When council asked administration for a 10 year operating cost review for both the RCMP and Lloydminster Fire Rescue ahead of the 2026 budget vote, the information was not provided. The final budget package includes future capital projections, but no long term history of spending on policing.
The Border Pulse reviewed every available Lloydminster City budget from 2015 to 2026 to rebuild the RCMP cost trend. The numbers show a steady and significant increase over the past decade, driven by contract changes, retroactive pay, staffing adjustments and inflation.
The City did not present this information to council as requested. Here is what the data shows.
RCMP costs up more than 54 per cent since 2015
The earliest RCMP operating total available in the City’s public budgets is 2015, when policing cost $8.9 million. By 2026, the draft budget assigns $13.75 million to RCMP operations. That is a 54 per cent increase over 11 years.
RCMP costs rise in smaller increments compared to the fire department, but remain one of the largest drivers of the protective services budget.
Year by year RCMP operating expenses
2015: $8,895,014
2016: $10,562,492
2017: $10,692,660
2018: Not broken out (included in protective services total)
2019: Not broken out (included in protective services total)
2020: $10,516,403
2021: $10,513,753
2022: $12,075,238
2023: $11,856,001
2024: $12,426,122
2025: $13,468,545
2026: $13,750,237
Policing costs in Lloydminster hold relatively steady between 2017 and 2021 before rising sharply in 2022. Budget documents note national contract increases and inflationary pressures on salary and service costs. By 2025 and 2026, RCMP spending climbs past 13 million dollars per year.
Missing years mirror fire department data gaps
The City did not publish specific RCMP spending totals for 2018 and 2019. Instead, those amounts are grouped within the broader protective services category. Those same years also saw significant structural changes to the fire department.
Protective services as a whole increased by three million dollars in 2019, but individual RCMP and fire totals are not listed. Without those details, taxpayers cannot determine which service drove the largest increases during that period.
Why the information matters
Policing and fire services now represent the largest share of Lloydminster’s municipal budget. Together, they drive about three per cent of the proposed 4.08 per cent property tax increase for 2026.
Council requested long term cost history because it provides essential context for major spending decisions. That information did not appear in the 2026 budget package.
The Border Pulse is publishing the reconstructed RCMP data so residents can see how policing costs have changed over the past decade.
Read more: City ignores mayor, fails to provide requested information
