AB Bill 9 Protecting Alberta’s Children Statutes Amendment Act, 2025
Bill 9: Protecting Alberta’s Children Statutes Amendment Act, 2025
Bill Sponsor: Amery
Bill Type: Government Bills
Amendments: No
Money Bill: No
Documents: Bill 9
First Reading
November 18, 2025 passed on division 319-20
Second Reading
November 19, 2025 adjourned 378-91
November 25, 2025 adjourned 493-501
November 26, 2025 adjourned 549-54
December 2, 2025 adjourned 676-79
December 8, 2025 passed on division 815-22
Committee of the Whole
December 9, 2025 adjourned 855
December 9, 2025 passed on division 873-80
Third Reading
December 9, 2025 adjourned on division 891
December 9, 2025 passed on division 892-900
Royal Assent
December 11, 2025 outside of House sitting
Comes into Force
December 11, 2025 SA 2025 c24 4/25/2026 2:31 PM
WHO GAINS POWER
- The Alberta Government gains authority to override the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (sections 2 and 7–15), the Alberta Bill of Rights and the Alberta Human Rights Act across three separate Acts simultaneously
- The Minister gains authority to have Ministerial orders — including existing orders already issued — treated as provisions of the Act itself, shielding them from Charter and human rights challenges
- Regulations already in force (including the Fairness and Safety in Sport Regulation AR 124/2025 and Ministerial Order No. 31/2025) are retroactively deemed provisions of the Acts, extending the notwithstanding shield to them
WHO LOSES POWER
- ⚠️ Courts lose jurisdiction to strike down these provisions on Charter or human rights grounds — judicial review is effectively suspended for the duration the notwithstanding declarations remain in force
- Albertans lose the ability to challenge the following laws under the Charter, the Alberta Bill of Rights or the Alberta Human Rights Act:Education Act provisions on parental notification, pronoun use and gender identity in schoolsThe Fairness and Safety in Sport Act (transgender athlete participation rules)Health Professions Act provisions on gender-affirming care restrictions
- Existing Ministerial orders and regulations are retroactively shielded — legal challenges already underway may be affected
WHO GAINS MONEY
- Government avoids potential court-ordered remedies and legal costs associated with successful Charter challenges to these laws
WHO LOSES MONEY
- Individuals and organizations with active or planned legal challenges to these laws may lose the ability to pursue them, along with associated legal costs
- Legal aid and advocacy organizations may face increased demand as affected parties seek alternative remedies
THE CATCH
- ⚠️ This Bill invokes the notwithstanding clause across three separate Acts at once — a broad and simultaneous use of Section 33 that shields a wide range of government action from Charter review in a single Bill
- ⚠️ Existing regulations and Ministerial orders are retroactively deemed provisions of the Acts — this extends the notwithstanding shield to decisions already made and potentially to legal challenges already in progress
- ⚠️ The Bill takes effect on Royal Assent — no Proclamation delay, no window for legal challenge before enforcement begins
- The notwithstanding clause expires after 5 years unless renewed — but renewal requires only a simple Legislative majority