By TERRY PUGH
Elected officials from Saskatchewan’s major urban centres intend to focus their advocacy efforts on three major issues in the coming months.
Those top priorities include: operational and infrastructure funding; physician recruitment and retention; and public safety and mental health and addictions.
At a meeting of the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) City Caucus held September 4, representatives agreed to work with the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM) and senior levels of government to find solutions.
Warman Deputy mayor Kevin Tooley was among the delegates to the SUMA City Caucus, and he tabled information from the September 4 meeting at a Warman City Council meeting on Monday, September 8.
On infrastructure funding, SUMA City Caucus officials are calling for “a sustainable source of operational funding that matches their level of legislated responsibility.” They are also seeking the implementation of “a shared infrastructure program that is predictable, sufficient for community needs, and flexible enough to allow for municipalities to determine their priorities themselves.”
In practical terms, the organization is looking for a change in how projects are prioritized by senior levels of government. SUMA wants “a shift from shovel-ready to shovel-worthy projects, made in Saskatchewan considerations, and the establishment of dedicated funds for a variety of factors” that include community size and core infrastructure.
SUMA, in collaboration with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, is ramping up its lobby efforts in Ottawa this fall in the hope that next spring’s federal budget will result in desired changes to federal-provincial infrastructure funding programs.
On the physician recruitment and retention front, the SUMA City Caucus representatives are calling for “a sustainable level of medical professionals in communities with health care centres, allowing them to be open and functional to their residents and surrounding areas.”
The third major concern is public safety, particularly in relation to mental health and addictions. SUMA’s City Caucus officials want “to have those suffering from homelessness and mental health and additions issues properly housed, treated, and cared for, resulting in safer communities, reduced drug trafficking, and reduced gang activity.”
A background report to the SUMA City Caucus meeting on the public safety issue noted that the Police Act, which oversees the role and enforcement responsibilities of municipal police services, is over 30 years old. SUMA is looking for the provincial government to hold a comprehensive review the Police Act in consultation with SUMA and other stakeholders, with a goal of implementing needed legislative changes.
The report notes that “the perception of public safety has shifted significantly over the past three decades and it is no longer acceptable to simply view it as a punitive measure. With the significant rise in mental health and addictions crisis playing a part in many calls, it makes sense to consider this when responding and ensure that there is an individual trained in this particular area. In short, we want our already short-staffed police forces to be able to focus on only policing, while cooperating with other agencies that may be more qualified and available in specific areas. A collaborative-based approach would allow that.”
The SUMA background report notes that many municipalities in the province are experiencing a shortage of police officers.
However, it also points out the RCMP has implemented incentives to RCMP officers to locate in the prairie provinces, and the provincial government has guaranteed to fund the full number of RCMP officers allotted for Saskatchewan.
The background report also lauds the introduction of additional ‘bylaw courts’ similar to the one implemented in Kindersley, and the implementation of the provincial government’s ‘e-Justice Project’. The latter initiative frees of court time by offering alternative dispute resolution mechanisms for issues such as traffic and bylaw enforcement, family justice and small claims court.