The Regina Police Service is pleased to have received the approval of Regina City Council for its 2015 Operating and Capital Budget. The most significant changes to take effect in 2015 will be around staffing.
In the final months of 2013 and through 2014, the Service conducted an efficiency review. The goal was to improve service, while mitigating costs, by finding alternate ways to deliver some services. The Regina Police Service currently has 549 employees: 392 police officers and 157 civilians. The total number of sworn police officers (392) has not changed since 2012 and it will be 392 in the coming year, 2015. The request in the Regina Police Service proposed 2015 Budget was not a request for eight new police officer positions. The result of the comprehensive review was a request for 12 civilian FTE (Full Time Equivalent) positions. Four of these would fill newly-identified needs:
- One Technological Crime Unit Technician
- One Release of Information Clerk
- Two Business Systems Analysts
The remaining eight civilian hires have also been referred to as “conversion” positions. These eight new civilian jobs will fill administrative or technical positions currently held by police officers. An example would be: AFIS (Automated Fingerprint Identification System) technician – this is job currently done by a police officer, which will be filled by a civilian, effectively freeing up a police officer for front line policing duties.
The staffing changes will allow the Regina Police Service to enhance service delivery by:
- Re-deploying eight police officers to Patrol (two per shift);
- Creating one Mental Health Liaison Officer;
- Creating one CARE (Canine Assisted Response and Education) Officer.
Converting selected police positions to civilian positions benefits the Service and the citizens of Regina by:
- Enabling the Service to import developed skill sets for primarily administrative/technical positions rather than re-training police officers;
- Increasing stability and corporate memory; and
- Mitigating the costs of strengthening the front-line.
If the Regina Police Service had proposed simply hiring eight more police officers, it would have added $500,000 annually to the Police Service’s Operating Budget.
The Regina Police Service thanks the Board of Police Commissioners for its responsible governance; and Regina City Council and the citizens of Regina for their continued trust and support. The 2015 Operating and Capital Budget will enable the Regina Police Service to continue securing the safety and well-being of our growing community.
You must be logged in to post a comment.