Government of Alberta making policing changes, creating boards to help set priorities

A provincial board will be established for small Alberta communities under 5,000 people to voice their concerns about their RCMP.

The Provincial Police Advisory Board, established as part of a order-in-council on Wednesday, is part of policing changes meant to “give a say” to communities on how they are policed and what the priorities should be.

The press release says RCMP-policed communities with populations between 5,000 and 15,000 will be represented by regional policing committees to which they will be required to recruit and appoint members.

These would affect Bonnyville, Cold Lake, St. Paul, and Lac La Biche.

“These civilian committees will represent the interests and concerns of the public to the RCMP leadership in their district, work with local officials to identify and address public safety concerns for their region, and report on the implementation of programs and services to address them,” it reads.

Meanwhile, the smaller populations board of 15, would include representatives from Alberta Municipalities, Rural Municipalities of Alberta, and First Nations and Métis communities, as well as community representation for each of the province’s RCMP districts, the province says.

In the fall session of 2022, the government made amendments to the Policing Act.

Among those changes was establishing an independent agency called the Police Review Commission to manage complaints towards the police, as well as conduct disciplinary hearings, and increase civilian participation.

These new regulations announced Wednesday would come into force March 2025.