Chief
Bordeleau introduced Director General D. Frazer , Mr. J. Letourneau, Chief
Financial Officer, and Mr. W. Salem, , Manager, Financial Planning, who
presented an overview of the 2019 Draft Budgets. (A copy of the presentation will be kept on file with the Board’s Executive
Director.)
Following the presentation, Chair Deans directed the
Chief to prepare and present to the Board at its Finance and Audit Committee
meeting on February 20, 2019, a budget options list that does not impact
frontline services to residents and moderates the Service’s reliance on the
new revenue sources.
Chair Deans further directed, with respect to the fee
structure for background checks, that the Chief prepare and present to the
Board at its Finance and Audit Committee meeting on February 20, 2019,
possible fee structure options that are not full cost recovery, which reduce
the cost of background checks for youth 18 and under as well as non-profit
organizations, and identify the resulting budget pressure for each option.
The following points were raised on the presentation:
·
Efficiencies
must be found in order to bring this tax rate down. Tapping into the Tax
Stabilization Fund does not accurately reflect the needs of the police in our
community. Need more sustainable options.
·
A
suggestion was made to create a foundation to fund equipment for the Service.
A number of years ago the Service looked into creating a foundation, which would
be a separate business line. It would have created many challenges with the Police
Services Act so it was decided that the OPS would raise funds from the
community with an annual gala in order to be to give back to a charity.
·
Training
dollars associated with drug recognition experts is included in the base
budget. The Province has a central team that are responsible for the
enforcement and investigation of issues associated with Cannabis. Those costs
will not be borne by police service.
·
The Province
has not released any information regarding grants targeting marijuana and the
legalization of cannabis. There are some funds that will be available,
however, the Province is going through a vigorous review of all the policing
grants. Revenue has been secured for 2019, but future years are uncertain.
The following questions were also raised for the Chief
to respond to at a later date:
·
Has
Ottawa Police considered using accommodated officers on front desks?
·
What
is the comparative data regarding officers per square kilometers policed by
the OPS versus other municipalities?
·
What
are the criteria/demands used by the OPS to calculate how many officers are
required to police the community (beyond cop to pop)?
That the Ottawa
Police Services Board receive and table the Ottawa Police Service 2019 Draft
Operating and Capital Budgets, to be considered at the Board meeting on 25
February 2019.
RECEIVED and TABLED
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