Rural BC RCMP detachments face budget cuts

Photo: Mike Biden

S/Sgt. Bob Vatamaniuck speaking with a resident during a "Coffee with a Cop" event in Penticton earlier this year.

There is going to be some belt-tightening within the smaller, provincially-funded, RCMP detachments of the South Okanagan and Similkameen. 

The Vancouver Sun is reporting on an email sent to RCMP employees by Deputy Commissioner Jennifer Strachan, asking smaller detachments to make immediate cuts to things like overtime, travel budgets and other discretionary spending.

More than $10M will have to be cut from the RCMP’s $450M provincial policing budget, impacting rural detachments and provincial teams such as the gang squad.

Detachments operating under provincial policing contracts such as Oliver, Keremeos and Princeton, and rural areas like Naramata will be feeling the pinch. 

In communities under 5,000 population, the province pays 70 per cent of policing costs while the municipality pays the remainder. Communities over the 5,000-person threshold receive policing funding from the federal government and will not be impacted by the cuts.

“I fully recognize that these measures will have a negative impact on our employees and they may potentially affect operations, but regrettably they must be made to ensure we remain within our allotted budget,” Strachan’s internal memo states.

The memo says there is a freeze on provincial expenditures, including overtime and equipment. The RCMP — which are not permitted to run a deficit — will be working with the provincial government to “reduce or eliminate” areas “that do not support the provincial policing services they want us to provide.”

Staff Sgt. Bob Vatamaniuck of the South Okanagan RCMP says public safety of all communities within the regional detachment “remains of pinnacle importance.”

“As always, the RCMP management team here in South Okanagan will reflect, analyze and forecast the impact of any budgetary concerns.  Such things as enhanced training, non-essential equipment and in-person conference attendance will be examined and potentially delayed until the fiscal situation stabilizes,” Vatamaniuck said.

“Simply put, we will continue to fight crime and ensure the safety of our communities with the same vigour and core values we have always exhibited.”

The budget constraints will not be encouraging for those hoping for additional provincial RCMP officers to manage the increased workload associated with the Okanagan Correctional Centre in Oliver.