Lloydminster taxpayers are paying nearly two per cent more in property taxes because Saskatchewan refuses to fund policing on its side of the city.
According to the City of Lloydminster’s 2026 draft budget, the Police Services line totals $13,750,237, up from $13,468,545 last year. Revenue from fines and recoveries offsets just over $1.1 million, leaving $12.6 million paid directly by city taxpayers.
Mayor Gerald Aalbers said Saskatchewan has not contributed to the city’s RCMP costs since the detachment moved from the Saskatchewan side to Alberta in the late 1990s.
“From the province of Saskatchewan’s perspective, they do not pay for policing,” Aalbers said. “In their portion of that, that would be about 10 per cent of the cost of their share of that.”
That 10 per cent amounts to roughly $1.37 million a year, money Lloydminster residents are forced to cover.
Councillor Justin Vance said council continues to raise the issue through advocacy channels like the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA), but progress has been slow.
“We provide police service on the Saskatchewan side of our city, even though our detachment is on the Alberta side,” Vance said. “Our RCMP officers have to respond to calls on both sides of the border, and they already have double the work learning both provinces’ laws.”
Under the current structure, Alberta’s K Division RCMP provides policing for the entire city. Lloydminster pays about 95 per cent of the cost, with Alberta contributing the remaining portion through shared formulas. Saskatchewan pays nothing.
Aalbers said the imbalance stems from Saskatchewan’s Police Act, which only recognizes detachments physically located within the province. Because Lloydminster’s detachment sits in Alberta, Saskatchewan’s government has never paid for its share of officers, vehicles, or operations.
The cost per RCMP officer is rising from $232,000 in 2025 to $246,000 in 2026, according to the city’s draft budget. With 58 positions budgeted, total policing costs continue to climb.
Overall, Protective Services, which includes RCMP, Fire, 911, and enforcement, will rise by $2.1 million next year, a 9.2 per cent increase. Nearly three per cent of the city’s proposed 3.9 per cent property-tax increase is tied directly to those public safety costs.
If Saskatchewan paid its 10 per cent policing share, roughly $1.37 million, that would reduce the total Protective Services increase by more than half, cutting the city’s overall tax hike from 3.9 per cent to about 2 per cent.
Saskatchewan responds
In a written response on behalf of MLA Colleen Young, Eilidh Thain, CPPS, said Saskatchewan is unable to fund policing directly because responsibility was transferred to Alberta’s RCMP “K” Division in 2009.
“The Government of Saskatchewan’s ability to fund the City of Lloydminster directly through policing grants is restricted, since the responsibility for the delivery of policing services for the City of Lloydminster was transferred to the RCMP ‘K’ Division (Alberta) as of April 1, 2009,” Thain wrote.
She said Saskatchewan’s Police Act no longer applies to Lloydminster’s policing services under section 53(3) of The Lloydminster Charter, and the province instead contributes through ticket-revenue sharing.
“For the period October 2024 to September 2025, Saskatchewan disbursed $130,000 in ticket fine revenue to the City of Lloydminster,” Thain said.
Thain also noted Saskatchewan funds 18 RCMP members under ‘F’ Division, including specialized roles within the Crime Reduction Team and Trafficking Response Team.
City officials point out those positions are not stationed in Lloydminster and do not offset local policing costs paid by Lloydminster residents.
MLA Colleen Young did not respond personally to questions from The Border Pulse.
Read more: No, Lloydminster council has not approved a 3.9 per cent increase
