The Alberta government is proposing changes to provincial law to better protect youth from online harms and prioritize placing at-risk children and youth with relatives or family friends in their local communities.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced the initiative in an Oct. 29 social media post, describing the Supporting Alberta Families Act as an effort to revamp the child protection framework in the province.

Also known as Bill 36, the legislation proposes comprehensive updates affecting child intervention, foster and kinship care, adoption, and protections against online exploitation.

“We’re introducing new legislation that would: Prioritize placing vulnerable children with grandparents, relatives and trusted caregivers whenever possible,” Smith said on X.

She said the proposed law would give children and caregivers a “stronger voice” in decisions about their care, reduce court delays to help children find permanent homes sooner, preserve family and cultural ties for adoptees, and strengthen online protection laws.

The proposed law was introduced in the Legislative Assembly on Oct. 29 by Children and Family Services Minister Searle Turton, where it passed first reading. It requires further legislative stages and royal assent to become law.

The bill proposes amendments to the Child, Youth and Family Enhancement Act, the Protection of Sexually Exploited Children Act, the Protection Against Family Violence Act, and the Education Act.

“The proposed amendments would give greater priority to kinship placements,” Turton said during a press conference to announce the bill. “This means that more children will be able to benefit from staying with relatives or people they know and trust while maintaining important connections to their families, their communities, and culture.”

Online Protections

Turton said the proposed amendments to the Protection of Sexually Exploited Children Act would modernize how child sexual exploitation is defined and addressed.

The new legislation will broaden the definition of “sexual exploitation” to include online grooming, coercion, luring, the exchange of sexual acts, child sexual abuse material, and human trafficking. It will also cover the electronic exploitation of children in exchange for money, food, shelter, drugs, or protection, regardless of whether the child is perceived to have consented.

The previous terminology focused specifically on children who were “engaged in prostitution” or attempting to do so.

The province says the revised language would better support efforts to address internet predators, cyber luring, human trafficking, and online sexual abuse. The legislation also revises the definitions of “child harm,” which used to concentrate on physical or emotional injuries, to now encompass exposure to violence online or through electronic channels.

“A young person could be at home in their own bedroom with their family just down the hall and still be in danger,” the minister said. “Today, exploitation often begins not on a street corner, but on a screen in a child’s bedroom. Our laws need to reflect that reality.”