Prince George city council is calling on the federal government to consult with municipalities on RCMP contract negotiations in the future.
City council adopted the resolution on Wednesday, in support of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, after receiving a $5.374 million bill for RCMP retroactive pay. The retroactive pay is part of an RCMP collective bargaining agreement for 2017 to 2023, negotiated between the federal government and RCMP members.
"We are proud to join with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities in advocating for greater transparency and consultation on RCMP charges,” Mayor Simon Yu said in a statement. “It is important that the federal government work collaboratively with local governments to ensure that policing services costs are handled fairly.”
The City of Prince George had set aside $5.269 million to cover most of the retroactive pay, but city council authorized the use of the remaining Safe Restart fund ($2.969 million) to partially meet the expense, according to a statement issued by the city on Thursday.
