RCMP Watch

Alan Cochran (Moncton Times & Transcript) - Ten years after the City of Moncton traded its municipal police force for RCMP contract service, it is paying about twice as much for that service. And while nobody is complaining about the quality of service, municipal officials can’t help but wonder how they will continue to budget for ballooning costs in the future.

In the end, city officials will have to decide what other services they will have to cut to balance the budget, or simply increase taxes to pay for the increases. Either way, average taxpayers will be paying more for the long arm of the law.

The new Codiac Regional RCMP community police force went into service 10 years ago, on the weekend of Jan. 19, 1998, following a controversial process that resulted in the demise of municipal forces in Moncton and Dieppe, and contract service to Riverview. The 127 officers and 47 civilian workers were sworn in during a series of ceremonies over the weekend. The bulk of the new force was made up of former municipal officers who were accepted into the RCMP.

Today, 10 years later, the Codiac Regional RCMP has grown from a force of 127 to 145 that covers Metro Moncton.

As the force has grown, so has its demand on the budgets of the municipalities.

In 1997, the last year with the Moncton Police Force, the City of Moncton’s police budget was $11,849,383. In 1998, the first year of Codiac Regional RCMP, Moncton’s share of the service cost $11,866,826. Ten years later, the RCMP’s budget has grown to $22,894,826. Late last year, the three communities struck a new three-year cost-sharing formula, with Moncton paying the bulk of the cost. Under the agreement reached late last month, Moncton’s share is about $17.4 million and about $2 million each for Dieppe and Riverview.

“There are a lot of factors involved in the cost increase,” says Moncton’s assistant city manager Don MacLellan. “We don’t have a crystal ball, so it’s hard to predict what the costs would be now if we would have stayed with the municipal police force.”

Dick Isabel, executive-director for police, fire and emergency service for the Department of Public Safety, says concern about the rising cost of policing is not limited to New Brunswick.

“The cost of policing is a concern right all across the country, and we’re spending a lot of time talking about cost-containment.”

Isabel is currently in the process of negotiating a new 20-year agreement with the RCMP to provide service to municipalities, and working with his counterparts in other provinces to act as one voice to approach the federal government for a better deal. He said the province has gone to Ottawa looking for some federal relief and reversal of a controversial subsidy policy, which is apparently under “active review.”

There are 13 municipalities with a population over 5,000 who negotiate their own deal with the RCMP, and nine smaller municipalities who have the deal brokered through the province. But Metro Moncton and Sackville are the only communities in the country who joined after 1992 and therefore do not qualify for a 10 per cent subsidy from the federal government.

Moncton Mayor Lorne Mitton says that 10 per cent would go a long way to helping the city make up for cost increases.

“Policing is a big part of our overall budget,” Mitton says. “There has never been a case of us being critical of the service itself, but a great percentage of the cost involved with the RCMP we have no control over. The salary related items we have no control over. If we had a little more of an idea that salary increases were coming, if they gave us a few years notice it would make it a little easier for us in budgeting. If you miscalculate, something else will have to be shaved.”

Isabel says salary increases are the major reasons for the rise in policing costs. The price of fuel, heating oil, equipment, computers and many other necessities are also on the rise. He says there is a “greater public appetite” for police services but officials must consider requests for more officers and funding carefully.

For towns like Riverview, quiet residential community with a population of 17,000 and a limited tax revenue to support big budget increases, the rising cost of policing is a serious issue.

“We’re pleased with the service provided by the RCMP, but it represents a significant part of our budget,” says Riverview Mayor Clarence Sweetland. “It is a problem, it is a concern and I expect it will continue to be so, but I don’t see any way around it.”

Before the formation of the Codiac Regional RCMP, Riverview had its own 17-member detachment. For years, the detachment was based in a small office inside the old fire station on Coverdale Road and moved into a new modern building just a few years before the change. The newer building is still owned by the town and is rented out to District 11 RCMP, which covers Albert County and other areas outside of the town. In the years before the Codiac Regional RCMP, Riverview received a 10 per cent subsidy from the federal government to help pay for its force. That subsidy was lost in the change and Riverview must now pay its own share. Riverview paid $1.5 million for RCMP services 10 years ago. For its 2008 budget, Riverview will pay $2.6 million, an increase of 72 per cent and roughly 13 per cent of the town’s total budget of $19 million. During last year’s budget talks, the town wasn’t sure whether it would be able to hold the line on its tax rate.

The City of Dieppe also wrestled with RCMP costs this year as it tried to maintain a balanced budget and tax rate for its residents. The fast-growing city’s budget jumped the $30-million hurdle this year and under this year’s budget will pay $2.9 million for RCMP service. That’s a 50 per cent increase over the $1.5 million it paid 10 years ago.

An increase in the number of officers and their salaries, has often been considered a major factor in the rising cost. Equipment, vehicles, the price of gas, rent and other increased costs factor into the final budget.

According to figures provided by the RCMP, a constable’s salary has increased from $50,508 at the end of 1997 to $72,125 at the end of 2007, an increase of 36.17 per cent.

MacLellan says salary increases for other city employees is not quite as high, but comparable. According to figures from the city, the average wage increase of employees has increased by 29.6 per cent in the 10 years since 1998.

Statistics from the RCMP Pay Council indicate police officer salaries in other major cities across the country have increased similarly, from 16 per cent in Montreal to over 42 per cent in Halifax over the 10 year period.

According to the figures, basic salaries for officers in Halifax have risen from $48,000 at the end of 1997 to $72,954 in April of 2008, an increase of 42.80 per cent. Officers with the Ontario Provincial Police have gone from $42,688 at the end of 1997 to $75,926 in January of 2008, an increase of 37.13 per cent. Officers with the Sûreté de Quebec have seen their salaries go from $52,990 at the end of 1997 to $65,880, an increase of 22 per cent.

According to the figures provided by the RCMP Pay Council this week, the highest paid first-class constables in Canada are in Brantford, Ont., with $75,227. The lowest is Moose Jaw at $56,220. Fredericton is ranked 67 out of 81 cities on the list at $65,867. Saint John is at number 77 at $61,125. Charlottetown is at number 78 at $61,125. Officers with the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary are ranked 71st at $64,902.

The RCMP Pay Council says it takes many factors and work conditions into consideration before making recommendations for member salary increases.

Kent Robinson, chairman of the Codiac Regional Policing Authority, said the rising cost of RCMP service is comparable to other rising costs in our economy and can’t be totally blamed in salary increases.

Part of this year’s increased budget was a raise in the rent for the Moncton police headquarters on Main Street.

Another factor was that the RCMP was, in the past, able to “rob Peter to pay Paul.” He explained that when officers are on sick leave, their benefits come from another account. The money left behind was able to be used to help balance the budget. This year, the commission was not able to do that.

Robinson said there is a perception that salaries are increased arbitrarily. However, he said the RCMP’s salary and benefits board adjusts increases so salaries are in line with other municipalities.

Robinson said the committee recognizes the concern over the rising costs of policing, but notes that the costs reflect the incredible growth Metro Moncton has experienced over the last 10 years.

“The RCMP tells us what the increases are and we incorporate that into the budget. We go through their budget line by line and ask tough questions.”

At the end, Robinson said the committee feels has reached a budget that is reasonable given the service provided. He said this year’s RCMP budget has included some changes and shifting of positions to increase efficiency. For example, some positions formerly held by constables have been replaced by clerical staff to reduce costs.

While the RCMP is Canada’s national police force, contract policing is a pay-as-you-go service for municipalities like Metro Moncton. As a national agency, the RCMP has many specialty services like crime labs, accident reconstruction experts, emergency response teams, dive teams and specialized equipment. Those specialty services are available to the Codiac Regional RCMP, but the force has to pay if they use them in much the same way municipalities pay others if they need to call in neighbouring fire departments for extra help in an emergency.

“A good example is the RCMP helicopter. If we use it, we pay for it. It just happens to be based in Moncton and we’re lucky to have it here most of the time.” Robinson said a community the size of Metro Moncton could never afford to have its own helicopter because of the cost.

Quick Facts

Some facts about police salaries across Canada.

* Increases in officer numbers: In 1998, the Codiac Regional RCMP took over policing services in Metro Moncton from the Moncton Police Force, Dieppe Police Force and Riverview RCMP. In 1998, the new force had a total complement of 127 officers. This rose to 129 in 2003 and to 145 in 2008.

* Increases in pay for RCMP: In 1997, the base salary for Moncton Police Force constables was $45,857. In 1998, the base salary for RCMP constables was $51,518. In 2007, it was $72,125.

* Highest paid officers: A first-class constable in Brantford, Ont. (population 93,000) earns $75,227.

* Lowest paid officers: A first-class constable in Moose Jaw, Sask. (population 32,955) earns $56,220.

* Big city officers: Salaries for first-class constables in Canada’s most populous areas: Edmonton ($74,586), Hamilton ($73,742), Toronto ($73,656), Ottawa ($73,617), Vancouver ($72,444), Calgary ($71,974), Montreal ($66,577), Halifax Region ($69,907), Winnipeg ($67,868), Cape Breton Regional ($60,404).

* Sources: City of Moncton, RCMP Pay Council.