The Town of Onoway is concerned that incoming changes to Alberta’s police funding model will worsen financial challenges for the municipality, without an adequate return on its investment.
In December 2025, the Alberta government announced that beginning in the 2026-27 fiscal year, municipalities with populations under 5,000 will cover 22 per cent of front-line policing costs, with a gradual increase to 30 per cent over the next five years.
In the announcement, the province says changes to RCMP collective agreements, inflation and newly added positions have increased policing expenses in smaller communities by 57 per cent, without “any notable change to service levels.”
Arthur Green, press secretary for the Ministry of Public Safety and Emergency Services, said about 280 municipalities will be affected by the change.
In Onoway, the 2025 budget allocated $49,673 to RCMP services, as well as $91,662 for community peace officers. Mayor Bridgitte Coninx said that without community peace officers, there would be no in-town policing.
“For rural areas, we’re basically a reactive state only. For what we pay for, we don’t get designated hours per month of police patrol or anything like that,” she commented. Coninx later added, “It’s a constant resident complaint. While the RCMP doesn’t deem petty crime to be significant, we have a significant amount of it, and it just isn’t answered to, and there’s no relief for residents in this area.”
When asked about service level concerns, an Alberta RCMP spokesperson stated, “We are committed to catering our police service to address any concerns a community may have.” The spokesperson also said Onoway has not communicated these concerns to the RCMP, and stressed that ongoing discussions about potential concerns are key.
The RCMP said calls for service fall into one of four categories, which vary from imminent danger or harm to routine reports for information that don’t require service. These categories are the same in rural and municipal communities. The RCMP added, all 911 calls are answered and addressed, with those that don’t pose an immediate or potential threat to life categorized as lower priority.
Parkland County, which includes Onoway, is reportedly experiencing a 21 per cent drop in break and enters and a 19 per cent drop in motor vehicle theft compared to the same time last year, as the RCMP has focused on targeting prolific offenders. The RCMP also made an arrest in town at the end of December while patrolling the area.
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Regardless of the level of police services received, Coninx said the increases planned over the next five years will cause “significant hardship” in the municipality.
“How long do we stay financially feasible as a small town when the increases just keep hitting us with no relief?” She asked.
In the 2026 Interim Budget, Onoway’s council initially allocated $50,058 to RCMP services and $94,414 for community peace officers.
The mandated increase to this expense will be approved and balanced when the final budget is presented to council in the spring. Administration will recommend a direct tax increase to accommodate the higher cost unless council opts to reduce other community services instead.
Coninx said the town is already doing what it can to accommodate higher bills, with bare-bones operating and maintenance budgets and expense increases largely reduced to those required by regulation.
“We pay an awful lot in tax provincially and federally, and what we’re seeing on return isn’t what we’re paying out,” she commented. “We’d like to see more bang for our buck in an effort to justify what they’re taking.”
Alberta Municipalities shared a similar sentiment following the announcement.
“When it comes to policing, an important principle is that our members have ‘say with pay.’ In this instance, the provincial government prioritized payment over governance,” the organization said in a statement. “To date, municipalities have not had the input necessary to have confidence that their financial contributions are improving local community safety.”
It also acknowledged the timing of the announcement, which came just after many municipalities had already balanced and passed their annual budgets, including Onoway.
When it comes to RCMP expenses, a spokesperson stated “Only the expenditures that are necessary are being made to support the most important work,” noting the organization understands every dollar comes from taxpayers.
The police funding model has also allowed the Alberta RCMP to add 279 police officers, including 136 in detachments, and 242 civilian positions, including 77 to support detachment operations.
