The town of St. Paul is taking steps to establish a municipal policing committee in compliance with the Police Amendment Act 2022 (formerly Bill 6). The legislation requires municipalities with populations under 15,000 served by the RCMP to create civilian governance bodies to engage the public in policing priorities and goals.
During the January 13 council meeting, Director of Protective Services Trevor Kotowich recommended notifying the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services of the town’s intention to form the committee. “It is administration’s recommendation that the town of St. Paul form their own municipal policing committee,” Kotowich said, emphasizing that the committee would provide residents with a voice in policing decisions while staying out of RCMP operational matters.
Mayor Maureen Miller supported the initiative, noting that it aligns with the council’s goal of engaging the public and provides a good opportunity to address the unique policing needs of the municipality. The committee’s potential to provide helpful guidance could improve local policing, but Miller acknowledged the option to end the committee if it doesn’t work well.
The committee would have member-at-large chosen by the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services. Kotowich said it should include people with and without policing experience to offer different viewpoints. “It’s meant to be driven by the public,” he said, adding that the town’s CAO and Protective Services Director would support the committee but not lead it.
Coun. Nathan Taylor proposed exploring a regional policing committee with the county of St. Paul, given the shared services of the St. Paul RCMP detachment. Kotowich agreed to ask about this option.
Costs for running the committee were estimated at $3,000 to $5,000 annually for basic operations, with additional expenses possible for training and conferences. Kotowich mentioned that organizations like the Alberta Association of Police Governance or the Canadian Police Knowledge Network would assist in training committee members.
St. Paul RCMP Detachment Commander Dennis Silliker expressed his support for the committee but clarified that the RCMP’s federal mandate would still require reporting directly to council.
St. Paul council approved the motion to proceed with notifying the Minister of Public Safety and will review a revised draft outlining the committee’s structure and responsibilities in future meetings.
