Provincial funds to curb rising policing costs being saved for future years

Connor Luczka, Echo Correspondent

The “nice little Christmas present,” as Coun. Paul Mitchell called it, of over $200,000 from the Province of Ontario to mitigate its high policing costs won’t be used to curb this year’s budget, Zorra Township Council decided.

At its Dec. 18 meeting, council voted instead to transfer those funds to reserves in anticipation of future police cost increases, maintaining the 2025 budget’s original policing cost of $1,478,974.

“When we look at the 2026 budget, we may be happy that we have a couple $100,000 maybe to work with,” Mitchell said, just prior to council voting to

save it.

This year there was a 18.96 per cent increase in OPP costs compared to last year, which represented a total tax levy increase of 2.03 per cent. The sharp rise in costs were largely due to salary increases and the rapid growth of the municipality.

The OPP provide the township’s policing service and are located in Tillsonburg and Ingersoll, with satellite offices in Thamesford and Embro. Per an agreement with the OPP, the township pays for any increase in services it needs and estimates ahead of the new year how many calls of service will be made.

Additionally, the OPP reconcile two years back, so each year the township is reconciled or billed the difference of actuals versus estimates. In 2025, $82,000 is being paid to the OPP to reconcile 2023 on top of the estimated costs of the coming year.

Coun. Kevin Stewart agreed with Mitchell, also pointing out that each year the reconciliation is a “wildcard.” There’s no telling what the price will be until the municipality gets the bill.

“That could also be a safeguard,” Stewart said about the provincial funding. “Because if we're having to absorb some unexpected adjustment at the end of 2024, that may affect what we can put in our budget for the next year as well.”

The 2025 budget has been passed; however, the bylaw associated with the budget has yet to be voted on.

The total 2025 tax levy is $12,231,845, an over $600,000 – or 5.26 per cent – increase.

The levy increase is not the same as the tax rate increase that residents will pay in property taxes, rather it represents the total taxes needed to be raised by the municipality next year. A resident’s tax rate is determined based on the levy, but with other factors like education rates factored in.

The rate will be set once the budget bylaw has been passed, returned assessment rolls have been received, and the tax ratios have been set by Oxford County – but all of that will come after the budget bylaw passes at a later date.

Although the budget has been passed by council, until its bylaw is passed council may continue to amend it.