Alberta government axes funding for 3 disability advocacy groups

The Alberta government has cut funding to three self-advocacy groups for people with intellectual disabilities more than a year before the expiry of their contracts. 

The Self Advocacy Federation in Edmonton, Disability Action Hall in Calgary, and Southern Alberta Individualized Planning Association (SAIPA) in Lethbridge, learned of the funding cuts last week and say they likely can't continue with their work. 

The groups' three-year contracts were set to expire at the end of March 2026. They now expire within 90 days. The three groups received less than $424,000 a year combined, representing all or most of their funding.

Leah Dormaar with SAIPA said the decision arrived without any warning. She is asking the provincial government to reconsider its decision. 

"The future of our self-advocacy networks is uncertain," Dormaar said. 

"Giving 90 days notice to the end of contracts does not give any time to transition our self-advocates…to other supports."

Contracts concluded, province says

In a written statement, Ashley Stevenson, press secretary for Seniors, Community and Social Services Minister Jason Nixon said no cuts have been made to direct services. 

"The contracts being concluded do not provide front-line services to persons with disabilities, and no front-line services are affected by this decision," she wrote. 

Stevenson did not respond to questions about why the government is cutting the contracts one year before they are set to expire. 

She added that the government continues to support organizations that provide advocacy services like the Office of the Advocate for Persons with Disabilities and the Premier's Council on the Status of Persons with Disabilities.

'This is cruel'

Keri McEachern with the Self Advocacy Federation disagreed with the province's characterization of their organizations. 

"We do do direct service. We want to make it clear that we can," she said. "Our organizations cannot be pitted against each other because what we do is very different than any other disability community or service providers in the province."

The organizations now face the prospect of having to shut down, a move that would be devastating for their members, McEachern said.

Jennifer Stewart has been with the Disability Action Hall since 1999. She credited the group with helping her get involved with the Calgary arts community 

Stewart said her heart dropped when she first heard the news. 

"To do this is cruel," she said through tears. "It's cutting off a lifeline for many, many people."

Chris Rowley, a self-advocate from Lethbridge, said he is worried the cuts might be the tip of the iceberg. 

"Them taking away these groups is almost showing me that they're ready to cut other areas of the disability sector and they're dismantling the advocacy so they don't have to hear from us," he said. 

"I'd like to challenge the minister, Minister Nixon, to come to these groups and explain why he's doing this."

St. Albert MLA Marie Renaud, the NDP opposition critic for social services, said the money these groups get are a drop in the bucket compared to the province's multi-billion dollar budget. 

She said the self-advocacy groups provide people with developmental disabilities support, dignity and independence. Renaud is dismayed the province can't see the value of that support. 

"I'm just astounded at the short-sightedness of this," she said. "It's a tiny little cut, but I'm just astounded by the cruelty and the stupidity of it."