The Ontario government is offering $77 million to municipalities that rely on provincial police after some of them sounded the alarm over a sudden and unforeseen surge in law enforcement costs.
Several municipalities have reported double-digit increases in their Ontario Provincial Police bills for 2025, with at least one municipality facing more than double the previous tally.
That's left local leaders looking at additional tax increases — or spending cuts — to cover the unexpected expenses.
The province said the funding announced Friday will help communities address the financial impact of a new contract agreement with the Ontario Provincial Police Association that was ratified this summer.
The union said at the time that the four-year deal made OPP officers the highest paid in the province. It spans from 2023 to 2026 and includes retroactive raises of 4.75 per cent for the first year and 4.5 per cent for the second, as well as 2.75 per cent raises for the final two years.
The provincial plan includes a 3.75 per cent bill reduction on reconciled costs for 2023, a 44 per cent drop in reconciled overtime costs for that same year and a 10 per cent cut in the amount invoiced for 2025 policing costs, according to a release.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of the Solicitor General, which is responsible for OPP, said municipalities will receive a letter outlining what that represents for them, to be followed by an updated OPP bill.
The government said it's also taking a look at the OPP billing model "to ensure that it meets the needs of communities across the province."
Provincial police provide their services to about 330 municipalities that don't have their own police forces.
OPP recover the cost of policing those municipalities through a billing model put in place in 2015. It includes a base cost per property as well as variable costs related to the number of calls for service and other factors, according to a document on the force’s website.
Sherry Bondy, mayor of the Town of Essex, said she's encouraged to see the province is listening to municipalities' concerns on the issue but doesn't yet know how much relief is heading their way.
"Now we really have to crunch the numbers and see what kind of savings that really does mean for municipalities," she said.
"Any savings that we receive from the province will be a direct savings to our taxpayers."
Essex is facing a nearly 20 per cent hike in OPP costs next year and the town's current budget proposal includes a seven per cent property tax increase as a result of that, Bondy said.
It would be helpful to receive updated numbers in time for the town's next budget meeting on Dec. 9, she added.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 29, 2024.
Paola Loriggio, The Canadian Press
