Belleville Police Service asked to cut operating budget request to 3.5%

Belleville Police Chief Ron Gignac speaks during a meeting of the city’s police services board, on March 26, 2019. (Photo: David Foot / Quinte News)

Some work will have to be done in whittling down the proposed Belleville Police Service operating budget.

Chief Ron Gignac cited a number of factors for his ask of a 4.8% increase on last year, which totalled about $17 million, but the police services board decided to send an increase of 3.5% to council instead.

Those reasons included increases to salaries and benefits, which account for 90% of the police force’s operating budget, increases in training and equipment costs, the move to the new police station and more.

Mayor Mitch Panciuk tells Quinte News he understands the needs and pressure faced by the police service and other departments to increase their budgets, but the original ask was just too high.

Decisions on where to find savings will have to be made quickly, with the city set to begin its operating budget discussions this coming Tuesday.

Gignac tells Quinte News despite having only a week to get the number down, they’ll come up with something that keeps the best interest of citizens and officers top of mind.

In his presentation on Tuesday, Gignac noted that compared to municipalities and services of similar size, Belleville’s budget is still close to $1.5 million lower than he feels it should be.

Once the proposed budget is finalized, Belleville Council could either approve it, or reject it and send it back for further change.