Rural residents of RDBN Area A have until December 5th to let the the district know if funding should be continuous for RCMP based victim services.
Right now the province pays 50 per cent of the service with the rest falling voluntarily on municipalities.
That can leave gaps in the Victim Services budget that helps victims of traumatic experiences from car accidents to violent crime.
Area A Director Mark Fisher says the regional district is looking to lock in area A’s portion. He agrees it should be payed for, or at least mandated, by the province.
“Ever since they down-loaded responsibility, municipal governments have been trying to get the province to take that back on with no avail. So, it’s either beating your head against the wall or make it work for your community,” says Fisher.
He says property taxes could be raised by about 5 or 6 dollars a year on average for every rural property.
“Either we’re going to pay it this way or we’re going to pay for it through increased RCMP costs, which is less efficient. There’s a degree of specialization with the RCMP,” says Fisher.
Ten per cent of the electorate can stop Area A from paying a regular amount every year through an Alternative Approval Process.