Province announces OPP budget relief
Trent Hills’ bill for 2025 will now be unchanged from 2024
Facing a flood of complaints from municipalities across the province, the Ford government has offered $77 million in extra cash to help them pay the rising wages of the Ontario Provincial Police.
Trent Hills is one of 330 municipalities that use the OPP for local police services. Its bill for 2025 was $2,995,896, up $442,764 or 17 per cent from this year. Today, MPP David Piccini said that after the provincial assistance our bill will be $2,553,307, down $431,912 from the original plan, and basically unchanged from our 2024 cost of $2,557,132.
During their discussion of the budget on Tuesday, councillors noted that the planned OPP increase represented a 2.7 per cent hike in tax bills and drove the draft budget increase to 8.39 per cent.
As I reported, the government was getting an earful from municipal leaders who received their OPP invoices in October and had no involvement in the process that led to the higher prices.
Piccini said on Tuesday that he was working with the solicitor general on assistance for municipalities.
“Our government recognizes that the recent OPP billing statements showed significant increases in many small and rural municipalities as a result of the collective bargaining agreement reached between the province and the Ontario Provincial Police Association earlier this year,” he said in an email today. “That’s why we have taken action to offset those costs for impacted communities.
“I am pleased to share that we have done our part and Municipality of Trent Hills will be receiving $431,912 in financial relief to offset costs associated with this agreement, bringing your total 2025 OPP services bill down to $2,553,307. Today, the Municipality of Trent Hills will receive a letter outlining the above-mentioned changes.”
The province and the OPP union reached a new contract in July that will hike wages over the next two years.
“The financial relief we are proposing will help municipal leaders balance their budgets and invest in their communities while ensuring no change to the policing provided by the OPP that keeps families and businesses safe,” Solicitor General Michael Kerzner said in a news release.
The Ontario government’s proposal includes a variety of steps to offset the 2025 impacts of OPP salary increases. This includes:
A 3.75 per cent bill reduction on 2023 total reconciled costs,
A 44 per cent bill reduction on 2023 reconciled overtime costs
A 10 per cent bill reduction on amounts invoiced for 2025 policing costs.
The province will also review the OPP billing model to ensure that it meets the needs of communities across the province.
Robin Jones, President of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, said her group was pleased that the province had listened.
“Municipal fiscal sustainability is under pressure across Ontario, and municipalities struggle to balance their budgets,” she said in a news release. “This proposition is an important recognition of this challenge and will help support quality of life for residents across the province."
The move was also welcomed by the Rural Ontario Municipal Association. "In the context of inflation, infrastructure pressures, and a growing homelessness crisis, rural municipalities simply cannot afford a 20% increase in OPP costs,” said Christa Lowry, chair of the association and mayor of Mississippi Mills.
“This provincial investment acknowledges the escalating fiscal challenges municipalities face. We look forward to ongoing partnership to put rural municipalities on a sustainable path."
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