In a few short years, the workload on our existing police force has significantly changed.

Representatives of the Board of Police Commissioners say it's become more difficult for the Moose Jaw Police Service to safely and effectively conduct their duties due to the rise of violent crime, which they attribute to the rise in methamphetamine use. 

As previously reported by Discover Moose Jaw, the Board has asked the City to allocate funds to hire a new officer next spring. That request was approved on Wednesday, Nov. 27. In total, the approved budget constitutes a 3.26 percent increase to the service's operating budget for 2020 which will include the addition of an Immediate Priority Officer to the force in April. 

Since Councillor Crystal Froese was elected to City Council in 2016 she's also served on the Board of Police Commissioners. She said from what she's seen, the new officer is necessary.

"When they pick somebody up that is high on this drug, because of its unpredictability, they actually have to be with that person for the entire time," said Froese during budget deliberations, "even when they take them to the emergency room because of the violent tendencies. That puts an added stress on our officers and takes them off the streets during their shift. Things have changed in a short amount of time quite dramatically, for our officers."

Council approved a net operating budget for the Moose Jaw Police of $10,129,563, which reflects an increase of $319,916 or 3.26 per cent.