EDITOR’S NOTE: This article has been updated to clarify how much of EPS’ base budget comes from the city and to specify which report said the EPS receives more funding per capita than a number of other police departments in Canada.
City council approved a funding formula for the Edmonton Police Service Wednesday.
With the approved formula, until 2026 the yearly police budget will be decided by taking the previous year’s budget and adding on the funding formula as well as EPS salary settlements.
The formula is tied to population growth and inflation.
EPS is allowed to ask council for lump sums of money outside of the funding formula in some instances, including if there are major changes to legislation or the city introduces new policies that increase demand for policing.
The police budget cannot go over 30 per cent of the civic department budgeted net operating expenditures.
The dollar figure increase in police funding for next year is not yet available as salary settlements have not been worked out.
The funding formula passed with councillors Tim Cartmell, Sarah Hamilton, Andrew Knack, Aaron Paquette, Karen Principe, Jennifer Rice, Keren Tang, Jo-Ann Wright and Mayor Amarjeet Sohi voting in favour.
Councillors Michael Janz, Erin Rutherford, Ashley Salvador and Anne Stevenson voted against the formula.
Edmonton is the only municipality in Canada to use a police funding formula instead of an annual lump sum, according to city staff.
Cartmell, councillor for Ward pihêsiwin, said the funding formula was created in 2016 as a way for police to have a steady, predictable flow of funding from year to year, as the police service was regularly coming to council with budget requests.
“The council of the day said, ‘We’re going to get away from having these rhetorical conversations all the time. Let’s develop a way that you know what you’re going to get for funding, more or less, and we know what we’re going to give you for funding, more or less,’” said Cartmell.
“We can just take the money conversation out of it and have a conversation about outcomes.”
However, some councillors feel the effectiveness of this funding model hasn’t been demonstrated.
“When I see things like the crime severity index in other policing divisions that don’t have a funding formula is less than Edmonton, then I think, ‘Is a funding formula going to solve that?'” said Ward Anirniq Coun. Erin Rutherford.
According to data collected for a report done by the CSKA and published on the Edmonton Police Commission’s website, the EPS receives more funding per capita ($397 per person) compared to Winnipeg ($360 per person), Calgary ($357 per person), Regina ($354 per person), Ottawa ($317 per person), Peel ($292 per person) and York ($289 per person).
A city report reviewing the police funding formula said in 2022, the base budget for EPS was $487.7 million. About $417.7 million of that is from the city.
The funding formula was paused after council held a multi-day public hearing following the murder of George Floyd by a police officer in May 2020.
Since then, council has not set a long-term police funding formula, instead setting temporary police budgets.