Medicine Hat United Ratepayers Association

02/03/2026

WHY THE UNANIMOUS VOTE — AND WHY RESIDENTS ARE STILL CONCERNED 

Council voted unanimously to move forward with the $135 million Saamis Solar investment, citing mitigated risks and a third-party analysis presented as a “win-win.”

That helps explain the vote - but it doesn’t remove the concern.

Councillors were shown an optimistic case, supported by external analysis, with key details withheld from public view due to “commercial confidentiality.” Risks were framed as managed, future approvals emphasized, and the decision positioned as a necessary step forward rather than a final commitment.

When administration controls the information, limits public scrutiny, and presents a project as low-risk and time-sensitive, a unanimous vote becomes understandable, even predictable.

But history matters.

Our community has been asked before to “trust the process,” from the Manyberries gas fields to the failed solar thermal project. Assurances were given, risks were downplayed, and when outcomes fell short, the losses landed with ratepayers.

That’s why the words often attributed to Mark Twain resonate so strongly today:

“If voting made any difference, they wouldn’t let us do it.”

“It is easier to deceive people than to convince them that they have been deceived.”

These quotes shouldn’t describe our local democracy - but without transparency, independent analysis that can be publicly tested, and clear accountability before money is committed, they begin to feel uncomfortably relevant.

This isn’t opposition to renewable energy. ☀️ ⚡️
It’s a call for better governance.

Saamis Solar should be the test case for doing things differently - where confidentiality does not override accountability, and trust is built through openness, not assurances.

💬 Accountability builds trust
💰 This is long-term risk - and ratepayer money
📢 Residents deserve clarity before commitments are locked in.

Your city. Your money. Your voice.

MHURA

Watch the entire council meeting last night here:

https://www.youtube.com/live/aIX6GzLj1SU?si=X3KVS8u6QHQ87KP9

02/03/2026

Tonight’s Council Meeting - Saamis Solar 🌞⚠️

Council unanimously (Councillor Mohammed absent) voted to move forward with the $135M Saamis Solar project - approximately $70M from Energy Transition Reserves and $65M in new debt.

City administration presented this as a “win-win, guaranteed” investment.
Many residents were left asking: how can a project of this size ever be guaranteed?

Energy markets change. Policy changes.
Assumptions change.
Ratepayers are the ones left holding the risk.

Administration referenced a third-party analysis supporting the project - yet no clarity was provided on who conducted it, what assumptions were used, or whether it will be made public.
Transparency matters. If confidence is warranted, the data should stand on its own.

MHURA raised concerns from the beginning, supported by independent third-party analysis indicating financial risk with little to no upside for taxpayers.

A fair question remains:
👉 If this project does not deliver the promised returns, who is accountable?

If taxpayers are being asked to assume the risk, then the Energy Department should share in that risk as well, not offload it entirely onto the public while guaranteeing success from the podium.

The chamber was tense. Residents showed up, voiced concern, and held signs. Many felt talked down to rather than heard. That reaction didn’t come out of nowhere.

You don’t rebuild trust by:
• Rushing a $135M decision
• Avoiding public open houses
• Withholding analysis details
• Dismissing legitimate concerns

If the City is serious about transparency and rebuilding trust, the next step must be a dedicated public open house on Saamis Solar, where assumptions, risks, accountability, and long-term impacts are openly discussed.

This is ratepayer money.
The public deserves answers - not assurances.

📢 Stay engaged. Ask questions. Accountability doesn’t end with a vote.

02/01/2026

📣 A MESSAGE TO OUR COUNCILLORS

Just last October, the people of Medicine Hat voted in a new City Council.

You were elected to represent residents,
to protect taxpayers,
and to act in the best interest of this community - not to rubber-stamp decisions already set in motion!

On Monday, February 2, you will be asked to approve a Final Investment Decision committing $131.5 million of public money and $65.75 million in new debt for the Saamis Solar Project.

Residents were not properly consulted.
There is no publicly released feasibility study.
ROI, lifespan, and long-term risk remain unanswered.

This is not a minor decision.
This is a point-of-no-return vote.

If Council chooses to proceed:

➡️ That decision will be on the public record
➡️ It will be scrutinized - now and in the future
➡️ And if there are cost overruns, reserve depletion, tax increases, or financial underperformance,
👉 Council must take full responsibility

Administration advises.
Consultants present.
But Council decides.

You are voting on behalf of the taxpayers who put you there.

Residents are watching.
Residents are showing up.
And residents will remember.

📢 If you value your tax dollars, SHARE THIS.
👥 Tell your friends, neighbours, and family.
❌ Show up and say NO to Saamis Solar as it stands.

Accountability does not end with the vote -
it begins there!

🏛️ Monday, Feb 2 • 6:30 PM • City Hall

Medicine Hat United Ratepayers Association



City of Medicine Hat

11/19/2025

🔥 City Warns Reserves Could Be Gone in 8 Years - This Is Not Sustainable

The City of Medicine Hat’s latest Tri-Annual Financial Report confirms what MHURA has been warning for years: we are spending more than we earn, and reserves are being drained to cover the gap.

City administration told council that even with annual 5.6% tax increases, reserves - our savings account, will be depleted within eight years (except the Endowment Fund). That means higher taxes, higher utility fees, and still no path to financial sustainability.

Despite earning ~$28 million in investment interest, the City continues to withdraw ~$40 million per year for capital projects, asset retirement, energy transition costs, and operating shortfalls. When Councillor Clugston asked where the interest income goes, staff were unable to give a clear answer. He’s right.. the math doesn’t add up. This raises major transparency concerns. 🤔

Meanwhile, utility distribution rates will increase again in 2026:
• Residential ↑ 3%
• Small Commercial ↑ 3%
• Large Commercial ↑ 4%

We have reached the point where even the City’s own CFO had to say:

“We are not in a financially sustainable position.”

THE FIX:
✔️ Freeze non-essential spending
✔️ Performance reviews for City management
✔️ Repair the energy revenue model
✔️ Fair, transparent utility rate design
✔️ Stop using reserves as an ATM

⚡️ ☀️ The biggest capital project with the heaviest investment? Saamis Solar. It is a high-cost, low-return project that could accelerate the depletion of reserves unless the City pauses, proves profitability, or changes direction.

“Show us the numbers before you spend another dollar on this project!”

Bottom Line:
We CAN fix this. It just takes leadership.

MHURA will continue demanding transparency, accountability, and a long-term financial plan that protects ratepayers - not more tax increases and reserve withdrawals.

Medicine Hat deserves responsible fiscal leadership.
Your City. Your Voice. Your Future.

11/18/2025

💡 FACT CHECK: Is the AUC Telling Medicine Hat How to Fund the New Substation? (Councillor Clugston is financially correct)

At tonight’s Monday Council meeting, administration stated that the AUC (Alberta Utilities Commission) “imposes” a debt-equity ratio for “rate-making principles,” implying this restricts how the City can finance the new substation.

Here’s what residents need to know:

👉 The AUC does NOT regulate Medicine Hat’s utility finances.
👉 The AUC does NOT impose borrowing limits on municipalities.
👉 The AUC’s ‘deemed debt-equity ratio’ applies ONLY to investor-owned, regulated utilities (ATCO, Fortis, EPCOR, ENMAX Distribution).
👉 It is NOT a rule that governs municipal utilities like Medicine Hat.

Using the AUC’s ratio in this situation is, frankly, a redirection away from the real issue: it references a regulatory concept that does not apply to our municipal utility.

This was a City policy choice, not an AUC requirement.

And the core financial question remains:

💬 Why did we avoid borrowing at ~3% when our reserves earn 5–6%?

Choosing reserves over low-cost debt may look clean on paper today, but it:

⚠️ Reduces long-term reserve growth
⚠️ Shrinks our financial cushion
⚠️ Eliminates the transparency that borrowing requires
⚠️ Creates more future rate pressure for residents

MHURA believes Medicine Hat deserves clear explanations, not misapplied regulatory references.

Your City. Your Voice. Your Future.
We will continue monitoring this closely.

10/31/2025

Citizens - Mark your Calendar! 🗓️

Come down to City Hall November 3, 6:30 pm, for our new council swearing-in ceremonies!

Civic engagement doesn’t end with the election - it begins here. 👏🏻🏙️

10/23/2025

Dear Ratepayers,

It is with heartfelt gratitude and deep appreciation that I share this final message as President of the Medicine Hat United Ratepayers Association (MHURA).

After much reflection, I have decided to step down from the MHURA Board. This was not an easy choice, but family and health must now take precedence. As a dear mentor once told me, “Father Time remains undefeated - and it goes quickly. Move on proud that you did the best you could and that you achieved real results.”

Looking Back

Over the past two years, I have been incredibly proud of what MHURA has accomplished. Together, we built a grassroots movement that gave a strong voice to Medicine Hat’s citizens and small businesses.

When electricity rates skyrocketed in the summer of 2023, our advocacy brought real change. MHURA’s persistence led Council to return $33.2 million to ratepayers and to establish a fairer and more affordable energy pricing structure. That victory showed what determined citizens can achieve when they stand united.

Even after that, I continued because I believed Medicine Hat deserved more transparency, honesty, and accountability from its leadership. Governments at every level often forget who they serve - the people. Unfortunately, our city has shown a tendency to build its own empire on the backs of ratepayers.

The Work Ahead

We’ve raised awareness of issues that matter. The Municipal Consent and Access Fee (MCAF) is one of them - a hidden tax that drains families and businesses to fund unnecessary spending. Most candidates didn’t even know about it during the election, but now the public does, thanks to MHURA. The fight to eliminate this unfair fee must continue.

We are still in the middle of an affordability crisis. Medicine Hat holds more than $700 million in reserves - yes, some of it is earmarked for capital projects, but how much is enough to set aside while families and businesses struggle to make ends meet? At the same time, the City continues to raise taxes and utility fees, even as the Endowment Fund (formerly the Heritage Fund) has grown to $207 million. This fund was created to support our community in difficult times like these. It’s time to honour that original purpose and use these resources to provide real relief for the people of Medicine Hat.

We cannot stand by while families struggle with rent, food, and utility costs. If affordability erodes further, people will leave. Worse, they may end up on the streets. Growth and stability will vanish with them.

A Call to the New Council

To our newly elected Council - and returning Mayor Linnsie Clark - Mayor of Medicine Hat - I sincerely hope you all will take a hard look at City finances. Show real fiscal discipline. Freeze property taxes to give people breathing room. Eliminate the MCAF. And please, do not invest in the Saamis Solar Project without clear, transparent evidence of community benefit.

If there is doubt, bring it to the people. Hold a referendum. Let true democracy guide your decisions.

I think most are hopeful this new Council will bring real changes and fiscal discipline to the table. 👏🏻

Moving Forward Together

MHURA will continue its mission: to advocate for transparency, fairness, and accountability on behalf of Medicine Hat’s citizens and small businesses. I encourage everyone reading this to join MHURA or renew your membership at MHURA.org. Annual membership is just $10, and every dollar supports community education, advocacy, and events. Donations are also accepted.

All board members serve voluntarily - we have no ties to City operations and no personal gain. Our only goal is to ensure responsible governance and restore the Medicine Hat Advantage of low taxes and affordable utilities.

Get Involved

To those who ran in this election but didn’t make it to the Council table - your experience and commitment still matter. MHURA would welcome your involvement, whether in outreach, research, or community engagement. The same invitation extends to any citizen who wants to make a difference.

Email the MHURA team at [email protected] and tell them Sou sent you. Together, we can continue to build a Medicine Hat that’s affordable, fair, and full of opportunity.

In Gratitude

Thank you to the entire community for your support of me, my family, and MHURA. This journey has been both challenging and rewarding, one filled with lessons, friendships, and hope. There are many great people I have had the pleasure to know and work with throughout my time, you know who you are. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. ♥️

To my fellow MHURA board members: keep fighting the good fight. Stay true to the mission. The city still needs your courage and conviction. 🙏

With gratitude,

Sou Boss
Former President
Medicine Hat United Ratepayers Association (MHURA)
mhura.org

10/22/2025

Congratulations to Mayor Linnsie Clark on being elected to a second term! 🌆

We wish the Mayor and new Council wisdom and guidance as they lead Medicine Hat through the challenges ahead. May this new term mark a fresh start, filled with hope, unity, and better days ahead for all Hatters.

MHURA will continue to collaborate with and hold Council accountable to the ratepayers, working together toward affordability, transparency, and prosperity for our great city. 💙

I am so ridiculously honoured.

I am filled with hope and excitement for the next four years.

Kris Samraj, Drew Barnes and Mark Fisher have all reached out to congratulate me. That was a wonderful thing to do, and so classy. It genuinely adds to my hope for our future.

I want to be clear, I plan to govern with humility and for everyone in Medicine Hat, regardless of who you voted for or whether you were able to vote in this election.

We are not enemies. We have way more in common than we have to divide us. While division and outrage are easy and sells ads, the consequences of division and outrage are hard. A city or house divided cannot stand and division builds nothing but desolation for those divided. On the other hand, patience, grace, kindness, gentleness, temperance, and humility are hard but the rewards great… civilization, joy, peace and justice.

I cannot thank this community enough for all of your support over the past 4 years. I am incredibly grateful for my mom and dad, sisters and brothers, nieces and nephews, aunties and uncles, cousins, and friends for their wisdom, support and unconditional love. I am grateful to God who provides for me and gives me peace (and those amazing family members and friends I mentioned!).

Thank you also to everyone who helped out with my campaign. I know you didn’t have to help, you chose to. It means so much to me that you did. I could not have done this with out you.

Rachel and Angela— thank you for believing in me, picking me up when I was down, being consistently good and ethical and never letting me see you sweat. 😉

May good, peace, joy and justice prevail over the next term and always.

10/17/2025

🚍 Free Rides to the Polls on Election Day! 🗳️

Great news, Hatters — the City of Medicine Hat is offering FREE transit on Monday, October 20 so everyone can get to their polling station and cast their vote.

✅ All buses and stops are fully accessible
🕙 Polls open 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.
📍 Find your voting station: medicinehat.ca/voterinfo
🚌 Plan your route: MHTransit.ca

Let’s make sure every voice is heard.
👉 Tag a friend, share this post, and remind them to VOTE! 💙

Medicine Hat Transit works hard to provide quality service to all passengers, seven days a week.

10/17/2025

🗳️ FINAL REMINDER: LAST DAY TO VOTE IS OCTOBER 20, 2025!

Hatters — this is it!
The final day to cast your ballot in the 2025 Municipal Election is Monday, October 20 (all voting stations are fully accessible this day!)

Advance Polls are still happening until
October 18th!
🕘 Voting Hours: 10:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
📍 Find your polling station: https://www.medicinehat.ca/government-city-hall/election-2025/key-dates/
🪪 Bring your ID showing your name and address.

Best of luck to all the candidates who have put their names forward in this election. Medicine Hat is fortunate to have so many passionate and visionary individuals committed to leading our city toward its full potential. 🤝

Thank you for your hard work, sacrifice, and dedication to making Medicine Hat a vibrant and thriving community for all citizens to enjoy.

There are challenges ahead, but with strong leadership and a united council, there’s every reason to be hopeful for a bright future for our city.

So now it’s up to the Voters! Let’s choose leaders who will stand up for affordability, accountability, and transparency in Medicine Hat.
Every vote counts - Let’s show up and make it matter!

Learn more at MHURA.org

10/16/2025

Most people don’t wake up one day and “choose” to be homeless. It’s often a mix of trauma, addiction, job loss, mental health, or rising rent - and once someone falls through the cracks, climbing back up is incredibly hard.

Other countries are tackling this differently, and it’s working.

🇫🇮 Finland: provides permanent housing first, then addiction and job support. Homelessness dropped almost 50% in a decade.
🇳🇴 Norway: gives landlords rent guarantees and tax incentives to rent to low-income families. Family homelessness is now rare.
🇬🇧 UK: funds programs that are paid only when results are achieved (like helping someone stay housed for a year).
🇮🇸 Iceland: invested in youth mentorship, community sports, and parental engagement - teen drug use almost disappeared.

So yes, governments can create incentives that prevent homelessness and address the root causes of addiction and poverty.

Imagine if Alberta or Medicine Hat did the same:
• Rent support or property tax breaks for families on the edge.
• Incentives for employers to hire or retain people in recovery.
• Recovery credits for families paying for treatment.
• Community grants for youth mentorship and early intervention.

This video shows East Hastings Street in Vancouver. It is a heartbreaking example of what happens when well-intentioned policies miss the mark. We hope Medicine Hat never gets to this point.

Locals told us it’s unsafe to walk this area, even during the day. Despite government programs providing free drugs and housing, many struggling with addiction end up renting or subletting their units to fund drug use. The result? The cycle deepens, and recovery drifts further away.

Vancouver is hosting the World Cup next summer, and residents fear that the homeless population will simply be displaced to surrounding cities like Abbotsford or Hope. But moving the problem doesn’t solve it, it just shifts it somewhere else.

Medicine Hat must learn from this.
We need policies that balance compassion with accountability, pairing mental health and addiction treatment with real enforcement and prevention strategies.

💭 What can we do differently, Hatters, to ensure help actually leads to healing? Let’s focus on restoring dignity, safety, and hope in our own community. This starts with having direct conversations with those affected. We need to listen and find what their needs are in order to make real changes. Let’s be proactive, not reactive.

Which candidates (there are some good ones that have already addressed this issue) are genuinely committed to improving the livelihoods of every citizen, no matter their income or status, so that all have a real chance to thrive? 🗳️ 🙏

10/13/2025

Kris’s post offers a thoughtful overview of the city’s history with our utilities, but it leaves out several key realities that Medicine Hat residents deserve to understand clearly.

Yes, long-term planning matters. But governance reform like the proposed MCC wasn’t rejected because citizens lack vision or patience; it was rejected because it would further separate decision-making from public accountability. Hatters value transparency and local control precisely because we’ve seen what happens when major financial decisions move behind closed doors: it erodes public trust.

We don’t need another corporate structure. We need better oversight, reporting, and fiscal discipline within the model we already have. The city’s electric utility doesn’t lack expertise, it lacks clear performance targets, transparent risk assessments, and consistent communication with the public. Those are fixable issues without creating an MCC.

Comparing the natural-gas division’s history to the current electric utility is also misleading. The gas company’s collapse wasn’t caused by low prices alone, it was caused by council decisions to spend revenues rather than reinvest them. Accountability, not ownership structure, was the missing ingredient. That’s exactly why many Hatters opposed the MCC: because it would have made accountability even weaker.

And while Kris is right that the goal of government isn’t to make money, it’s equally true that a publicly owned utility has no mandate to lose it. Ratepayers expect stability and affordability, not speculative investments or risky solar megaprojects. The Saamis Solar proposal, for example, carries enormous market and regulatory risk - concerns validated by independent experts like EDC Associates, and taxpayers would be on the hook if it underperforms.

Medicine Hat has a proud history of public ownership. The lesson isn’t that we need to corporatize our utilities; it’s that we need to run them transparently, prudently, and with ratepayer protection front and centre.

Public ownership only works when the public remains in control. That’s the conversation voters are having now - not about short-term vs. long-term thinking, but about who we can trust to manage our assets responsibly.

The MCAF fee is fundamentally a matter of principle. Since Medicine Hat owns its utilities, the City has no justification for charging ratepayers twice: once through utility rates and again through this so-called “service fee.” The MCAF doesn’t deliver any tangible benefit to the community; it simply extracts more money from residents who are already struggling with affordability.

As voters, we should be asking: Which candidates are truly looking out for ratepayers’ money - and which ones are gambling it away? 🗳️

This discussion on governance structures is about aligning the incentives of the decision makers with long term goals. Council members are naturally more responsive to the needs of right now—that’s how we get elected and re-elected. That short term thinking is not aligned with the long term thin...