Local

Winnipeg Free Press - ONLINE EDITION

Katz expects province to pay bulk of costs for police board

By: Staff Writer

Posted: 11/28/2012 10:14 AM | Comments: 0 | Last Modified: 11/28/2012 11:48 AM | Updates

Mayor Sam Katz said he expects the province will pay for the bulk of the costs associated with the creation of the new Winnipeg police board.

This morning, council's executive policy committee voted in favour of the police board bylaws, which govern how it will operate. The board will have the authority to hire police chiefs and act as a liaison between the community and the police service. While it will give civilians more input into policing, the board does not have input on operational decisions of the service, investigations or day-to-day operation of the police department.

It's unclear how much it will cost to operate the new board or who will pay for it.

A city report recommends Winnipeg approach the province to recover all costs associated with the board's operation.

Katz said he does not know how much it will cost to operate the new police board but the city will pay for nominal costs - such as covering the per diem of board members. He said the province has committed to pay the balance of the costs.

"Very clearly council expects them to live up to their promise and that's the only reason we moved forward on it," Katz said following this morning's EPC meeting.

The province has been contacted for comment.

The province required all municipalities to establish police boards under the new Police Services Act, passed in 2009. The legislation came on the heels of recommendations from the Taman Inquiry which examined police conduct in the motor vehicle crash which killed Crystal Taman.

City council will hold a special meeting to vote on the police board this afternoon.

The bylaw creating the board has to be passed by Dec. 1 or the city will be in violation of provincial legislation.

History

Updated on Wednesday, November 28, 2012 at 11:48 AM CST: Updated and new headline

Fact Check

Have you found an error, or know of something we’ve missed in one of our stories? Please use the form below and let us know.

* Required

In which story did you find the error? *
Please post the headline of the story or the title of the video with the error.
What was the error? *
Please post exactly what was wrong with the story.
What should we have written?
Please indicate your source for the correct information.
Who else should we interview to improve this story?
Please include any contact information you may have.
Can we contact you in the future for advice on stories about this topic?
Yes

No
First Name: *
Last Name: *
E–mail Address: *
This will only be used to contact you if we have a question about your submission, it will not be used to identify you or be published.
Phone: *
This will only be used to contact you if we have a question about your submission, it will not be used to identify you or be published.
Colour:
Are you blue? If you can see this, leave it blank and get some CSS support.
Enter the words that you see: * This is to prevent our forms from being filled out automatically.
You have failed to correctly identify the words in the box above. Please try again.

More Local

Undock

You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.

Have Your Say

New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.