EDMONTON – The Alberta government has no process in place to ensure only eligible farmers receive the subsidized fuel allowance, says the provincial auditor general.
Fred Dunn said farmers are supposed to renew their eligibility in the Farm Fuel Benefit program every three years, but the agriculture department hasn’t requested eligibility criteria for nine years from the 60,000 people registered with the program.
The farm fuel distribution allowance reduces the cost of marked diesel fuel by six cents a litre and costs the government about $34 million each year.
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The fuel tax exemption allows farmers to buy marked diesel fuel and gasoline without paying the provincial fuel tax of nine cents a litre and the marked propane tax of six and a half cents a litre. That program costs the government $72 million a year, Dunn said in his annual auditor general’s report.
He didn’t say the system is abused but believes the agriculture department needs to review its eligibility criteria. Farmers must have gross annual income of at least $10,000 to be eligible for the fuel program.
Dunn said the department doesn’t verify information on the application forms before issuing a certificate, nor does it check if producers become ineligible for the program at a later date.
Regulations give the agriculture minister authority to extend the expiry date on certificates, he said, which is what the department has done for the past nine years instead of conducting renewals.
Alberta Liberal leader Kevin Taft said there needs to be a clear picture of the farm fuel programs and its benefits.
“If nobody is doing the enforcement and nobody is following through, then we don’t really know what’s going on,” Taft said.
Dunn also said the government isn’t doing enough to monitor food and water safety standards in the province.
“There is inadequate monitoring and enforcement. You have to set your standards, monitor them and enforce them.”
There is too much variation between the nine regional health authorities’ public health inspectors, he said. As well, a tougher health inspection is more likely to force a restaurant in a smaller community to close than it would in an urban area once an inspection report becomes public knowledge.
Brian Mason, leader of the Alberta NDP, said food safety rules should be the same in rural areas as they are in larger centres.
“They should be able to walk into a restaurant or turn on a tap and not be afraid that they’re going to get sick.”
