No new money for pot enforcement: Sask. justice minister

Police agencies across Saskatchewan shouldn't hold their breath for provincial dollars to help with enforcement costs associated with cannabis legalization, according to the minister of justice. 

"We certainly want to watch what the costs of operations are and where it is. We bear a significant cost of the policing in the province right now, but we'll certainly want to work our way through that with the municipalities," Don Morgan told reporters Wednesday, after unveiling the province's plan to deal with legal cannabis. 

The Regina Police Service estimates cannabis legalization will cost them upwards of $1 million per year, specifically around areas of education, equipment, training and enforcement. 

On Wednesday, Regina Mayor Michael Fougere reiterated his call for the province to share pot revenue, pointing to the cost of enforcement around cannabis. 

Currently, the province extends municipal police grants to Regina and Saskatoon. The grants are targeted to pay for efforts around tackling illicit drugs and internet child exploitation. 

Regina police Chief Evan Bray said he welcomed the provincial announcement, which he said will help police prepare for their role in enforcement.

"It gives us a chance to dig into it a little bit and understand how it's going to impact the job that we do," he said.

Bray commended the province's decision to introduce a legal age of 19 to purchase marijuana, as well as the language around zero tolerance for impaired driving.  

However, he noted police are still waiting for details that will help with training, such as finding out about devices that would enable roadside screening. 

Police are also waiting for more clarity around distribution rules and who will be responsible for quality control involving the sale of marijuana, he said.

Although new money is not on the table in the form of grants when it comes to cannabis legalization, Morgan said the province is working to set up more training opportunities for officers. 

Drug recognition experts

There are currently 74 trained drug recognition experts in Saskatchewan, with 20 more being trained this spring in preparation for marijuana legalization.

According to a spokesperson for SGI, the insurer has allocated $120,000 for training DREs since the start of 2017.

Training costs $3,200 to $3,500 per officer, not including the wages of the officers attending the training. SGI has already provided funding for approximately 60 of the DREs, and is funding the upcoming 20.