B.C. municipalities on the hook for $145 million in RCMP back pay

B.C. municipalities must cough up millions in RCMP back pay after the federal government indicated it will not absorb retroactive contract cost increases associated with the Mounties’ latest collective agreement.

The bill comes as cities across the province struggle with inflation and rising costs that have, in some cases, led to double-digit property tax increases.

“We’re being hit from all sides,” said Craig Hodge, a Coquitlam city councillor and co-chairman of the Union of B.C. Municipalities (UBCM) contract management committee.

The money, which in many cases will need to be repaid to Ottawa over the next two years, covers services already provided as far back as 2017, rather than current or future policing needs. The UBCM estimates the collective cost to B.C. local governments for the RCMP to be between $138 million and $145 million.

“Even those municipalities that put aside money for this, it’s not enough,” said Hodge. “All B.C. municipalities with RCMP are impacted to some degree.”