The 2025 draft budget includes a proposal to hire more staff related to policing, fire protection and bylaw enforcement.
A document presented by city administration at the Wednesday, Dec. 4 meeting of the Standing Committee on Finance and Audit, shows an increase of $1.24 million to the cost of Prince George’s contract with the RCMP in 2025.
One of the reasons for the increase in policing costs, director of finance and IT services Kris Dalio told the committee, is higher wages since RCMP members negotiated their first collective agreement under the umbrella of the National Police Federation in 2021.
The increase in expected firefighting costs isn’t shown by itself, but the document does request a $175,000 funding increase for the 911 dispatch communication centre.
However, the city’s collective agreement with the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 1372 expires in 2024 and the contingency portion of the budget accounts for both that and pay increases from step progression under the contract.
In November, Prince George RCMP announced it would be the first detachment in Northern BC to have its officers carry body-worn cameras. Frontline officers will start wearing the cameras effective Sunday, Dec. 8.
Though the cost of the cameras isn’t referenced specifically in the operating budget, Dalio told the committee that it is reflected in the per-member cost charged to the city by the RCMP for policing services.
The city’s contract increases the number of RCMP officers from 149 to 153 for 2025.
The draft also proposes extra hires for police, fires and parks beyond what is incorporated into the initial tax increase request of 6.55 per cent.
On top of that staff proposes adding three additional RCMP officers to the city’s contract, bringing the total number to 157. Each new officer will cost the city an estimated $226,516 each for a total cost of $906,064.
Also proposed is the addition of three police support services staff employed by the city. One would be an assistant manager of operations at a cost of $140,093, a victim services worker at a cost of $92,116 and the last is a community policing co-ordinator at a cost of $96,785.
For fire protection, staff are proposing to have Prince George hire five new firefighters at a cost of $132,354 each. Around 20 per cent of that cost accounts for providing them with clothing and training.
As well, four senior firefighters would be promoted to lieutenants at a cost of $17,588 each. The entire staffing cost increase for fire services would be $732,122.
In bylaw services, the budget requests the hiring of four new bylaw officers at a cost of $92,668 each, plus $25,000 for uniforms, equipment and training. That totals $395,672.
If council agrees to these additions, it will increase the required property tax increase for 2025 by 1.7 per cent to a total proposed increase of 8.25 per cent.
With files from Ted Clarke
