Haldimand OPP will cost $8M in 2010

December 11, 2009 Simcoe Reformer

Haldimand council renewed the Haldimand OPP's contract yesterday for a five-year term.

Policing in the first year of the contract, which is retroactive to Oct. 1, will cost $8 million. This is $800,000 more than the $7.2 million the force is expected to cost in the most recent fiscal year.

In a report to Haldimand council, Karen General, the county's general manager of corporate services, warned that the 11%-plus increase in policing costs this year will make it difficult to meet council's goal of a tax increase next year of 2% or less.

Policing costs are rising so steeply because the OPP recently updated its formula for determining support costs per officer. In recent years, the OPP used a formula to calculate these costs based on data from 2001. Support costs include items such as vehicles, gasoline, clothing, equipment and the like.

Support costs per officer under the 2001 formula came to $13,827. The new figure, adjusted for inflation, is nearly double that at $25,881.

The vote at Haldimand council yesterday was 4-2. Dunnville Coun. Lorne Boyko voted in the minority because he does not believe the contract, as presented, extends a sufficient level of policing to the municipality.

"At the end of the day, I hope I'm wrong," Boyko said last night. "I hope this somehow equates to an adequate level of policing and keeping our community safe."