Prince George City Council voted down a bylaw this evening (Monday) that would implement a fee of $115.00 per hour for each RCMP officer attending special events.
According to the report presented to council at a meeting when the bylaw was first discussed in February, ongoing police attendance at special events typically falls outside of the normal staffing duties of the members on a watch. In most instances, members need to be brought in on overtime in order to provide coverage for the special event.
Cori Ramsey urged her fellow councillors not to vote for the bylaw as it would be another barrier in the way of events coming to the city – the opposite of what council is trying to do.
Councillor Frank Everitt said the bylaw would just be putting it out in one hand and giving it back in the other.
“We looked at it, we talked about it a bit and the majority of council thought that it would hinder some events coming to Prince George. In the same token, I talked about those events coming to us and asking for some enhancement, or some money for those events. The overall good that it could bring to our community, we thought it outweighed the opportunity to recoup some money.”
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