The Alberta government has introduced legislation it says will allow for a seamless transition from the Alberta Sheriffs to the new Alberta Sheriffs Police Service.

If passed, Bill 15, the Public Safety and Emergency Services Statutes Amendment Act, 2026, would establish the legal framework to move existing sheriff operations into the Alberta Sheriffs Police Service, or ASPS, while maintaining public safety operations across the province.

Public Safety and Emergency Services Minister Mike Ellis said the changes are designed to modernize the province’s enforcement capacity in response to increasingly complex crime. He said the new structure will increase frontline presence and provide officers with expanded training and authority.

Under the proposed legislation, sheriff peace officers who currently perform police-like duties would be eligible to become ASPS police officers, subject to meeting training and qualification requirements set out under Alberta’s Police Act. The province says this would allow qualified personnel to continue carrying out core policing functions with full police authority.

Sheriffs who do not transition to the new service would remain in their existing peace officer roles, maintaining operational coverage during and after the changeover.

The Alberta Sheriffs are currently government employees. The new ASPS would operate as an independent Crown corporation. Bill 15 outlines how unionized and non-unionized staff would be transferred into the new organization while maintaining continuity of employment and preserving existing terms and conditions during the transition period.

ASPS chief Sat Parhar said integrating experienced sheriffs into the new service would allow it to build operational capacity more quickly than relying solely on new hires.

The proposed amendments also state that Alberta Sheriffs branch staff will continue working under their current employment terms during and after the transition. Legislation passed in 2025 allows ASPS police officers to form their own police association for future collective bargaining.

Bill 15 would also amend the Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods Act to grant ASPS officers authority to enforce it. The province says the change would expand the service’s ability to address properties linked to criminal activity.

The Alberta Sheriffs currently employ approximately 1,200 people. The planned transfer to the ASPS would include peace officers, civilian staff and management positions.

The legislation was introduced Feb. 24.