Airdrie had the third-lowest per-person municipal spending among Major Municipalities in 2023 and was one of only five municipalities to reduce spending after inflation from 2009 to 2023, according to a new study from the Fraser Institute.
The Fraser Institute is an independent Canadian public policy research and educational organization with offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Montreal and Halifax, and ties to a global network of think-tanks in 87 countries. It does not accept grants from governments or contracts for research.
The study, Comparing Per-Person Expenditure and Revenue in Major Albertan Municipalities, 2009–2023, was authored by senior policy analyst Austin Thompson and analyzed inflation-adjusted revenue and spending in 26 municipalities. All figures are expressed in 2023 constant dollars.
Airdrie spent $2,187 per person on municipal services in 2023, according to the study. Only Cochrane ($2,142) and Chestermere ($1,652) reported lower levels. Airdrie ranked 24th out of the 26 municipalities in the study.
In the Fraser Institute’s accompanying news release—based on a 25-municipality version of the ranking—Airdrie placed 23rd. Medicine Hat is included in the full dataset but was excluded from the news release ranking due to its operation of both an electricity and natural gas utility.
The Fraser Institute said Calgary and Edmonton—Alberta’s largest and most populous cities—spent significantly less per person than, in the release’s 25-municipality ranking, municipalities such as Grande Prairie County, Red Deer County and Lethbridge. In 2023, Edmonton spent $3,241 per person and Calgary spent $3,144. Both were near the 25-municipality average of $3,239 as stated in the release.
“While there's always room for improvement, the municipal governments in Calgary and Edmonton have done a better job at restraining spending than many other municipalities in Alberta,” Thompson said in the release.
In the full dataset, the simple average per-person spending was $3,389, while the population-weighted average was $3,306. The population-weighted average “is the spending level that would occur if all municipalities had the same per-person expenditure in proportion to their population size,” the study states. According to the study, the simple average peaked in 2019 at $3,464.
“Only five of the Major Municipalities reduced their inflation-adjusted per-person expenditure from 2009 to 2023,” the study stated. Those municipalities were Chestermere (–37.6%), Cochrane (–15.9%), Camrose (–13.2%), Airdrie (–2.1%) and Foothills County (–2.0%).
Calgary’s spending increased by 2.1 per cent, while Edmonton’s rose 4.8 per cent. Calgary’s population grew 33.7 per cent and Edmonton’s grew 38.2 per cent between 2009 and 2023, the release shows.
The study states “the fastest-growing municipalities in percentage terms were the mid-sized towns and cities near Calgary (Cochrane, Airdrie, Chestermere) and Edmonton (Beaumont, Leduc, Spruce Grove).” Airdrie’s population reached 83,925 in 2023, up from 34,116 in 2009. The city accounted for 1.8 per cent of Alberta’s population and 1.3 per cent of its equalized property value, valued at $12.7 billion in 2023.
On the revenue side, Airdrie’s inflation-adjusted per-person revenue fell from $3,951 in 2009 to $3,181 in 2023—a 19.5 per cent drop. The average decline across the studied municipalities was 1.9 per cent.
“From 2009 to 2023, average inflation-adjusted per-person revenue decreased by 1.9% across the studied municipalities,” the study stated.
Despite that decline, the study noted that municipalities continued to maintain surpluses. “Revenue continued to exceed expenditure throughout the study period,” it said, as required by Section 243(3) of Alberta’s Municipal Government Act, which states that a municipality must not budget for a deficit.
“It’s ultimately up to Albertans to decide if they get good value for their municipal tax dollars, but it helps to compare spending levels among municipalities across the province,” said Jake Fuss, director of fiscal policy at the Fraser Institute.
A population-weighted average showed revenue falling from $4,011 in 2009 to $3,919 in 2023—a 2.3 per cent decrease.
Municipal revenue and expenditure data were drawn from Alberta’s Financial Information Return (FIR) database. Inflation adjustments were based on Statistics Canada’s all-items Consumer Price Index for Alberta (Table 18-10-0005-01). The study includes 26 municipalities, representing 78.6 per cent of Alberta’s population and 70.3 per cent of its equalized property value.
The Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo was excluded due to its remote location and low population density. Lloydminster was excluded due to its governance under the Lloydminster Charter. Sturgeon County was excluded due to extraordinary investments tied to the North West Redwater Partnership Sturgeon Refinery.
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