Chief Bergen explained to the Board that the increase is necessary to sustain core services. Pictured: HPS Chief Frank Bergen. Photo Credit: HPS.
The Hamilton Police Services Board approved the proposed 2025 net operating and capital budget of about $227.1 million for the Hamilton Police Service (HPS), representing a combined increase of $12.25 million or 5.7 per cent over their 2024 budget.
The Board approved the proposed budget from Hamilton Police Service (HPS) Chief Frank Bergen at a Dec. 17 meeting.
The HPS budget will still have to be approved at Council and will be considered at a General Issues Committee meeting on Jan. 28, 2025.
The HPS Board is currently made up of two provincial appointees, Mayor Andrea Horwath, Councillor Esther Pauls (Ward 7 – Central Mountain), Councillor Cameron Kroetsch (Ward 2 – Downtown Hamilton), and civilian appointee Dr. Anjali Menezes.
Councillor Kroetsch was not present at the meeting since he is currently suspended from the Board due to a complaint filed against him in March 2024 that alleges he violated the board’s code of conduct by failing to act “loyally, faithfully, and impartially” and failed to “inspire public confidence in the abilities and integrity of the Board.”
Civilian Appointee Dr. Anjali Menezes, a family physician who specializes in anti-racism and has a background in activism, voted against the HPS budget.
Bergen explained to the Board that the increase is necessary to sustain core services, including obligatory and contractual costs related to collective agreements and employer benefits, in order to respond to legislative requirements like the implementation of Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG911) technology, and updated body armour necessary under new Active Attacker legislation.
HPS is also continuing their phase-in strategy to address a shortfall in Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) pressures resulting from the introduction of presumptive post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) legislation, investing in the implementation of body-worn cameras, and upgrading cybersecurity.
Bergen wrote in his recommendation report to the Board that, “after factoring in the obligatory pressures and strategic investments for the HPS, the initial outlook for the 2025 Operating and Capital Budget was an increase of $23,911,980, or 11.13 per cent.”
He added that, “recognizing the challenges facing the community and the HPS’s commitment towards sustainable financial planning and effective use of resources, Senior Command reviewed all budget submissions and identified options to reduce the budget pressure by $11,659,205” which resulted in the 5.7 per cent increase ($12.25 million).
While the net tax levy increase to the HPS budget is 5.7 per cent, it should be noted that their operating expenditures are actually increasing by $23.40 million (10.89 per cent).
HPS is drawing on considerable reserve funds in addition to relying on grants, fees, subsidies, and other revenues to bring the tax impact down to the 5.7 per cent number.
The concept is similar to how the City of Hamilton approved a 5.79 per cent property tax increase overall last year while actually increasing spending by 19.5 per cent. Reserves were used to keep the tax rate lower.
Of the 10.89 per cent increase to operating expenditures for HPS, employee-related costs alone increase the budget by 9.67 per cent.
In addition to contractual obligations under collective agreements, such as salary adjustments, performance pay, salary step/grade progressions, benefits and overtime, HPS also plans to hire 13 new sworn officers and 27 civilian employees.
HPS is hiring 13 new sworn officers in 2024 as part of their 10-year Human Capital Deployment Strategy to ensure that the number of officers aligns with population growth.
Of the 27 civilian employees, 16 will be Special Constables, six will support the body-worn camera rollout, four are for the 911 call centre, and one is a Race and Identity-Based Analyst.
There are also costs associated with sworn and civilian members who are on WSIB leave.
The Board previously approved 55 “backfills” including 49 sworn and six civilian members to provide staffing support for members “on WSIB leave for five years or more and no prospective date to return to work.”
A number of different organizations provided written submissions to the HPS Board supporting the police budget increase, with some saying that HPS should actually receive even more money to combat increased lawlessness in the city.
Those voicing their support for the budget increase included Michael Heenan (President of St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton), Ammar Balika (Director of Sales and Business Development of Carmen’s Group), Joseph S. Mancinelli (Canadian Director of LiUNA and President of LiUNA Local 837), Susie Braithwaite (Executive Director of International Village BIA), Manny Figueiredo (President and CEO of YMCA Hamilton, Burlington, Brantford), Andrew Keesmaat (President of the Hamilton Law Association), Robin St. Jean (President of Michael St. Jean Realty), Patrick Denninger (President and CEO of Denninger’s), and Emily Walsh (Executive Director of the Downtown Hamilton BIA).
Some also voiced opposition to the police budget, including the Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion (HCCI), a non-profit that values “anti-oppression, equity, justice, amplification of voices, and decolonial practice” and receives funding from the City of Hamilton and the province.
Of note, Councillor Kroetsch sits on the HCCI’s board.
In regards to the police budget, it remains to be seen what Council will end up deciding on Jan. 28. Last year the police budget passed at Council in a 10 to 6 vote.
The six opposed to the police budget were Councillors Kroetsch, Maureen Wilson (Ward 1 – Chedoke-Cootes-Westdale), Nrinder Nann (Ward 3 – East Hamilton Centre), Tammy Hwang (Ward 4 – Hamilton East), Craig Cassar (Ward 12 – Ancaster-West Flamborough), and Alex Wilson (Ward 13 – Dundas-Central Flamborough).
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
