The Barrie police budget could increase by nearly six per cent for 2025.
A report by the local police department’s finance manager Tyrell Turner outlined the operating and capital budget for next year, which was presented to the Barrie Police Services Board at Thursday's meeting, indicating a budget increase of $3,907,665 — or a 5.79 per cent increase.
That would put the department’s 2025 budget at $71,431,518 — if approved by city council when budget talks take place.
Staff had previously presented an overview of the budget request to the board on Sept. 12, after which the public was invited to provide feedback. Delegations to the board also occurred in the spring of 2024.
In the report, Turner explained that "three drivers of change" have been identified, including staffing and service levels to the community, legislative impacts and advancements in technology and innovation.
According to the report, the 2025 budget increase includes several factors, including several carry-forward items from 2024 that include the difference in the 2024 budget versus the projected actual costs of the new collective agreement, the annualization of 2024 new hirings, and the return to historical retirement cost levels.
Those factors, Turner said, make up a 1.52 per cent increase to next year’s budget.
Non-discretionary items, such as salaries and benefits, are derived from the collective agreement and make up roughly 95 per cent of the entire police budget, he said. Legislative impacts, including the implementation of the new Community and Safety Policing Act, the Next Generation 911 implementation and WSIB legislation for members experiencing mental stress injuries, inflation and growth are the reason for 4.41 per cent of the increase in next year’s budget.
Discretionary items, ranging from limited new staffing requests to supporting members off on WSIB due to mental stress injuries, an additional communicator position, digital evidence coordinator, and an increase to the casual special constable budget to support downtown and front line makes up 0.14 per cent of the total annual increase.
“The non-discretionary bucket includes areas where we have been able to minimize the impact on the 2025 request through revenue and efficiencies," Turner said Thursday. "We have also made some small investments in technology with the goal of increasing transparency to the community, increasing safety and preparing for that future growth.
In total, he said those three add up to a total request of $71,431,518.
Board chair Greg Ferguson noted members did receive a more detailed agenda of the proposed budget at its September meeting and have since been able to have the opportunity to review it in greater detail.
“I know from talking with members of the board that there are some questions,” he said.
Mayor Alex Nuttall shared details with the board about a conversation the city has been having about the ability to co-ordinate city resources for security alongside opportunities that exist for an increase in presence for the police department.
“(We’re) really trying to maximize dollars we have and that we are trusted with by the public, both for the municipal side as well as here at the Barrie Police Service," Nuttall said. "I don’t want to necessarily stifle any debate, but I do want to ask that we give our chief and team the opportunity to work out some details on what that would look like to be included in the 2025 budget.
“In parallel to the Barrie Police Service board budget, we have a municipal budget that we are working on. Hopefully both of those processes … in December will come together," the mayor added.
Ferguson said the idea of deferring a decision on the budget until November could make sense should the board opt to consider making any adjustments to how things stand now.
“At the end of the day, we want an informed board,” said Police Chief Rich Johnston.
Johnston also delivered some news that he’d only learned about early this week regarding the purchase of new conducted energy device technology (commonly known as Tasers). They would be rolled out to front-line officers as soon as January 2025, something that would also impact the proposed budget.
“The amount — $783,065 to purchase the Axon Taser 10 — that does have an impact that was not included in the budget,” Johnston said.
Arif Khan, who serves as the provincial appointee on the police services board, said the technology is “relevant and significant.”
“There’s no indication that technology is going to go away. It’s only going to evolve," Khan said. "Our existing equipment is no longer supported and to purchase into the current model is already seven years old. If we are going to make an investment, do we invest in something that’s already on its way out … versus what is being recommended?"
Nuttall voiced frustration over not having heard of this until so late in the budget process.
“For me, this conversation is a budget conversation. I don’t believe that our team would bring it forward if it wasn’t incredibly necessary," he said. "I struggle a little bit. The struggle I have off the bat is we had numerous updates this year on the finances of the service.
"We made decisions with those finances and this wasn’t there that I can recall,” the mayor added. “We then had a budget presented and this wasn’t there. Now we are at budget day and it’s there.”
The farther the board went down the budget, the higher the threshold needs to be to meet the necessary increase, Nuttall said.
“That’s the same standard I would expect from city hall," he added. "If this is the priority, then I get that, but it needs to be weighed out in the budget before next month.
"We haven’t been shy as a board about ensuring that our officers are understanding we support them and they’re safe. This should be no different but should be done in a proper budgeting manner because it is three-quarters of a million dollars that just showed up on the desk," Nuttall said.
The board is expected to finalize its budget proposal at its Nov. 21 meeting.
