Alberta is no longer among the best in Canada to start a business.

That according to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business and their latest report showing a sharp drop in the best places to start and grow a business.

Calgary which was number one in 2015 has fallen to 23rd this year.

While communities on Calgary's periphery like Cochrane, Airdrie, The MD of Rockview and Chestermere fared better winding up 23rd overall, to be the only communities from Alberta to make the Top 25.

Amber Ruddy with the CFIB says things like the rising minimum wage and the soon to come carbon tax are part of the problem.

"At the Provincial level we are facing additional challenges. And we need the government to start thinking about where they could assist businesses. Perhaps postponing those major policy decisions until the economy recovers."

Overall Okotoks tumbled from sixth in Canada to 36th, but fared better in the policy rankings thanks to favourable policies at the municipal government level.

High River wasn't ranked in the survey.

From the CFIB Survey:

The annual study assesses which cities are best positioned to enable entrepreneurs and small business to start, grow, and prosper.  The report looks at the entrepreneurial environment in 121 of the most populous municipalities (roughly 20,000 people or more) across Canada according to information drawn from published and custom tabulated Statistics Canada sources, as well as survey research conducted with CFIB members.

The 2016 study covers 14 indicators grouped into three areas: presence, perspective, and policy.  Presence covers the scale and growth of business ownership, perspective measures optimism and growth plans, and policy represents the actions local governments take with respect to business taxation and regulation. Scores in those three major categories are combined and weighted to provide an overall score and ranking.

Again this year, the study separates Canada’s largest cities, including Calgary and Edmonton, from the surrounding municipal areas and ranks each.  The Calgary periphery includes Airdrie, Rocky View, Cochrane, and Chestermere.  The Edmonton periphery includes Strathcona County, St. Albert, Parkland, Spruce Grove, Leduc, and several smaller municipalities.

Cities in Ontario, BC and Quebec lead the top 10 list in the overall 2016 rankings.

The 2016 overall rankings:

1..     Collingwood, ON
2..     Riviere-du-Loup, QC
3..     Kelowna, BC
4..     Penticton, BC
5..     Toronto periphery, ON
6..     Barrie, ON
7..     Kentville, NS
8..     Saint-Georges, QC
9..     Chilliwack, BC
10.  Cobourg, ON

The 2016 rankings (2015 in parentheses) for Alberta’s largest cities are:

Calgary periphery 23rd (1st)
Camrose 27th (11th)
Grande Prairie 31st (4th)
Okotoks 36th (6th)
Lloydminster 37th (9th)
Brooks 40th (7th)
Edmonton Periphery 47th (8th)
Wood Buffalo/Fort McMurray 50th (21st)
Lethbridge 55th (18th)
Medicine Hat 85th (19th)
Red Deer 98th (23rd)
City of Edmonton 107th (48th)
City of Calgary 112th (45th)

“It is important to point out the change in the rankings for Alberta’s cities compared to last year is not due to any major policy changes by municipal governments, but can largely be attributed to the dismal outlook of our province’s entrepreneurs.  If we just focus on policy rankings, Alberta cities perform much better, with seven of the top ten from our province”, explained Ruddy.  

The 2016 policy rankings:

1..    Camrose, AB
2..    Lloydminster, AB
3..    Wood Buffalo (Fort Mc Murray), AB
4..    Edmonton periphery, AB
5..    Grande Prairie, AB
6..    Shawinigan, QC
7..    Brooks, AB
8..    Okotoks, AB
9..    Rimouski, QC
10.   Alma, QC

The policy rankings for Alberta’s other cities are:

Calgary periphery 13th
Medicine Hat 28th
Red Deer 34th
Lethbridge 56th
City of Edmonton 61st
City of Calgary 103rd,