City council has approved the Moose Jaw Police Service’s 2024 capital and operating budget requests, with the latter expected to add 2.09 percentage points to the proposed municipal tax hike of 4.13 per cent.
Council voted unanimously to support the request during the Dec. 13 budget meeting, which will see the city provide $12,245,903 in net operating funding next year — an increase of 6.4 per cent from this year.
The municipality will also provide $80,000 in capital funding in 2024 and $450,000 over the next five years.
This was actually an amended budget request because council sent back the original report to the Board of Police Commissioners after city hall identified an alternative funding source for one proposed project.
The police service wanted to spend in its operating budget $445,000 on in-car reporting software and computer-assisted dispatch technology, which senior leadership said would keep officers in the community when writing reports.
However, city administration informed the agency that $450,514 existed in a major equipment control account that was unassigned, which meant it could use that surplus and reduce its budget request.
The police board approved this change, which meant the agency’s original request for a net operating increase of $1,181,355 was reduced to $736,355.
The board also removed the police service’s request for $1 million in capital funding for next year and $4 million over the next five years because commissioners learned the city is responsible for upgrades to the agency’s headquarters.
Council discussion
Coun. Doug Blanc, a commissioner on the police board, said the agency’s budget request is status quo — inflation is the reason for increasing costs — since it does not ask for any new officers.
The organization is authorized to have 64 members but will likely be down two positions in the new year due to retirements, he added. Yet, two recruits are expected to be sent for training in January and they should join the force this summer.
“The police service has always been important for the City of Moose Jaw, but in this time and place, it’s been more important than ever,” said Coun. Heather Eby. “I know our citizens expect us to have a robust police department.”
Coun. Dawn Luhning agreed, saying the community has experienced some negative changes of late and residents want officers who can be there when incidents occur.
It’s not too often that council sends back the police service’s budget request for revisions, but it occurred this time and the agency has made the necessary adjustments, said Coun. Crystal Froese. Also, an extra 2.09 percentage points of municipal taxation is really a cost-of-living adjustment and the overall request is status quo.
Public library budget
Council also voted 6-1 to approve the Moose Jaw Public Library’s 2024 budget request of $1,289,460, which is a 2.4-per-cent increase over this year. Since this amount is already included in the budget, it does not affect the proposed municipal taxation increase.
Coun. Kim Robinson was opposed.
“It’s (the request) barely covering inflation nowadays, so it’s a very low amount considering the costs,” said Froese.
Mayor Clive Tolley commended the library for its “wonderful work in the community” and for helping council by sticking to a tight budget request.
While there are concerns about security there, staff have been dealing with those problems effectively and have formed a reliable partnership with the police service, he added. He hoped both entities could produce better safety results next year through their relationship.
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