Policing Hub

Albertans are served by a law enforcement system that is made up of several organizations and types of personnel.

Under provincial legislation, urban municipalities with populations over 5,000 must arrange to provide policing services in their communities. Urban municipalities with populations of 5,000 or less, and all rural municipalities regardless of population, receive policing services from the RCMP under the provincial policing contract between Alberta and the federal government.

For years, Alberta Municipalities has been advocating for changes to policing, including how it is funded and how communities are served. In 2018, Alberta Municipalities members passed a resolution calling for a comprehensive review of the Alberta Police Act. The previous government commenced a review in late 2018, and Alberta Municipalities established a working group made up of municipalities of all sizes to inform our responses to the consultation. This group developed a written submission for the review, in partnership with Alberta Municipalities' Safe and Healthy Communities Committee, in Spring of 2019.

After the 2019 election of the current government, the Police Act review appeared to be on hold, but the Minister of Justice announced in June 2020 that work to modernize the Police Act would be expedited. Justice and Solicitor General held a series of consultations on the Police Act from September to December 2020, and Alberta Municipalities worked with its Safe and Healthy Communities and Small Communities Committees to provide another written submission, which focused on police governance for those municipalities policed by the RCMP.

In December 2022, the province passed Bill 6, the Police Amendment Act (PAA). According to the Government of Alberta, this legislation was intended to increase police transparency and enhance public trust to help build safer communities. In addition to other reforms, the legislation required the formation of civilian governance bodies for all municipalities in Alberta, with the intent for communities to have a role in setting policing priorities and performance goals. The PAA creates several new mandated structures for municipal input into policing:

Communities with a population of under 15,000 policed by the RCMP with a Municipal Police Service Agreement (MPSA) will be represented by regional policing committees but will have the option to form their own municipal policing committee.
Communities with a population over 15,000 that are policed by the RCMP with an MPSA will be required to establish municipal policing committee.
Communities policed by the RCMP under a Provincial Police Service Agreement (PPSA) will be represented by a Provincial Police Advisory Board (PPAB).

As the next steps to the 2022 legislative amendments, the Government of Alberta is developing supporting regulations to clarify the powers, duties, functions, and composition of these new governance bodies, as well as the configuration of regional policing committees. It is not known when these regulations will be finalized and implemented.

Following the proclamation of Bill 6, ABmunis shared the following key messages with the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services:

ABmunis welcomes updates to the Police Act that enhance transparency, accountability, and civilian oversight of policing.
We understand that the details around implementing these amendments will be clarified during regulatory development, a process that is anticipated to take place over the next 12-18 months.
It is encouraging that the Ministry has committed to working with municipal partners throughout regulatory development and we look forward to upcoming engagements.
There are several areas of particular interest to our members in the amendments, so I would like to share ABmunis’ initial thoughts on these areas:

Expanded mandated for the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT)

While we would support an expanded mandate for ASIRT to investigate deaths and serious injuries involving peace officers, we are concerned about whether ASIRT has adequate funding and capacity to support an expanded mandate. As ASIRT is already dealing with a backlog of cases, significant investments will be required to ensure additional investigations can be completed in a comprehensive and timely manner.

Greater collaboration with communities

ABmunis appreciates that mechanisms to foster greater collaboration with communities, such as community safety plans, are being enshrined in legislation. However, we would like to note that many municipalities have already adopted these mechanisms as best practices.

Fostering diversity and inclusion

Similarly, we appreciate the requirement for police to develop diversity and inclusion plans but would like to note that municipalities have been leaders in taking action to support welcoming and inclusive communities.

Enhanced civilian governance

With respect to the proposed provincial, regional, and local governance bodies, it is essential that the composition of these bodies adequately reflect the communities they represent, and that these bodies are responsive and accountable at a local level.
Small and rural communities in particular risk losing their voice in setting local policing priorities if they are not adequately represented on all three levels of governance bodies.
In order to enhance public trust, it is also important to have clear and transparent processes for appointing members to governance bodies.
Lastly, the regulations accompanying the amendments should clearly define the circumstances under which the Minister may intervene in the local provision of policing.

In September 2019, the provincial government released a draft police funding model that would apply to municipalities with populations under 5,000, as well as municipal districts and counties, that do not currently pay directly for RCMP services. Justice and Solicitor General also conducted a survey and accepted written submissions on the model, with engagement closing on October 15, 2019. The Alberta Municipalities Police Act Working Group assisted in developing Alberta Municipalities' response to the call for feedback on the draft police funding model. The full submission can be viewed here.

The police funding model was announced on December 4, 2019. The model reflects many of Alberta Municipalities' recommendations, such as the use of population and equalized assessment to simulate demand and ability to pay, and the establishment of an Alberta Police Advisory Board with equal representation from Alberta Municipalities and RMA to guide the implementation of the new model.

Under the five-year model, municipalities pay 10% of provincial policing costs in Year One, 15% in Year Two, 20% in Year Three, and 30% in Years Four and Five. Each municipality’s share of policing costs is calculated according to a formula that weighs equalized assessment at 50% and population at 50%, with modifiers related to shadow populations, crime severity, proximity to detachment, and existing enhanced policing positions. The province has shared a spreadsheet that lists the costs for affected municipalities over the next five years, as well as sample calculations for the distribution of costs under the new model.

As the police funding model expires in 2024-25, Public Safety and Emergency Services is expected to begin engaging on a renewed model in late 2024 or early 2025. Department staff have indicated that if engagement is not completed in time for the 2025-26 fiscal year, the Minister will likely extend the model for an additional year, billing municipalities at the same rate as in Year Five (30% cost recovery).

When the PFM was created in 2019, the total cost of contracting the RCMP as Alberta’s provincial police service was estimated at $232.7 million. Since then, there have been significant increases in RCMP policing costs due to wage increases arising from collective bargaining. This means that even if the provincial government keeps its cost recovery at 30%, the amount invoiced to municipalities will be higher.

ABmunis is developing key messages and an action plan to help members participate in engagement and advocate effectively on the impacts of increased policing costs. These materials will be shared with members once the province has announced timelines for engagement on the new police funding model.

In the spring of 2020, the Alberta Police Advisory Board was established to give municipalities a stronger voice in setting RCMP policing priorities for rural Alberta. The creation of this board aligned with ABmunis advocacy calling for municipalities to have greater oversight of policing, particularly with the introduction of the new funding model that required them to pay directly for a portion of policing costs.

The Alberta Police Advisory Board was originally meant to be implemented in two phases; in the first year, an Interim Board would develop the structure and scope of the Advisory Board. On completion of the Interim Board’s mandate, the work of the Operational Police Advisory Board would begin for a four-year term.

As per the Terms of Reference developed by the Justice and Solicitor General, the Interim Board is made up of four representatives from the Rural Municipalities of Alberta Board, four representatives from the Alberta Municipalities Board, and one representative from the Alberta Association of Police Governance Executive.

Alberta Municipalities' Interim Board appointments are as follows:

Mayor Tanya Thorn, Town of Okotoks
Mayor Tyler Gandam, City of Wetaskiwin
Councillor Krista Gardner, Town of Calmar
Mayor Trina Jones, Town of Legal

Interim Board members were appointed to ensure broad municipal perspectives and to align with each of the four RCMP districts (Central Alberta District, Eastern Alberta District, Southern Alberta District, and Western Alberta District) as closely as possible.

The Interim Board was mandated with:

Developing the scope and terms of reference for the Operational Board.
Developing a recruitment and selection process for Operational Board members.
Developing governance documents for the Operational Board, including at minimum, a Competency Matrix for Board member appointments and review, a Code of Conduct, and a Mandate and Roles Document.
Providing input, advice, and recommendations to the government and RCMP “K” Division on the buildup of the provincial police service.
Providing input into discussions respecting the provincial policing priorities for the 2021/22 fiscal year to facilitate engagement during transition to the Operational Board.

The Interim Board fulfilled its mandate one year later, submitting recommendations on governance to the province in June 2021. In the interests of transparency, the Interim Board has shared several updates on its work with municipalities, as well as other relevant documents:

Since fulfilling its mandate, the Interim Board has not received additional direction from the province and it is unclear whether this Board will transition to the Provincial Police Advisory Board identified in the new police governance model (see the Police Act Review section above). The Interim Board met with the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services in July 2024 to request a new mandate, but has not received one to date.

If you have any questions about Alberta Municipalities' advocacy on policing, please contact Kelly Santarossa, Senior Policy Advisor, at 780.409.4315 or kelly [at] abmunis.ca (by e-mail).