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lb. Canaien Champion, Tueaday, Novomber 30, 19W-S ]>ew police funding formula viable tool, says board chair By IRENE GENTLE The Champion A new funding formula has buen endorsed by the Halton Regional Police Services Board to bu used as a tool for hammering out future police budgets. The formula will bu introduced at thse Region's administration and finance committee tomorrow. "It's a viable tool,'"said Halton Regional Police Services Board (HRPSB) chair Don Robinsons at Thursday's board meeting. "We're endorsing the principle of the tool use." The formula will likely super- sede the old cop-to-population recipe, which has tradîtionally been used to calculate the budget. That would have staffing require- ments swelling at thse saine rate as the population. The old blueprint has been criti- cized since following it consld lead to a doubling of thse police budget about once a decade. ,"We've got to get away fromn this cop-to-pop, thing," said Mr. Robinson. 'Ilnat's redundant." But board membur and regional councillor John Taylor wasn't con- vinced that the new formula is much more persuasive. He worried that it's based on sta- tistica that will quickly become outanoded. "It's a tool in thse analysis of policing couts. That's ail you can aw4y trwà tbistop- to-pop tblug. That's say," said Mr. Taylor. "As you comne forward, it gets lets predic- tive." That prompted Halton police Chief Ean Algar to shoot back "So it's a tool, but it's no good?" Mr. Taylor recommended that the formula bu endorsed with the written understanding thse numburs beconie less accurate over time. He was voted down, but board member and regional councillor John Day asked that the point bu raised when the issue goes bufore regional committee. S"The model is in some ways a lit- dle outdated," he said. "It's a guide- line. It's just a guideline." The new calculations stem fromn a $92,000 police oeview conducted by Perivale and Taylor consultants. The company was hired to take a thorough look at how Halton police services are mun in the hopes of har- monizing the often acrimonious budget debate butween the HRPSB and regional council. More than 70 variables, includ- ing size aund demographic make-up, were used by the consultants to arrive at a correlation between police spending and thie comumuni- ty profile of 112 Canadian munici- palities. The data was scooped fromn tbe 1996 Statistico Canada census and 1997 police budget figures. Under that formula, the consul- tants found that Halton should have spent $120 per capita on policing in 1997. That's 8.9 per cent less than the actual expenditure of $110 per capita. In other words, Halton spent $41.4 million on policing in 1997, which is $4.2 million less than the formula predicted it would. To reach an updated budget fig- ure, inflation and population increases would bu factored in to thie formula. And the whole thing would be recalculated in 2003, when data from the 2001 census becomes available. But the model does asot take into consideration new project pres-, sures that have corne to being since 1997, said Chief Algar. Those include policing Uic down- loaded Regional Roads 5 and 25 as well as the expanded Maplehurst and Mohawk raceway. And new adequacy standaords set to bu released by the Ministry of the Solicitor General shortly are also expected to have an impact on Ontario policing costs. RHCHARDSONCHEVROLET-OLDSMOBILE ROM TKEYLI8ENR- PLUS OUALTHEfIIETERm SYSTriu-pPOUR 00011 LOCKS - IR 011107111111111 *4-Speed Autonuat Wftit Traction Corerl * Anti-Leck Brake Systara *Cnase Contrai - AMIFM Casstt - 2.2 tJ115 HP Engine NII P-w. M SUUaMas PURCHASE PRICI $218 1.9% $18845 36 MONTHS LEASE RATE UP TO 36 MOFSTHS OR (INCLUDES FREIGHT OF $680 AND AIR TAX 0F PURCi-ASt FINANCING UP TO 4a MONINS. $100. LICENCE. INSURANCE AND TAXES EXTRA.) S3.4 Litre SF1 V6 180 HP Engine -4-Speait Auto- matie Transmision *6S-Passenger seaing -lr Wheels ait Tires - Large 4-WhieeS - AMIFM Sterea with CO - Ressaie Keyless Entry *Steeorig Wheel-Maanteit Ciose Contrai*- Neot Generation ~FE Drinaer and Front Passenger Delerrent Syste ansoi Loc out Protection - Air Conditionisg0 *Power Programmable Door 36 MONTHS NCwDES FRIH OF $835 Locks/WinitowstMirrors Z INSACAOS 00100 IE *3.1LUlr310 lUVlEIa *4-Speed AutomateC Tras- mission * 4-Wtrae Ant-LoCC Braisog System , 166,000 km belwoen tune-ups - Neot Genertio Driver ano iont Passenger Air Bsgs Air Conitiooing è AVM Sterea wîth CD Rayer * PASSLocknA Il Thet-Delerreot Systera - ilt-WhuMI' Steefng , Battery lion-Dose Proteto Dewolet Ma ib 00 $208 1.01 F22298 3 OW UP 1045 MONI05 F SLICENCE07 nos , 0F £100 LceN [~~~ O.A.C. See sales rep for details CADG Value Pricinpg 71w *srAsk way 5îsbey a caroor ik l cBU SA M SEVC HOU nvm CEEVRG1LT-àOLDSMODELE ...... >:: m::: -ru ...... HWY. 25 S. AT DERRY RD., MILTON