Alberta's provincial government

• A referendum involves eligible voters voting on an issue or law proposed by the government, with voters answering "yes" or "no."
• This is similar to direct democracy practiced in ancient Athens.

Services provided by the Provincial Government

• Children's services
• Health and Wellness
• Energy
• Education
• Seniors and Community Support
• Tourism and Parks
• Agriculture and Food
• Sustainable Resources
• Aboriginal Relations
• The Alberta Provincial government has about 20 different departments.
• Subsidies are government funds for people needing help to participate in a program.
• MLAs stands for Members of the Legislative Assembly.
• A bill is a proposed or suggested law.
• A Cabinet Minister is an elected representative in charge of a provincial government department.
• An act is a bill passed by the Legislative Assembly and signed by the Lieutenant Governor, also known as a law.
• A bill undergoes three readings in the Alberta Legislature before becoming law.
• A political party is an organization of people with similar ideas about governing.
• Voting districts are called constituencies, and Alberta is divided into different constituencies for provincial elections.
• Candidates for a political party, and independent candidates, must meet two conditions to have their names on the ballot for a provincial election:
• Being an eligible voter
• Having a form from Elections Alberta signed by at least 25 electors in their district.
• To vote in a Provincial Election, voters must:
• Live in the constituency where they want to vote
• Be a Canadian citizen
• Be at least 18 years old
• Live in Alberta for six months prior to election day
• Voting is not compulsory in Alberta, but it is in Belgium, Greece, and Australia.
• Canada is both a representative democracy and a constitutional monarchy.
• A constitutional monarchy is a government system where a monarch (king or queen) is the head of state, while in Canada, the Prime Minister is the head of the government.
• The Speech from the Throne outlines the government's plans for the upcoming session of the Legislature.
• The queen's representative in the federal government is called the Governor General
• The queen's representative in the provincial government is the Lieutenant Governor.
• The duties of the Lieutenant Governor include:
• Inviting the winning party's leader to become premier
• Issuing the Royal Proclamation to call the Legislature into session
• Reading the Speech from the Throne to open new Legislature sessions
• Dissolving or closing the Legislative Assembly to hold elections

Cabinet & MLAs

• The Premier selects MLAs to become members of the Cabinet.
• Cabinet members are known as ministers, and each minister is in charge of a different government department (providing services for Albertans).
• Besides running departments, Cabinet ministers have other responsibilities, including:
• Meeting with the premier to discuss provincial matters and government actions
• Collaborating with department staff to create a budget
• Researching, writing, and voting on bills
• Working on committees with MLAs to discuss government plans and actions
• Serving as MLAs for their constituency
• Constituents are people living in the constituency represented by a government member.
• An opposition member is an elected member of the Legislative Assembly not belonging to the party in power.
• MLAs have two main responsibilities:
• Serving the needs of their constituents
• Participating in government
• Perspective is the shared point of view held by a group.
• The Alberta Provincial Government structure is as follows:
• The Lieutenant Governor (Queen's Representative)
• Premier, leader of the government
• Cabinet, responsible for departments
• Legislative Assembly