Other charges

Municipal franchise fee or local access fees

A municipality may grant the exclusive right to a utility distribution company to provide services to the municipality through a franchise agreement. The municipality then charges the distribution company a franchise fee for the exclusive right to serve utilities. The municipality is largely responsible for establishing the level of the fee through the franchise agreement with the distribution company; however, the Alberta Utilities Commission must approve the franchise agreement. The distribution company is then able to recover these costs from its customers.

Franchise fees are typically calculated as a percentage of the total distribution charges on your bill and are capped at 20 per cent for electrical and 35 per cent for natural gas. The provisions and requirements of franchise fees are found in Section 45 of the Municipal Government Act.

Federal carbon charge

The federal government implemented a federal fuel charge in Alberta starting January 1, 2020, under the federal Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act. Utilities are required to pay this charge to the federal government for the natural gas that they deliver to consumers. The charge is calculated based on volume according to pricing schedules determined by the federal government. The AUC does not regulate the carbon charge and does not have the ability to remove it from utility bills.

Please visit the Government of Canada, or the Utilities Consumer Advocate for more information.