The Moose Jaw Police Service plans to contribute over $400,000 to its equipment reserve budget this year so it can replace gear that is nearly finished.
The equipment reserve budget is based on the depreciation of inventory items, with the police service funding the amortized amounts yearly as an operating expense. The 2023-27 equipment reserve budget lists items that are fully amortized and due for replacement or are new to inventory this year.
According to a report the agency presented during the Feb. 9 police board meeting, the 2023 contribution requirement from the operating budget for the major equipment reserve account is $307,703. Furthermore, the agency will contribute $110,419 to the small equipment reserve account.
These two figures total $418,122, but after the police service applies a credit of $17,022 from interest on the control account, the total contribution to the equipment reserve will be $401,100. This amount, the report noted, is up $68,720 from last year’s contribution.
Deputy Police Chief Rick Johns told the board that when the police service purchases a new cruiser, it starts putting away money every year to replace the vehicle in five to six years. Once the cruiser reaches its full appreciation, the money is available to buy a new one.
The MJPS will continue to monitor inflation and how it affects the reserve budget even though it’s a guessing game with how much gear like computers will cost, he continued. The agency must also understand the future purchases it may have to make because of technological changes and community expectations with policing.
“Maybe one example might be body cameras going forward. … we would look at incorporating that into the equipment reserve, depreciating it as necessary, so we can continue to rotate new equipment in as they (body cameras) become old and obsolete,” Johns said.
The police service opens the equipment reserve annually, so if it sees costs rising on an item that is amortizing over five years, it can put away more money, he added. Then when it must buy a new item, there will hopefully be enough money to cover the purchase.
The finance department has noticed that tenders for projects and purchases are coming back higher than pre-pandemic levels, including for regular police gear, said Lisa Renwick.
“The supply of it is taking a lot longer to arrive and the price of it all has gone up — like substantially,” she added.
“Those are the realities of a post-COVID world,” observed board chairwoman Mary Lee Booth.
After the meeting, Renwick said there was $4,300,398 in the major equipment reserve account. This amount is what it would take to replace everything in the building. Therefore, the $307,703 from the operating budget will be added to that amount.
The next police board meeting is Thursday, March 9.
