Last month, I filed a freedom-of-information request with the Alberta government. The response? A letter informing me that my request would take an estimated 14 months to process, with fees potentially exceeding $3,000. This is not transparency — this is a wall designed to keep journalists and citizens from seeing what their government is doing.
Alberta’s access-to-information system is in crisis. Processing times have more than doubled since 2020, fee estimates have skyrocketed, and entire categories of records are being withheld under broadly interpreted exemptions. The province’s Information and Privacy Commissioner has called the situation "deeply concerning," yet the government has taken no meaningful action.
A Pattern of Opacity
The FOIP delays are just one symptom of a broader transparency deficit. As WestNet News has reported, the province’s lobbying registry contains significant gaps that make it impossible for citizens to know who is influencing government decisions. The Alberta Energy Regulator conducts much of its work behind closed doors. And the government’s war room — now rebranded as the "Alberta Is Calling" communications centre — has successfully argued in court that it is exempt from freedom-of-information laws despite spending tens of millions of public dollars.
These are not minor administrative issues. They go to the heart of democratic governance. When citizens cannot see how decisions are made, who is influencing those decisions, and how their money is being spent, the foundation of accountability crumbles.
What Needs to Change
Alberta needs comprehensive transparency reform. That means adequately funding the FOIP system so requests are processed within the legally mandated timelines. It means closing the loopholes in the Lobbyists Act. It means ensuring that every entity spending public money is subject to public scrutiny. And it means creating an independent parliamentary budget officer — like the one that exists federally — to provide non-partisan analysis of government spending.
Some will argue that these measures are costly or burdensome. But the cost of secrecy is far higher. When governments operate in the dark, bad decisions go unchallenged, waste goes undetected, and public trust erodes. Alberta deserves better.