Alberta’s government has decided it’s done playing along with Ottawa’s gun agenda.
Using a new “sovereignty” law, the province is openly arguing that gun control is a provincial power, not something the federal government can simply impose from the top down.
CTV News reporter Nahreman Issa and gun rights commentator Liberty Doll both lay out how Alberta’s leaders plan to push back – and how far they say they’re willing to go.
Alberta Uses Its “Sovereignty” Law To Push Back
Nahreman Issa reports that Premier Danielle Smith’s government is using the Alberta Sovereignty within a United Canada Act to challenge federal gun laws.
According to Issa, the new motion is aimed at protecting law-abiding gun owners in the province.
At a press conference, Alberta Justice Minister Mickey Amery said bluntly, “Albertans deserve to feel safe in their homes. Full stop.”
He also said the province has “no public interest” in prosecuting people who defend themselves or their loved ones from a credible threat.
Issa explains that the motion would formally direct provincial authorities to decline to enforce Ottawa’s gun buyback program.
In other words, Alberta is telling the federal government: We’re not helping you confiscate these guns.
Motion Says Gun Control Is A Provincial Power
Liberty Doll says Alberta’s move goes even further than just resisting the buyback.
She explains that in the motion, the provincial government argues that regulating gun ownership is a purely provincial power, not something that belongs to Ottawa.
According to Liberty Doll’s summary, the motion describes the federal gun ban and buyback as an “unconstitutional seizure initiative.”
She says the document leans on the Alberta Bill of Rights, which the province claims guarantees:
- The right to acquire, keep, and use firearms, and
- The right not to have property taken without just compensation.
Liberty Doll notes that Alberta promises to use “all legal means necessary” to resist the federal initiative.
That includes not just political speeches, but legal tools and instructions to prosecutors.
This isn’t just a policy disagreement – Alberta is openly saying, These powers are ours, not yours.
Protecting Homeowners Who Defend Their Families
Both Issa and Liberty Doll point out that Alberta is tying this motion directly to self-defense in the home.
Issa reports that the motion is intended to “allow people to defend themselves and their loved ones on their private property.”
Liberty Doll goes into more detail.
She says the motion adds a section where Alberta’s Attorney General directs the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service that prosecuting people who use reasonable force to defend themselves and others in their home “will generally not be in the public interest.”
That’s a big shift in emphasis.
It signals that Alberta wants Crown prosecutors to give wide latitude to homeowners who fight back during break-ins.
Liberty Doll even compares the move to the Second Amendment sanctuary movement in the United States.
Just as some U.S. counties and states refuse to help enforce certain federal gun rules, Alberta is trying to carve out a similar stance within Canada’s system.
In that sense, the province is not only challenging the gun ban – it’s trying to reshape how self-defense cases are treated in its courts.
Gun Shops Caught In The Crossfire
On the ground, Alberta gun businesses are stuck between two levels of government.
Issa visits Shooters Haven, a gun shop where staff say they’re confused about what is legal and what is not.
Store representative Bob Schock tells Issa that firearms are “hugely ingrained” in Canadian culture and have been part of the country since its founding.
He argues there’s “no need to take that away because somewhere else, bad people are doing bad things.”
Issa describes how two guns in the shop look nearly identical – same caliber, same magazine – but one is legal and the other is not under the federal rules.
Schock says the store is taking responsible gun ownership seriously and has locked up dozens of guns that appear on the federal buyback list.
Until Ottawa and the province settle their fight, he says those firearms just sit in storage “on our own dime.”
From a fairness standpoint, that’s a big problem.
The federal government has restricted what these shops can sell, but according to Liberty Doll, has also delayed promised compensation to retailers across Canada.
So stores end up with unsellable stock, unclear rules, and no money.
Alberta’s resistance is partly about defending those businesses from being crushed in the middle.
Ottawa Calls It Political Theater
While Alberta is flexing its sovereignty law, the federal side is not impressed.
Issa notes that Public Safety Canada has already warned that if gun owners follow only the Alberta government’s rules, they could still face consequences under federal law.
Liberty Doll says federal officials are describing Alberta’s motion as “political theater”.
According to her, Ottawa claims the move has “no teeth” and accuses the province of giving citizens “bad advice about self-defense.”
Federal officials also argue, as Liberty Doll recounts, that Alberta’s stance will actually hurt residents by stopping them from getting money from the buyback.
But Liberty Doll points out that in the Nova Scotia pilot program she’s been following, the government only collected 10 to 20 guns out of 200 targeted.
That weak turnout suggests many Canadian gun owners are already ignoring the program, with or without Alberta’s resistance.
So when Ottawa says Albertans are missing out on buyback money, a lot of gun owners may shrug and say, “We weren’t turning them in anyway.”
A Province That Won’t “Take This Sitting Down”
Liberty Doll says she’s been covering Canada’s 2020 gun ban and delayed buyback for years and admits she “did not expect” a province to push back this hard.
On her channel, she says Alberta has announced it will use “every legal power” it can to stop the gun ban from hitting the province.
She explains that the motion does more than complain; it aims to block provincial participation in enforcement.
According to her summary, the motion would direct Alberta government bodies—including cooperation with the RCMP for enforcement or prosecution—to refuse to provide resources for the federal gun initiative.
That could mean no provincial help for seizures, no provincial help for prosecutions related solely to the ban, and no local political cover for Ottawa’s program.
Liberty Doll also notes the motion was announced at a Conservative Party convention, where the premier reportedly told the crowd that if criminals don’t want to get shot, “they shouldn’t break into people’s houses.”
That line captures the mood: Alberta is framing this as a fight between law-abiding citizens and criminals, not citizens vs. the state.
A Bigger Fight Over Who Really Decides
Underneath all the party speeches and sound bites, this is really a fight about who gets to decide.
Issa shows a province using its sovereignty law to shield residents from a federal gun ban and buyback that many see as punishing the wrong people.
Liberty Doll shows a province arguing that the power to regulate guns belongs to the provinces, backed by its own Bill of Rights, and that Ottawa’s ban is an overreach into property rights and self-defense.
From a practical point of view, the standoff creates uncertainty.
Gun owners have to decide whether to follow federal law, provincial guidance, or try to walk a line between both.
Police and prosecutors may end up with conflicting instructions.
Shop owners like Bob Schock are already paying the price in storage bills and frozen inventory.
But from a political point of view, Alberta’s move sends a clear message:
gun control in Canada is no longer just a gun issue – it’s now firmly a jurisdiction and autonomy issue too.
Whether Alberta stands alone or other provinces join in, as Liberty Doll says, remains to be seen.
But for now, one province is loudly saying that when it comes to guns and self-defense, Ottawa doesn’t get the final word.
A former park ranger and wildlife conservationist, Lisa’s passion for survival started with her deep connection to nature. Raised on a small farm in northern Wisconsin, she learned how to grow her own food, raise livestock, and live off the land. Lisa is our dedicated Second Amendment news writer and also focuses on homesteading, natural remedies, and survival strategies. Lisa aims to help others live more sustainably and prepare for the unexpected.
