Regina police seek $3.5M budget increase in 2020 for new officers, salaries

The Regina Police Service is looking for an additional $3.5 million in 2020, brining its gross operating budget to $96 million.

That's an increase of$36 millionsince 2010.

City councillor Andrew Stevens said Friday the increase in police budgets is a cause for concern.

"It worries me that we're inching toward nearly a $100-million police budget and the community still suffers from problems that you think would be addressed more effectively with this kind of incremental increase," said Stevens.

The Ward 3 councillorsaid there are a series of chronic issues that police deal with in the city, but ultimately more has to be done to prevent conditions that lead people to commit crimes.

"We're not investing sufficiently, either the city or the province, in addressing these social determinants and these underlying issues," said Stevens.

According the police service's mid-year crime report, total crime in the city at the mid-year point was up 7.5 per cent this year from 2010.

Salaries account for $85M

The single largest figurein the proposed 2020 budget is forsalaries, including benefits, accounting for $84.5 million.

That expenditure accounts for 600 permanent and 13.8 casual positions. The proposed budget includes four new front-line officers and six additional civilian positions, including a psychologist.

Stevens said with labour accounting for the lion's share of police budgets,it's difficult to imagine a budget freeze especially in light of bargainingand inflation.

But he arguedprogramsthat addressroot causes of crime remain underfunded.

"I think what's really great about the RPS, especially from a leadership position, is they're taking very seriously poverty, what leads to gangs and gang violence," said. "I don't think we're financing those responses efficiently."

Headded that going forward he would be hesitant to support police budgets in principle if they don't include appropriate investment in crime prevention resources.

Forty-seven per cent of the non-salary budget increase in the proposed budget will be earmarked for the RPS Community Policing Initiative. Specifically, $600,000 will fund special duty assignments and equipmentfor the Grey Cup, which Regina will host next year.

The 2020 police budget will be on the agenda for city council's Nov. 25 meeting. A decision on the budget will be made closer to when council votes on the full 2020 city budget, on Dec.9 and 10.