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FEDERAL ELECTORAL
BOUNDARIES
COMMISSION FOR ALBERTA
ELECTORAL BOUNDARIES READJUSTMENT ACT
PART I
Introduction
Under the Canadian Constitution the number of members
of Parliament for each province, as well as the boundaries of the federal
electoral districts, must be readjusted following each decennial census
to take into account population growths, shifts and changes. The process
is carried out under the federal Electoral Boundaries Readjustment
Act, the “Act.”
The Act provides for the appointment in each province of an independent
commission to determine the sizes, boundaries and names of federal electoral
districts. The current Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission for Alberta
was established on April 16, 2002. The Honourable Mr. Justice Edward MacCallum
was appointed Chairman by the Chief Justice of Alberta. The two other
members, named by the Speaker of the House of Commons, are Ms. Ritu Khullar
and Dr. Donald Barry.
Paragraph 15(1)(a) of the Act requires the Commission to create
electoral districts whose population shall correspond as closely as reasonably
possible to the electoral quota, or average electoral district size, for
the province. According to the formula in effect at the time of the 2001
census, the number of seats in the House of Commons is to be increased
from 301 to 308. Because Alberta’s population increased substantially
from 1991 to 2001, the province’s current allocation of twenty-six
(26) House of Commons seats will be increased to twenty-eight (28). This
number is calculated by dividing the 2001 population of Alberta, which
was 2,974,807, by the electoral quota of 106,243.
The Act is concerned with more than representation by population, however.
Paragraph 15(1)(b) continues as follows:
(b) the commission shall consider the following in determining
reasonable electoral district boundaries:
- the community of interest or community of identity in or the historical
pattern of an electoral district in the province, and
- a manageable geographic size for districts in sparsely populated,
rural or northern regions of the province.
To accommodate such considerations, subsection 15(2) of the Act permits
electoral districts to vary from the electoral quota. Except in “extraordinary”
circumstances, however, the Commission “shall make every effort
to ensure that … the population of each electoral district in the
province remains within twenty-five per cent more or twenty-five per cent
less of the electoral quota for the province.” This means that Alberta’s
electoral districts should not exceed a maximum electoral district population
of 132,804 or a minimum population of 79,682.
Part II of these proposals gives an overview of the recommendations of
the Commission in regard to each of the 28 electoral districts. Detailed
legal descriptions and populations for each electoral district are provided
in Schedule A of these proposals. Schedule B of these proposals is a list
of the 28 electoral districts with their populations and the percentage
by which they vary from the electoral quota. Schedule C contains the maps
showing the proposed electoral districts. The Act calls for public hearings
allowing the Commission to receive comments on the proposals. The public
hearings will be held in selected centres throughout the province between
October 7 and October 24, 2002. The schedule and the locations for these
hearings are set out in Part III of these proposals under the heading
“Notice of Public Hearings.” Newspaper advertisements about
these hearings will appear in the beginning of August 2002. The Commission
has adopted rules for the conduct of, and representation to, these public
hearings and these rules are set out in Part IV hereof.
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