EDMONTON — Alberta’s United Conservative government has introduced legislation aimed at moving all Alberta Sheriffs employees into a new provincial police agency and training hundreds of them as police officers.
Public Safety and Emergency Services Minister Mike Ellis tabled Bill 15, the Public Safety and Emergency Services Statutes Amendment Act, 2026, on Tuesday. The bill would transfer about 1,200 Alberta Sheriffs employees and their budget into the Alberta Sheriffs Police Service, an independent Crown corporation created last year.
Ellis said roughly half of current sheriffs already perform what he described as police-like functions and could receive about six weeks of additional training to become police officers under the new service.
“This is the fastest path to get at least 600 or so police officers on the streets of Alberta trying to assist all police jurisdictions in calls to service right now,” Ellis told reporters.
He said the transition is intended to increase response times, improve coordination among police agencies and strengthen public safety across the province.
Under the proposal, sheriffs who currently perform policing duties would be eligible to apply for officer roles with the new service, subject to training and qualification requirements under the Police Act. Remaining sheriffs would continue in their existing peace officer roles, including courthouse security, inmate transfers, traffic enforcement, surveillance and fugitive apprehension.
The bill would also move unionized and non-unionized staff into the new structure while maintaining current employment terms during and after the transition. If passed, the legislation would allow Alberta Sheriffs Police Service officers to enforce the Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods Act, which targets properties linked to criminal activity.
The government has previously said the new service would operate alongside existing police agencies, including the RCMP, and provide communities with another policing option. Alberta’s current policing agreement with the RCMP expires in 2032.
Ellis did not provide updated cost estimates for the transition, saying further financial details would be included in the provincial budget. The Alberta Sheriffs branch had a budget of about $156 million for the 2025-26 fiscal year.
Opposition public safety critic David Shepherd questioned whether the plan would address broader recruitment challenges facing police services and raised concerns about the shortened training period. He also said municipalities and taxpayers would need clarity on long-term costs.
The government has taken several legislative steps over the past year to establish the provincial police agency, including appointing a chief and setting up the Crown corporation structure. A timeline for fully transitioning sheriffs into the new service has not been finalized.
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