Some serious spending cuts could be coming to Guelph police.
But even the mayor, who wrote a letter to the Guelph Police Services Board asking for an operating budget cut of at least $1.8 million for next year, admits the task will be "almost impossible" to achieve.
“As the mayor, the safety of the community and policing is of one of the highest important issues for me to continue to support,” Guthrie told GuelphToday.
“It’s going to be quite difficult, especially when the majority of the costs of policing are people.”
He added there are collective bargaining and fixed cost items that cannot be amended.
“I could see it even being higher because of the current pressures that are facing the community around safety issues,” he said.
In the letter, Guthrie “respectfully request(ed)” that police “seriously consider ways to mitigate their increase to no greater than $3,137,011.”
As part of the multi-year budget, Guelph police’s adopted budget for next year would see an increase of $4,966,480 over 2024.
Noting estimated assessment growth, the net increase for next year would be $2,455,981, or four per cent, if police put in the cuts requested.
Guthie said he understands the importance of policing, and the numbers from the latest crime severity index (CSI) speak for itself.
In July's update, Guelph reached its best overall CSI ranking since 2015.
Essentially the same budget request being made to all outside boards and agencies, which have their own duties to adhere to, and will be the final piece of the 2025 budget process.
The boards and agencies, including the public library and public health, represent about one-third of the entire city budget.
Those boards and agencies, including police, will present their budget updates to council in January, after the city-controlled portion of the budget is finalized.
This, Guthrie said, will allow the agencies to see what’s been done outside of their control.
“They can also listen to all of the engagement from the community, around what they feel is important on the city side,” he said. “And then as they all move into their own budgets, they too will have opportunities for delegations and engagement.”
It’s expected the city portion of the budget will be amended by the end of the year.
Guthrie said when January rolls around, the boards and agencies are essentially “sliding an invoice across the table” and gets added to the overall total.
“Any council can say no to an outside board’s budget, but the legislation from the province basically will end up overpowering that council decision,” he said. “There’s a lot of legislation that protects those outside boards and agencies, that what they present as a budget, really that’s the end of the conversation.”
The letter noted city staff has been directed to prepare a budget for next year with a property tax increase of no more than four per cent overall.
Tuesday’s budget update showed a 3.12 per cent increase from the city-controlled portion.
Once police, committees, boards and other outside agencies introduce their budgets, Guthrie estimates that number could bump up to 5.5 per cent or higher.
