Calgary’s mayor wasn’t too keen on the recent federal budget, saying that it lacks any relief for municipal tariffs or support for city infrastructure.

Canada’s federal government released its budget for the upcoming year, and it includes $142 billion in affordability measures and spending over five years, though no major announcements for cities like Calgary.

It does include $25 billion for the Canada Strong Fund, which is meant to help catalyze the so-called nation-building projects, and has tax incentives for businesses looking to expand, and is offering more for scientific research.

Calgarians will also benefit from the one-time increase to the grocery benefit, the extension of federal funding for mental health and addictions programs, plus $4.5 billion annually over the next 11 years to help end homelessness in the country.  

Full list of key budget measures can be found here.

The Alberta government said it would continue to review the document to determine the impact on Albertans and Alberta businesses.

“Our initial assessment is that after a decade of destructive governance in Ottawa, our work to repair Alberta’s relationship with the federal government over the past year is paying off,” read a statement from Alberta Finance Minister Jason Nixon.

“This federal government is finally moving closer to what Alberta has tirelessly advocated for: a stronger economy and a competitive energy sector that underpins prosperity for all Canadians.”

The Government of Canada did see an increase in revenue of roughly $159 million, a portion of which came from an increase in world oil prices.

Alberta’s finance minister also said that the province was pleased to see three Alberta projects recognized as major projects, including the Pacific Link pipeline.

More money for city tariffs, infrastructure: Farkas

Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas said that the federal budget was “a bit disappointing and actually laughable.”

“There’s not much included in this federal budget when it comes to Calgary’s stated priorities.

Back in July, the City of Calgary had proposed a federal budget submission that sought $190 million for the city’s critical infrastructure, $335 million for the Route Ahead transit strategy, investment in the Multisport Fieldhouse and that it fully fund Calgary’s application for the Prairie Economic Gateway to the Trade Diversification Corridors Fund.

Farkas also said one of the most pressing issues right now is the impact of US tariffs on the City of Calgary.

“We have exposure to the tune of 400 million dollars or more as part of the retaliatory tariffs that the federal government is implementing, and of course these costs are ultimately borne by local taxpayers,” he told reporters.

“But to quantify, if we were to absorb at the city of Calgary the cost and the magnitude of the retaliatory tariffs, about 500 million, that would be close to a 20 per cent property tax increase.”

Farkas did note that the federal budget document supports for a Silver Springs Community Association building.

While the devil may be in future details, the mayor was disappointed it didn’t offer more to help the city deal with its more than $50 billion infrastructure deficit.

“As it stands, it’s almost comically vague in terms of the details. But that said, I could be proven wrong,” he said.

“And the silver lining, though, with the budget as presented, is a significant boost to the attention provided to support municipalities and provincial governments around housing and addressing homelessness.”

Farkas did note that Calgary wasn’t an exception; there wasn’t a great deal of specific detail for any cities in Canada.

“When you look at other municipal priorities all across Canada, you don’t see that level of granular detail,” he said.

“So, it could be I’m looking for something that will be coming at a future date.”