Increase transparency, number of officers, Waterloo regional police board told during 1st public input session

The first public consultation on the Waterloo Regional Police Service's (WRPS) 2025 budget lasted less than 15 minutes and just two people offered their thoughts to the police board.

Regional Coun. Rob Deutschmann, who was speaking as a citizen and not a representative of council, and Mark Egers, president of the Waterloo Regional Police Association union which represents officers, each gave a presentation during the online meeting Friday morning.

Deutschmann's presentation centered around transparency and how the police service reports human resources numbers.

The police service has introduced a board reporting modernization initiative, which Deustchmann says means some numbers will go from being reported each quarter to being reported just once a year to regional council.

He said the change means regional council will be asked to approve the 2025 budget before knowing how many officers were hired in 2024. He said that data is "relevant to our budget deliberations."

"More frequent and timely reporting would allow for more of an informed decision," he said.

During budget deliberations in February 2023, Deutschmann was critical of police including full-year salaries in their budget for officers they may not be able to actually hire until months into the calendar year. Police Chief Mark Crowell agreed at the time it has been difficult for the police service to recruit enough people to hire new officers or fill roles that become open due to retirement or people switching jobs.

 Deutschmann said this means taxpayers will be forced to pay for officers that have not been hired yet.

"The WRPS is unable to reach their complement target with a large officer shortfall each year and then adding to that officer shortfall with further staffing requests, knowing the numbers cannot be hired, and effectively building in a significant surplus each year," he said.

"As stewards of public funds, it's important that the WRPS and board provide timely, relevant data to support budget requests and demonstrate responsible fiscal management."

The police service board members did not ask any questions from Deutschmann after his presentation.

WATCH | The first public input session on the 2025 WRPS budget:

'Simply not enough uniformed officers,' union president says

In his presentation, Engers told the board they need to hire more officers because the number of officers has not kept pace with the growing population in the region.

"To be frank, there are simply not enough uniformed officers to respond to calls for service and community demands due to staffing pressures," he said. "Our frontline members are feeling the strain."

He said the problem did not develop overnight, but rather is due to "years of chronic under resourcing."

Engers added there have been situations where investigators have been pulled off cases to go on patrol "while their own caseloads sat and waited on their desk."

"This was a necessity due to short staffing and to protect the public and other officers, but it comes with consequences," he said. 

"Members regularly step up and fill these gaps for overtime. This is not sustainable either financially or through a lens of member wellness, which sees our members suffering from burnout. We are seeing less and less overtime being filled because of the burnout."

Engers said asking for a budget increase in 2025 in order to hire more people "is not a preference or a nice to have, it's a necessity."

The board also did not have any questions for Engers. Staff indicated they had not received any written submissions from the public.

Next public input session in October

In a media release announcing the public input sessions, police services board chair Ian McLean said they hoped to hear from "a diverse range of perspectives from community partners who share our goal of building a stronger, safer, and more equitable Waterloo region."

The meeting on Friday was one of two public input sessions. The next online input session will be held Monday, Oct. 28 from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.

People can register to present at the session through the Waterloo Regional Police Service's website.

People who cannot attend the meeting can also provide a written submission to the board.