2026 Annual Plan and Budget
Approved November 30, 2024
Published December 3, 2024
Part 1 – Introduction and Background
ACSLPA regulates the practice of speech-language pathologists and audiologists on behalf of all Albertans by establishing, maintaining, and enforcing standards for competent, safe, and ethical practice. ACSLPA’s regulatory work includes but is not limited to:
- setting admission standards for the professions,
- considering applications for regulated membership and issuing practice permits,
- creating and enforcing a Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice,
- investigating complaints of unprofessional conduct,
- administering hearings and appeals,
- creating guidelines and practice documents, and
- enforcing Continuing Competence standards.
ACSLPA is an independent public agency created and empowered by the Health Professions Act (HPA). The College operates under a shared-governance model in which 50% of the governing Council are made up of individuals from the public appointed by Government (vacancies remain) and 50% are made up of registered members of ACSLPA.
Under shared governance, ACSLPA’s registrants continue to experience many of the privileges of self-regulation, meaning that ACSLPA’s regulation is shaped substantially by registrants of the College who are obligated to the public and to each other to uphold the public interest. Features of self-regulation continue to be present through the volunteer work of regulated members on the ACSLPA Council, Registration Committee, Membership List, Competence Committee, IDEA Committee, Nominations Committee, and various ad hoc committees who meet throughout the year. Self-regulation is also demonstrated through the individual efforts of regulated members in their practice who uphold the public interest through their work and their commitment to competent, safe, and ethical practice each day.
In addition to fulfilling ACSLPA’s mandate and incremental improvements to our operations, the focus of the 2026 Annual Plan and Budget is to implement the first year of 2026-2030 Strategic Plan.
The 2026 Annual Plan and Budget is intended to help interested registrants, partners, and the public learn more about ACSLPA’s direction and priorities for the year. The annual plan has been prepared by staff and approved and endorsed by ACSLPA Council.
Nancy Bassendowski, R.SLP, President | Melanie Sicotte, R.SLP, Registrar/CEO
ACSLPA regulates two distinct but related professions; audiology and speech-language pathology.
The College is a dynamic professional regulatory organization. It deals with the duties and obligations of a regulator as well as the challenges and opportunities of a not-for-profit organization.
Almost all ACSLPA’s operating revenue comes from fees paid by its roughly 1,900 registrants.
ACSLPA is governed by a Council that consists of:
- six regulated SLPs and Audiologists selected by regulated members of the College through an election process, and
- six public members appointed by the Government of Alberta to represent the public (one vacancy remains).
The College staff currently consists of:
- four full-time employees, and
- five part-time employees.
ACSLPA has the following committees, which include volunteer registered members:
- Registration Committee,
- Competence Committee,
- Membership List (source of members for Hearing Panels and Complaint Review Committees),
- Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility (IDEA) Committee, and
- Nominations Committee.
Ad hoc committees are created as needed.
Part II – Planned Activities & Costs by Area
The total budgeted operating expense for ACSLPA’s operational activities in 2026 is $1,477,000 (2025 operating budget: $1,534,800) against anticipated revenues of $1,587,000 (2025 budgeted operating revenue: $1,537,300). The result will be a budgeted excess revenue over expenses of $110,000 (2025 budgeted excess: $2,500).
ACSLPA’s 2026 capital budget is $13,000 (2025 capital budget: $16,500). Capital spending (e.g., computers) is amortized, or expensed against ACSLPA’s operating budget, over the useful life of assets (i.e., multiple years).
2026 Area Budget: $57,500
2025 Area Budget: $64,800
The Council of ACSLPA fulfills leadership and adjudicative roles. In its leadership role, the Council is the governing body of the College. In its adjudicative role, the Council hears reviews and appeals from the registration and conduct areas of the College.
Budget decrease in this functional area is due to less need for consultants to complete the work in this area in 2026. Elected Council members will receive honorariums for attendance at meetings in accordance with policy. Budget is included for consultants for Council.
The work of the Council includes:
- Orientation for new Council members,
- Nomination and election of Council members (not anticipated in 2026),
- Four regular hybrid Council meetings (full day), of which two will occur in Calgary and two will occur in Edmonton for those attending in person, and special meetings as needed,
- Four Council dinners – two of which will be with key College partners,
- One in-person working retreat (1.5 days) at a central location in Alberta,
- Registrar/CEO performance review,
- Amending bylaws and revising policies as required,
- Training for members of Council, and
- Regular council committee meetings.
Strategic initiatives for 2026 will include:
- Creating regular opportunities for members of Council to share their Council and College related professional and governance expertise with each other,
- Reviewing current Council orientation processes, and
- Developing a multi-year Council training plan.
2026 Area Budget: $7,000
2025 Area Budget: $9,500
Key College Documents are the set of directives or principles that govern the conduct of regulated members in their professional practice. ACSLPA has a legislated obligation to establish, maintain, and enforce standards of practice and a code of ethics, and to provide direction to regulated members in their practice.
A small decrease in expenses in this functional area is budgeted for 2026 compared with 2025.
The routine work in the Key College Documents functional area includes:
- Ongoing incremental improvements and/or updates to key college documents as required. In 2026, incremental work will include:
- Reviewing:
- Competencies: National Competency Profiles for the professions (multi-year national project with other provincial regulators),
- Collect data from 2026 Registrant Survey to inform a future review of the Concurrent Practice Guideline,
- Position Statement: Recording Currency Hours During Pandemic-Related Redeployment,
- Position Statement: Vaccine Hesitancy, and
- Collect data from the 2026 Registrant Survey to inform a future review of the Swallowing (Dysphagia) and Feeding Protocol.
- Creating new guidance addressing:
- Discontinuing services, and
- Professional boundaries with colleagues.
- Reviewing:
Strategic initiatives for 2026 will include:
- Creating an over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids guideline to support registrants with this emerging issue,
- Collecting information in the 2026 Registrant Survey to guide a future review of the Informed Consent for Clinical Service Guideline,
- Optimizing document management processes for Key College Documents, and
- Publishing a new Indigenous Health Guideline.
2026 Area Budget: $21,500
2025 Area Budget: $28,100
ACSLPA’s effectiveness is enhanced through its affiliations with other organizations that have similar interests and needs. Working in association with others allows for harmonization of requirements, mutual assistance (particularly on complex regulatory matters), and sharing of costs and workload on issues of common concern.
The year-over-year budget decrease reflects a decrease in the need for external professionals to help with the work in this functional area in 2026.
In 2026, the routine work in the Affiliations functional area will include:
- Alberta Federation of Regulated Health Professions (AFRHP):
- Continuing Competence Interest Group,
- Registration Interest Group,
- Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Interest Group (Co-chairing),
- Professional Conduct Interest Group,
- Hearings Director Interest Group,
- Virtual Care Interest Group (Co-chairing), and
- Communications Interest Group.
- Other affiliations to maintain:
- Alberta Education,
- Alberta Health,
- Alberta employers of speech-language pathologists and audiologists,
- Alberta Association of Audiologists,
- Council for the Accreditation of Canadian University Programs in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CACUP-ASLP),
- Including the National Regulatory Panel (NRP),
- Canadian Network of Agencies for Regulation (CNAR),
- Canadian Society of Association Executives (CSAE),
- Speech-Language and Audiology Canada (SAC),
- University of Alberta Communication Sciences and Disorders Department and Faculty
of Rehabilitation Medicine, - The National Alliance of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Regulators (NASPAR), and
- Individual Colleges in Alberta and Canada with common interests/needs.
2026 Area Budget: $30,000
2025 Area Budget: $23,500
One of the key pillars of ACSLPA’s regulatory mandate is to establish, maintain, and enforce registration, title use, and renewal standards for the professions. Registration includes admissions (applications), renewal, reinstatement, status changes, the public and internal registers, interprovincial mobility, foreign qualification recognition, and currency hours. Effectiveness in this area requires establishing admissions requirements and standards, engaging with pan-Canadian partners, and close adherence to the Fair Registration Practice Act.
An increased budget is required in 2026 compared to 2025 to complete the additional strategic initiatives noted below.
In 2026, the routine work in the Registration/Renewal/Title Enforcement functional area will include:
- Registrations, renewals, reinstatements, retirements, and status changes,
- Ongoing incremental improvements and/or updates to registration processes and policies,
- Monitoring non-compliance related to professional liability insurance (PLI) and completion of jurisprudence requirements,
- Receiving complaints against individuals and corporations for inappropriate use of reserved SLP and audiology titles,
- Identifying non-compliance related to title use through self-initiated searches, and
- Contacting individuals and organizations that are suspected of being non-compliant to educate them about the reserved title provisions of the HPA and promote compliance. In some instances, legal action may be required to ensure compliance.
Strategic initiatives for 2026 will include:
- Implementing the new National Language Proficiency Standard,
- Implementing optimized supervised practice processes,
- Beginning the expansion of the College’s risk register to include risk to the public from registrant practice,
- Collecting information in the 2026 Registrant Survey to guide future work on discontinuing non-practicing registration, and
- Implementing several improvements to MyACSLPA to eliminate additional paper-based registration processes and improve efficiency.
2026 Area Budget: $83,000
2025 Area Budget: $74,500
One of the key pillars of ACSLPA’s regulatory mandate is to receive and investigate complaints against regulated members alleging unprofessional (unskilled or unethical) conduct. The Complaints and Investigations functional area requires the legislated authority of the Complaints Director and Investigator(s) at various points. Primary areas of focus include establishing and communicating appropriate processes, conducting investigations, administering fair and impartial processes and decision-making, identifying opportunities for improvement in other regulatory areas and supporting their adoption, and elevating general awareness of professional conduct among regulated members and the public.
It is not possible to accurately predict income or expenses for this functional area each year as they depend on the complaints that are received, and the fines agreed to in disciplinary agreements; however, ACSLPA’s costs in this area have increased significantly in recent years. In 2026, a continued high rate and complexity of complaints is anticipated. If costs exceed budget, funds may be moved from the Professional Conduct Reserve to cover additional costs for the processing and investigation of complaints as needed.
In 2026, the routine work in the Complaints/Investigations functional area will include:
- Receiving and responding to complaints,
- Optimizing professional conduct processes and policies, and
- Advising from a conduct perspective on other regulatory projects and College work.
Strategic initiatives for 2026 will include:
- Planning and implementing feedback surveys at different stages of the complaints process for complainants and registrants,
- Optimizing conduct document management, and
- Reviewing and revising complaints and concerns webpages.
2026 Area Budget: $8,000
2025 Area Budget: $61,000
As part of ACSLPA’s key pillar to receive and investigate complaints against regulated members alleging unprofessional (unskilled or unethical) conduct, ACSLPA also administers hearings, appeals, registration reviews, and complaint reviews. Hearings are called for the purpose of determining whether a regulated member has engaged in unprofessional conduct. Appeals, registration reviews, and complaint reviews exist as an accountability measure to ensure decisions are fair and appropriate in the circumstances. The Hearings and Appeals functional area requires the legislated authority of the Hearings Director, the Complaints Director, Complaints Review Committees, Hearing Tribunals, and Council at various points.
It is not possible to accurately predict income or expenses for this functional area each year as they depend on the complaints and appeal requests that are received, and decisions of the tribunals or committees with respect to fines imposed and cost recovery awarded to ACSLPA; however, ACSLPA’s costs in this area have increased significantly in recent years. Currently, in 2026 no hearings or appeals are anticipated, so the budget for this functional area has been significantly reduced for 2026. If costs exceed budget, funds may be moved from the Professional Conduct Reserve to cover additional costs for current year tribunals and committees as needed.
In 2026, the routine work in the Hearings/Appeals functional area will include:
- Receiving requests and applications,
- Making incremental improvements and/or updates to hearing, review and appeal processes and policies, and
- Holding hearings, appeals, registration reviews, and complaint reviews as requested.
Strategic initiatives for 2026 will include:
- Reviewing and revising hearings portion of the complaints and concerns webpages.
2026 Area Budget: $7,000
2025 Area Budget: $13,000
One of the key pillars of ACSLPA’s regulatory mandate is to establish, maintain and enforce a Continuing Competence Program (CCP). Primary areas of focus include establishing and communicating the requirements of the CCP, administering fair and impartial processes and decision-making, conducting an annual audit of participation by regulated members in the program, addressing competence concerns, and elevating general awareness of the importance of Continuing Competence among regulated members and the public.
A decrease in expenses in this functional area is budgeted for 2026 compared with 2025 due to anticipated savings being realized on program delivery.
In 2026, the routine work in Continuing Competence will include:
- Assisting regulated members to participate in the Continuing Competence Program by responding to inquiries and facilitating access to the online tools,
- Completing the annual CCP assessments (audits & interviews), and
- As needed, practice assessments (record reviews & on-site visits).
Strategic initiatives for 2026 will include:
- Updating CCP related questions in the 2026 Registrant Survey to better evaluate the effectiveness of the program.
2026 Area Budget: $10,500
2025 Area Budget: $4,000
The purpose of Committee Development and Recognition is to develop and recognize the volunteer members of our statutory, standing, and ad hoc committees. Education and training are provided for committee members to assist them with fulfilling their committee responsibilities. Members of Statutory Committees will receive honorariums for attendance at meetings in accordance with policy.
Year-over-year budget increase reflects that more committee members are claiming honorariums and a higher honorarium rate.
In 2026, the routine work in Committee Development & Recognition will include:
- Recognizing the contributions of committee members.
2026 Area Budget: $4,000
2025 Area Budget: $4,000
Regulatory support includes providing proactive information to regulated members, and sometimes the public, on professional regulatory issues and topics including Standards of Practice, Code of Ethics, Advisory Statements, and Practice Guidelines. Some information is provided to registrants and the public, and some is provided in response to individual or group inquiries. Registrant education aims to provide opportunities for registrants to increase their competence and awareness of professional regulatory issues. Topics are selected based on their current relevance, particularly in relation to potential risk to the public.
In 2026, the work in Regulatory Support will include:
- Virtual registrant education sessions on professional regulatory issues and key college documents,
- Regulatory support to registrants via telephone, email, website, social media, and written articles,
- Responding to inquiries and providing information to the public via telephone, email, website and social media, and
- Participation in student training in the University of Alberta Communication Sciences and Disorders Department on a range of professional topics to better equip them for success as practicing professionals and to better familiarize them with the role of ACSLPA as a public agency.
Strategic initiatives in 2026 will include:
- Developing public information about over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids for ACSLPA’s website, and
- Presenting registrant webinars on the following new Guidelines: Artificial Intelligence, Indigenous Health and OTC Hearing Aids.
2026 Area Budget: $299,000
2025 Area Budget: $304,800
2026 Capital Budget: $13,000
2025 Capital Budget: $16,500
The Administration functional area encompasses all the overhead costs required to support ACSLPA except salaries and wages. This includes everything from paper and postage to contract professional fees and information technology (IT) security.
Expenses are expected to remain relatively constant in 2026 compared with 2025. Identified areas for cost savings are anticipated to offset inflation.
Capital spending (e.g., computers, MyACSLPA) is amortized, or expensed against ACSLPA’s operating budget, over the useful life of assets (i.e., multiple years).
In 2026, the routine work in Administration will include:
- Providing operational support and resources for all regulatory and governance activities,
- Accounting, year-end audit, and annual reporting,
- Management and stewardship of investments and accounts,
- Maintenance and support of IT infrastructure and security,
- Human resources support,
- Communications,
- Renewal of required staff training, and
- Ongoing incremental improvements and/or updates to finance, human resources, IT, occupational health and safety, and communications processes and policies.
Strategic initiatives in 2026 will include:
- Adding public information about over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids for ACSLPA’s website,
- Developing materials about ACSLPA to distribute to registrants for sharing with their clients,
- Increasing the College’s social media presence to include LinkedIn,
- Reviewing all document management policies,
- Developing a list of College processes with good business cases for artificial intelligence (AI) use and a plan for gradual implementation, and
- Evaluating ACSLPA’s office space needs.
2026 Area Budget: $949,500
2025 Area Budget: $947,600
Salaries, wages & benefits are by far ACSLPA’s largest cost center. The reason for this is that we provide services to people (registrants, the public, other partners, etc.) and the bulk of those services are provided by staff. ACSLPA does not have significant materials, facilities, or product costs because, unlike some other businesses, our materials and products are mainly ideas and words (written, spoken, or otherwise).
Salary and wages for staff in positions for which pay ranges are benchmarked to collective agreements will be increasing in 2026 as well as the cost of some benefits (no changes to benefits). These increases are being offset by not hiring a summer student in 2026.