Olds & District Chamber of Commerce president Ben Stone sees one positive aspect of the provincial budget, brought down last week: the government has decided to keep the Community and Regional Economic Support (CARES) program.
"I know that Olds Institute has relied on this as a source of funding, and this money has enabled Olds Institute to leverage those dollars into tangible services to the community -- namely O-NET and Mountain View Power," he told the Albertan.
"The Town of Olds should be very excited to see that this funding is still available, because it provides tangible benefits to citizens of all demographics in the community."
He is concerned however, about the budget as a whole.
The provincial government projects total revenue this year will be $47.9 billion, but it plans on spending $56.2 billion, resulting in an $8.8-billion deficit, after a $500-million contingency for low energy prices is included.
In fact, the government projects total accumulated debt will rise from $54 billion in the coming year to about $96 billion by 2023-24.
It has a five-year plan to balance the books.
"Looking at the provincial budget for 2018, it appears as though there aren't any significant surprises and changes from last year. We are still running a deficit and the plans to return spending to a reasonable amount remain in the future," Stone says.
"Not only that, but our current numbers come with the assumption that the Trans Mountain Pipeline is eventually built, which I think may be overly optimistic.
"At the same time, I think you could look at it as a positive that they are including the Trans Mountain Pipeline in the budget because that shows how important it is that they get the pipeline built," he adds.
Stone says the amount of debt is "a lot less important than what the debt is actually being spent on."
"The provincial government is borrowing money at record low rates in hopes of diversifying the economy. But whether or not that is the most efficient use of borrowed money still remains to be seen," he says.
"A less costly way to raise money would be to create a business-friendly environment that reduced regulatory challenges and encouraged private investment and spending in our province," Stone adds.
"Right now it appears as though we are doing the complete opposite, and we are seeing a large number of corporations going public about how difficult it is to invest in Alberta at the moment. This is a problem."
