public education system, with choice, excellence and inclusion benefits all citizens of our province.”

The application argues that diverting public funds back into public schools would help alleviate some of the funding shortages that public schools have been experiencing.

The application was issued by Alicia Taylor. According to the protocol for citizen initiatives, Taylor has seven days to appoint a chief financial officer. After a CFO has been appointed, Elections Alberta is required to issue the citizen initiative petition and publish a notice specifying the signature collection period dates and the number of signatures required for a successful petition.

A successful petition would require the province to advance the question for a referendum.

This proposal comes on the heels of the largest labour disruption in Alberta history, as 51,000 teachers went on strike earlier this week.

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