Council puts in dibs for two additional RCMP members

Posted on June 10, 2014 in Crime/ Police // 3 Comments

NEWS/ CITY — The city may or may not need two more RCMP members next year, but Kamloops council officially put in dibs for them today.

With little discussion, council approved sending a letter to the B.C. Ministry of Justice giving notice that it might want to add the two members in next year’s budget. The City’s share of the cost would be just over $304,000 a year, but Mayor Peter Milobar hastened to provide an assurance that it includes training and equipment and isn’t just for salaries.

The notice from the City to the province is required now in oder to fit in with the federal government’s fiscal year.

Corporate administrator Dave Duckworth said the two new officers might be needed if council moves ahead with a new nuisance abatement bylaw aimed at controlling problem property owners and renters who disturb neighbourhoods.

But, he said, it’s also possible only one new member will be needed, and that the addition would be responsible for other duties as well. If the bylaw doesn’t go through, no additional members will be needed.

The final decision will be made during next year’s budget discussions.

RCMP

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3 Comments on Council puts in dibs for two additional RCMP members

raymondnyuli // June 11, 2014 at 3:19 PM // Reply

Thanks for the additional info. I understand the timing of the budgets and the need to make a provisional request without having everything fully thought out. That doesn’t bother me as much as the perceived need to make more laws to cover matters that are already covered by existing laws or by-laws that we struggle to enforce. More bureaucracy, more costs, vague projections, dubious results. I’m skeptical.

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Raymond Nyuli // June 11, 2014 at 2:29 PM // Reply

Reports in the AM News and KTW both miss some important pieces of information. As reported earlier in a different article, the enforcement of the proposed by-law will generate new revenue, or cost recovery, through associated fines. Will these fines cover all or part of the costs of the additional officers? Why do the proposed by-laws require enforcement by RCMP rather than by-law officers?

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- Mel Rothenburger // June 11, 2014 at 2:46 PM // Reply
  
  I had the same questions as you do. In my discussions with David Duckworth during a break in yesterday’s council meeting, it appears details around how the bylaw will work are still being figured out but, based on a similar bylaw in Nanaimo, it’s expected that it will be more a deterrent than hard enforcement. Actual revenue from the Nanaimo bylaw is very low — even though it gives the City the authority to collect the costs of police, fire or City attendance at nuisance properties. Depending on the nature of the call — noise, drugs, dangerous behaviour — it could often be a police matter. The bylaw works by setting up a committee to review chronic offenders, and has the option of declaring them nuisance properties. The City was under a deadline to notify senior governments of its potential need for adding to the detachment strength, so the exact policing requirements for the bylaw (if and when it’s adopted) won’t be known for awhile.
  
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