A Bill passed by the Legislative Assembly becomes law immediately upon receiving Royal Assent.  It is then referred to as an Act, not a Bill.

A law comes into force either upon proclamation or on a specified date, whichever is indicated in the Bill itself.  If nothing is indicated in the Bill as to when it will come into force, then it comes into force immediately upon Royal Assent.

Proclamation dates are determined by the Alberta Government rather than the Legislative Assembly.  Inquiries should be made to the Legislative Counsel branch of Alberta Justice by calling (780) 427-2217.

The ongoing status of all Bills for the current Session of the Legislative Assembly is posted on the Assembly’s web site in the Bills and Amendments section.  There you will find the Bill Status Report that lists the status of all Bills, the Bill Activity Report that lists day-by-day Bill activity, and archived Bill Status Reports back to 1989.  When the Assembly is sitting the Bill Status Report is updated within minutes of any vote on a Bill.

You can also select a specific Bill from the list to see all the activity for a Bill as well as the text of the Bill and any approved amendments and subamendments.

With the exception of Private Members’ Public Bills, the course of debate of all Bills is determined by the Government and not the Assembly.  Each Thursday the Assembly sits the Government House Leader advises the Assembly of the projected schedule of Government Business for the following week.  The Government is not bound by that schedule and may change it as it wishes.  That information, listed under Projected Government Business, can be found either in the Votes and Proceedings for any Thursday, in the Order Paper for any sitting day, or in the schedule of Weekly House Business.

Private Members’ Public Bills are debated on Monday afternoons following Written Questions and Motions for Returns until 5:00 pm and are considered in the order they appear on the Order Paper.

You can contact the sponsor of a Bill to find out information relating to the content.  The sponsor’s name is printed on the cover of the Bill and is also listed right after the title of the Bill on the Bill Status Report.  Contact information for all Members of the Legislative Assembly can be found on our web site.

The Legislative Assembly is only provided with the text of a Bill when it is introduced (First Reading).  If amendments are agreed to in the Assembly the Government will incorporate the amendments into the Bill and the consolidated version will then be available from Alberta Queen’s Printer.

An amendment to a Bill is only posted after Committee of the Whole has approved and reported an amendment to the Assembly.  Generally the amendment would be available on the Assembly site the same day it was approved but depending on the time of day it may not be available until the next business day.  If there are approved amendments to a Bill they will be posted in the Bills and Amendments section and can be found by selecting a Bill from the list. Amendments to Bills are only posted for the current Session of the Legislative Assembly.