Steinbach City Council · Jan 2022 – Sept 2026
Crime and policing in Steinbach: what council has done, and how it compares
What has Steinbach City Council done about crime and neighbourhood safety since 2022, through its RCMP contract, its yearly policing priorities, community safety officers and private security? What reasons has it given for not doing more? And how do Steinbach's police staffing, policing costs and crime levels compare with similar Manitoba and Canadian cities?
Bottom line
- Council pays for 18 RCMP officers but often got fewer. It added an 18th officer for traffic in 2022 and approves the same priorities each year: police visibility, drugs and organized crime, property crime and traffic. From 2022 to mid-2025 the detachment had about 14 to 15 officers working; it reached full strength in September 2026.
- Rather than ask for more positions, council used the unspent money on private security. An overnight patrol started in July 2025, with $145,000 proposed for 2026, and the city added a second community safety officer. Feedback has been positive but anecdotal.
- Steinbach has fewer police per resident than any Manitoba peer: 0.86 authorized officers per 1,000 residents, against 1.4 to 1.9 elsewhere. It also clears fewer crimes (a weighted clearance rate of 30%). Its crime severity (82.9 in 2025) is close to the national average (75) and well below Manitoba's (130), but almost double Winkler's and well above Morden's.
- Council's reasons: RCMP costs are set in federal bargaining. The RCMP can't fill the positions already paid for. Addiction and bail are other governments' responsibility. Anyone who wants extra policing, such as the school division, should pay for it.
- Policing costs Steinbach taxpayers relatively little, and little is reported publicly. The RCMP bills about $4.0 million a year (about $190 per resident), and a provincial grant of about $2.6 million covers much of it. Council gets at most one RCMP presentation a year, no published targets, and an advisory board whose meetings aren't on the public record.
Related reports: Traffic (traffic enforcement), Quality of life (noise and Main Street racing) and Homelessness (encampments).
Part 1 · The council record
The RCMP contract: officers and cost
Steinbach is the largest city in Manitoba policed by the RCMP. Under its municipal contract the city chooses how many officers to pay for and pays 90% of their cost, because its population passed 15,000; smaller towns pay 70% (SteinbachOnline, 2017). The detachment also has rural members paid by the province, and provincial traffic members work out of it.
“There is a small tax increase of 0.4 mills, and that is mainly because of the extra RCMP officer that we're putting in place for this year in order to deal with traffic issues in our city.”
Councillor Michael Zwaagstra, on the 2022 budget · May 3, 2022 · 0:04:56
“we are continuing to have 18 RCMP officers, and of course that's a significant expense, but it's important that we ensure that the city is, uh, is safe.”
Councillor Michael Zwaagstra, on the 2023 budget · Mar 21, 2023 · 0:21:40
What it costs. The city's budget shows police and fire together (Protective Services: $4.6M in 2023, rising to $5.9M in 2026), so there is no public policing line. Council packages show quarterly RCMP invoices of $1,000,258 for July 2024 through March 2025, or about $4.0 million a year, roughly $190 per resident. The province's Urban Policing Grant pays a large share of that: $2,562,436 in 2024/25 and $2,613,685 in 2025/26. When the grant rose in 2023, the mayor said it would offset existing costs, not pay for new officers (SteinbachOnline). These are estimates; the RCMP's year-end reconciliation can change the final bill.
Policing priorities and RCMP reports
Each spring the detachment commander brings an “Annual Performance Plan” with community priorities, and council approves them by resolution. The priorities have barely changed:
| Year | Priorities approved | Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| 2022–23 | Visibility of police; organized crime; property crime (break-ins, vandalism); traffic | R22-119, unanimous |
| 2023–24 | Same four | R23-079, unanimous |
| 2024–25 | Same four, plus “respectful workplace” (internal) | R24-075, unanimous |
| 2025–26 | Crime prevention (drugs); property crime; traffic; visibility | R25-108, unanimous |
| 2026–27 | Road safety; property crime; intelligence-led policing; visibility (set with the Police Advisory Board) | No resolution in the minutes through Sept 15, 2026 |
“As a council, in consultation with our staff sergeant and with our administration, we always determine our priority areas that we want police to focus on. And for the last few years, we've had the same priority areas because they are areas that we have deemed to be important.”
Councillor Michael Zwaagstra, chair of the RCMP advisory group · May 17, 2022 · 0:17:14
The same visit is usually council's yearly look at crime statistics. In May 2023 Councillor Jake Hiebert noted that mischief to property had risen from 66 to 106 (0:12:08). In April 2024 the new commander, Staff Sgt. Guy Landreville, reported a “significant increase” in break-ins and mischief and tied it to methamphetamine:
“most of what we're seeing with break-and-enters and some of the thefts are addiction-driven. So the people that are committing them are, for the most part, the same people. They're doing the same ones over and over again.”
Staff Sgt. Guy Landreville, RCMP detachment commander · Apr 2, 2024 · 0:36:34
He brought the Headway program, based at the detachment, which works with young people and adults involved in addiction-driven crime. At the same meeting he said a second dedicated traffic member “would be even more effective” (minutes); that request is covered in the traffic report.
In September 2026 the newest commander, Staff Sgt. Mike Maxwell, reported the municipal detachment at its full 18 positions. Calls for service were steady (6,300 to 6,800 a year since 2021; 4,700 so far in 2026). Break-ins rose from 78 to 91 year to date, while arsons fell from 11 to 2. He said Steinbach's crime severity was similar to Canada's and below Manitoba's.
“In 2025, uh, we had 251 of these calls to date, and this year we have 311. So that's a big increase. … That's more than one a day.”
Staff Sgt. Mike Maxwell, RCMP, on Mental Health Act calls · Sept 15, 2026 · 0:13:10
“The members are busy, they're working all the time, and it's hard for them to set aside time for proactive patrol.”
Staff Sgt. Mike Maxwell, RCMP · Sept 15, 2026 · 0:19:56
Filling the gap: private security and safety officers
“presently we have 18 contracted positions for the RCMP, and from 2022-23 on, we have not received that coverage.”
Mayor Earl Funk · Jun 17, 2025 · 0:04:57
Councillor Zwaagstra put the shortfall at 15 to 25%: roughly 15, then just under 14, then about 14.5 officers in the three years to 2025. Council voted unanimously to hire a private security firm with the unspent money (R25-118). Steinbach Security Services began overnight patrols on July 2, 2025, seven nights a week from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.
“it's the money that we're spending on this is money we budgeted towards RCMP. So in terms of our budget, it's not like there's additional money coming out to pay for it. We're just reallocating money that's been budgeted towards safety in our community.”
Councillor Susan Penner, as council extended the patrol (R25-209) · Nov 4, 2025 · 0:09:19
“the amount that this would cost to continue the program in 2026 is $145,000. That is less than what we spend on one RCMP officer”
Councillor Michael Zwaagstra · Nov 4, 2025 · 0:09:55
“This is a very anecdotal answer, but yes, I do think that. A lot of deterrence comes from presence.”
Staff Sgt. Mike Maxwell, asked by Councillor Susan Penner whether private security has helped · Sept 15, 2026 · 0:31:05
The city also added a second community safety officer (CSO) by early 2026, after decades with one. CSOs enforce by-laws and help the RCMP (SteinbachOnline). In April 2026 the province sent Steinbach $200,000 under its Safer Neighbourhoods, Safer Downtowns strategy (Manitoba). Staff proposed a second CSO truck ($65,000) and park and building cameras ($135,000); council deferred the decision to a committee meeting in August 2026.
Volunteers and partners
“It's basically non-engaging. We always pair up, so we don't drive out by ourselves. … if we see something that's suspicious or that we think might need calling in, we do have a non-emergency RCMP line that we'll call in, report it.”
E.N., chair of Citizens on Patrol (COPP) Steinbach, delegation · Aug 2, 2022 · 0:39:37
COPP was down to 8 volunteers from 12 to 14, and said its funding “used to be MPI, now it's kind of in limbo.” The mayor thanked the group and urged residents to join; no follow-up item appears. Council also funds Headway ($8,000 in the 2025 grants). Crime Stoppers requests in 2023 and 2025, including one for 25 cents per resident, were “received as information,” meaning no funding motion. In 2024 the city joined the provincial Community Safety and Well-Being planning process (R24-025).
What residents have raised
Residents seldom bring crime to council directly. When they do, it is usually in a public hearing on a housing development.
“we've already had theft there in the past. I know I have in my home personally more than once.” … “And then my neighbor right next to me also was a victim of some theft as well.”
N.P., Whitby Crescent resident, at a hearing for a nearby apartment · Mar 1, 2022 · 0:42:27
“As far as the, the speeding, uh, the, the, the littering, the theft, um, that is something that will have to be taken up with the RCMP.”
Mayor Earl Funk, replying; he asked Councillor Zwaagstra to raise it at the RCMP advisory meeting · Mar 1, 2022 · 0:46:47
“There's been like increasing thefts and some vandalism. I've had a number of things stolen off my deck.”
R.B., Second Street resident, at a rezoning hearing · Mar 19, 2024 · 2:00:18
“It is rare, but it has happened that strangers appeared uninvited, up to maybe 10 or 12 at night, walking out of the shadows of the neighbor's yard or onto my own … So that's something I have called our local Gestapo about it, and, oh well, that's one of those things, was their reply. I didn't like that answer, but what are you gonna do?”
H.K., McKenzie Avenue resident, objecting to a rezoning for a 48-unit building · Apr 7, 2026 · 0:13:05
“Not a good idea. We know what the laws are. And this will no doubt even get worse as time goes on if we have a lot more people in the area.”
H.K., continuing, after describing a friend who “did make contact with a trespasser” · Apr 7, 2026 · 0:22:44
The phrase “our local Gestapo” is the resident's own term for the police. It came in a long objection that was mostly about density, drainage and traffic. No council member responded to the policing remark, and council gave the rezoning second reading unanimously. The city's 2026 Community Safety and Well-Being plan, based on an 827-resident survey, found “a strong perception that there is a lack of RCMP presence in the community,” with participants describing “911 calls going unanswered” and ongoing property-crime concerns (plan). Those are residents' reports and haven't been verified.
Follow-through
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| May 2022 | 18th officer, dedicated to traffic, starts; the 2022 budget raises the mill rate 0.4 mills mainly to pay for it. |
| Jul 5, 2022 | Hanover School Division's request for a school RCMP officer is approved only if the division pays 100% under a long-term agreement (R22-170). No later council item on it. |
| Aug 2, 2022 | COPP delegation: 8 volunteers, recruiting. |
| Jun 6, 2023 | AMM resolution on the “fair allocation of the costs of policing” is received as information. |
| Jul 4, 2023 | Council accepts the RCMP's 2024–2029 multi-year financial plan (R23-140). |
| Nov 2023 | Crime Stoppers' request for 25 cents per resident is received as information. |
| Apr 2, 2024 | RCMP reports break-ins and mischief up significantly; Headway presents; priorities approved. |
| Jan 7, 2025 | Council writes to the federal Public Safety Minister about RCMP bargaining costs (R25-008). |
| May 6, 2025 | Consensus to let Ste. Anne Police do MPI-funded traffic enforcement in Steinbach (see traffic report). |
| Jun 17, 2025 | Private security authorized, paid from the policing surplus (R25-118). |
| Nov 4, 2025 | Overnight patrol continued; $145,000 put forward for the 2026 budget (R25-209). |
| Mar 2026 | Two community safety officers named for the first time. Final Community Safety and Well-Being plan: “Advocate for more RCMP” and “Advocate for more Community Safety Officers,” timelines “to be determined.” |
| Jul 21, 2026 | $200,000 provincial safety grant: truck and cameras recommended; decision deferred to committee. |
| Sept 15, 2026 | Detachment at full strength; Mental Health Act calls up from 251 to 311 year to date. |
Their reasons for not doing more
1Ottawa and the RCMP set the cost, not council
“in the last round of collective bargaining, the federal government negotiated a 23.7% retroactive pay increase, which obviously has a significant impact on municipal budgets. … we should be getting a lot more say than what we're getting now.”
Councillor Michael Zwaagstra · Jan 7, 2025 · 0:20:23
“RCMP costs are not controlled by the city. All that we're able to do is we're able to say the number of officers that we wish to have”
Councillor Michael Zwaagstra, on a $400,000 rise in policing costs in the 2025 budget · Mar 4, 2025 · 0:31:04
The first RCMP contract (2021) gave members 23.78% over six years, retroactive to 2017, and municipalities had to pay the back pay (Global News). Council does control the number of officers, and it can choose a different model. In 2011 a mayor's task force chaired by Zwaagstra compared the RCMP with Winkler's own force and found Winkler's cost per officer about the same as the RCMP's (SteinbachOnline). Winkler, Morden and Brandon must have police boards that oversee their services (Manitoba). The provincial grant, which is not set in bargaining, covers well over half of Steinbach's RCMP bill.
2The RCMP can't fill the positions already paid for
“The solution is not simply adding, you know, RCMP officers because we're not getting the number that we're paying for now, that we're requesting now. So just saying we're going to go from 18 to 19 officers, we wouldn't.”
Councillor Michael Zwaagstra · Jun 17, 2025 · 0:07:37
“In our meeting with Manitoba Justice, they made it pretty clear that RCMP shortages are a habitual challenge across the nation, not just in Manitoba and Steinbach specifically.”
Councillor Damian Penner · Jun 17, 2025 · 0:12:42
The shortage was real and shared. On May 15, 2025, Statistics Canada counted Selkirk's RCMP at 14 officers against 18 authorized, and Brandon's own force at 90 against 111 (Statistics Canada). By September 2026 Steinbach was at full strength. So the argument against asking for more positions was strongest in 2022–25 and is weaker now, as the city keeps growing. See Finding 1.
3Whoever asks for extra policing should pay for it
“because they're making the request, this is their initiative, they should be responsible for 100% of the cost. We've already added an extra officer. We're not at this point planning to add another and impact our budget in that way.”
Councillor Michael Zwaagstra, on the school division's request for a school officer · Jul 5, 2022 · 0:26:09
The division had proposed a split that, by Zwaagstra's estimate, would have left the city paying two-thirds of the cost. Councillor Jac Siemens noted that many high school students live outside Steinbach. In 2026 Staff Sgt. Maxwell said Special Constable Dennis Redekop “spends a lot of time working in our schools,” but the record doesn't show who pays for that position.
4The causes lie in addiction and the justice system
“And when you talk about the revolving door, the rotating door, I fully agree with you. … So, but that is the legislation that you have to work under.”
Councillor Jake Hiebert, a former RCMP officer, replying to Staff Sgt. Landreville · Apr 2, 2024 · 0:50:02
“These past 10 years of catch and release have definitely made it more difficult for the police, made more work for prosecutors and judges, and foremost, causing the general public to be less safe and more at risk for property damage and serious violent crime.”
Councillor Jake Hiebert, opening remarks on the federal election · May 6, 2025 · 0:00:13
Bail and sentencing are federal and provincial. Prevention is partly local, though. Headway told council it had seen a 98% reduction in youth justice involvement after its program (minutes, Apr 2, 2024; the program's own figure). Council funds it with $8,000 a year. The city's own safety plan lists prevention actions such as school programs, restorative justice, help for businesses against retail crime and services for victims, all with timelines “to be determined.”
5Day-to-day crime is the RCMP's job, and residents should call them
“And bring it before our staff sergeant. And if you call in when it's happening, then they will be— they will send a car out.”
Mayor Earl Funk, to a resident reporting theft · Mar 1, 2022 · 0:50:59
“although I'm not going to say that Steinbach doesn't have serious crime— every community does have instances of it— a lot of the crime that we are seeing is, is small-scale and petty.”
Councillor Damian Penner · Jun 17, 2025 · 0:12:42
“Please tell them to call the police.”
Staff Sgt. Mike Maxwell, after the mayor said residents send him pictures of incidents · Sept 15, 2026 · 0:33:49
Operations belong to the RCMP, but council sets the priorities and can ask how they are being met. In the 103 meetings, no council member asked about clearance rates or response times. The crime severity index came up once, in September 2026. Steinbach's weighted clearance rate is the lowest of its Manitoba peers (Finding 3).
Part 2 · How Steinbach compares
Scorecard
How Steinbach's council compares with what peer cities do, within the powers a Manitoba city has. Police operations are the RCMP's; staffing levels, budgets, priorities, oversight and add-on programs are council's.
Strong ahead of or matching good practice On par typical practice Partial started, with gaps Gap common elsewhere, not done here
| Measure | Steinbach | What others do | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Officers per 1,000 residents | 0.86 authorized (18); 0.81 working in May 2025. | Winkler 1.43, Morden 1.39, Selkirk 1.64, Portage la Prairie 1.86, Brandon 1.91; Canada 1.93. Similar-sized western RCMP cities: 0.7 to 1.9. | Gap |
| Getting the officers paid for | About 14–15 of 18 working from 2022 to 2025; full in Sept 2026. Unspent money went to private security. | Selkirk and Brandon were also short in 2025. | On par |
| Cost to taxpayers | About $4.0M a year RCMP (~$190 per resident), with ~$2.6M back from the province. | Brandon police $24.4M (~$420 per resident; $217 from city taxes). Portage la Prairie budgeted $4.9M (~$340). | Strong |
| Crime severity (2025) | 82.9, down from 108.7 in 2023. | Canada 75.0, Manitoba 130.0; Winkler 45.0, Morden 56.2, Brandon 99.7, Selkirk 155.3, Portage 211.0. | On par |
| Crimes solved (weighted clearance, 2025) | 30.2%, never discussed at council. | Canada 36.6%, Manitoba 40.4%; Winkler 41.1%, Brandon 47.7%, Morden 33.0%. | Gap |
| Priorities and targets | Approved every year 2022–25, nearly unchanged, with no numeric targets. No 2026–27 resolution yet. | Standard for RCMP contracts; Brandon's annual report publishes budgets and results. | Partial |
| Public oversight and reporting | One RCMP presentation a year; advisory board (the mayor, a councillor and a couple of residents) with no public minutes. | Winkler, Morden and Brandon have legally required police boards; Brandon publishes a detailed annual report. | Partial |
| Community safety officers | Two (from one), about 1 per 10,500 residents. | Portage la Prairie: 6.5 CSOs and a manager with peace-officer powers (~1 per 2,200). Brandon: 13 police cadets. Selkirk added a CSO in 2025. | Partial |
| Extra patrols | Overnight private security, 7 nights a week, from the policing budget. | Uncommon among Manitoba peers; results here are anecdotal. | Strong |
| Prevention and partners | Headway grant ($8,000); safety plan adopted with no timelines; Crime Stoppers requests not funded; COPP thanked but shrinking. | Many Community Safety and Well-Being plans assign owners and dates. | Partial |
Key findings
1Steinbach has the thinnest police coverage of its Manitoba peers
Steinbach's complement has stayed at 18 since 2022 while the city grew to about 21,000 people. At 0.86 authorized officers per 1,000 residents it is well below Winkler (1.43) and Morden (1.39), which run their own forces, and below RCMP-policed Selkirk (1.64) and Portage la Prairie (1.86) (Statistics Canada). Among similar-sized RCMP cities in western Canada it is low but not an outlier: Sylvan Lake (Alta.) is at 0.92 and Swift Current (Sask.) at 1.19. Council's reason for not adding positions, that the RCMP couldn't fill them (Reason 2), no longer applies now that the detachment is full. Zwaagstra put the cost of one officer at more than $145,000; at current billing it is roughly $220,000, before the provincial grant.
2Crime is near the national level, but higher than its neighbours'
Steinbach's crime severity index rose from 80.0 in 2021 to 108.7 in 2023, then fell to 82.9 in 2025 (Statistics Canada). That is about 10% above Canada (75.0) and far below Manitoba (130.0), as Staff Sgt. Maxwell said. But Winkler (45.0) and Morden (56.2), the closest comparable cities, have much less serious crime with more police per resident. Brandon (99.7), Selkirk (155.3) and Portage la Prairie (211.0) have more.
3Fewer crimes are solved, and council hasn't asked why
Steinbach's weighted clearance rate, the share of crimes solved weighted by seriousness, was 30.2% in 2025, below Canada (36.6%), Manitoba (40.4%) and every Manitoba peer. Many things affect clearance, including the kinds of crime and staffing. Since 2021 it has been between 30% and 44%. Officers who are “triaging all of the time” have less time to investigate. The priorities council approves have no numeric targets, so there is nothing to measure results against (Reason 5).
4Council found a creative stopgap; the evidence is still thin
Using the unspent policing budget for overnight security was quick and cost the taxpayer nothing extra (above). Developers, the acting commander and the current commander all describe it positively. But no incident counts were reported, so its effect can't yet be measured. Once the RCMP is at full strength, that surplus is gone, and the $145,000 has to come from the budget itself.
5The province pays more of the bill than council's reasons suggest
Council's main cost argument is that Ottawa sets RCMP pay (Reason 1). But the provincial Urban Policing Grant, about $2.6 million, covers well over half of the roughly $4.0 million RCMP bill, and Steinbach's cost per resident appears lower than Brandon's or Portage la Prairie's. The city's spending on policing is not a heavy burden compared with its peers.
Peer comparison
| City | Police | Officers per 1,000 (authorized, 2025) | Crime severity (2025) | Weighted clearance (2025) | Other safety programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steinbach, MB | RCMP contract (18) | 0.86 | 82.9 | 30.2% | 2 CSOs; private overnight patrol; COPP volunteers |
| Winkler, MB | Winkler Police Service (22) | 1.43 | 45.0 | 41.1% | Police board |
| Morden, MB | Morden Police Service (16) | 1.39 | 56.2 | 33.0% | Police board |
| Brandon, MB | Brandon Police Service (111) | 1.91 | 99.7 | 47.7% | Police board; 13 cadets; public annual report with budget |
| Selkirk, MB | RCMP (18) | 1.64 | 155.3 | 43.9% | CSO added 2025 |
| Portage la Prairie, MB | RCMP (27) | 1.86 | 211.0 | 44.2% | 6.5 CSOs and a manager since 2024 |
| Swift Current, SK | RCMP | 1.19 | 110 (2024) | 39.7% (2024) | – |
| Sylvan Lake, AB | RCMP | 0.92 | 84 (2024) | 28.6% (2024) | – |
| Manitoba | – | 1.96 | 130.0 | 40.4% | – |
| Canada | – | 1.93 | 75.0 | 36.6% | – |
Officer rates are Statistics Canada's authorized strength per 100,000 residents (May 2025), divided by 100. Crime severity and clearance are police-reported 2025 figures; the Saskatchewan and Alberta figures are for 2024, the latest in the same table.
What “doing all it can” would add
- Plan police strength for growth: set a target ratio, such as 1.0 to 1.2 officers per 1,000, and add positions now that the RCMP can fill them, starting with the second traffic member the RCMP asked for.
- Put numbers in the priorities: adopt the 2026–27 priorities in open council with measurable targets for break-ins, clearance and response, and review them each year.
- Publish a yearly public-safety report: RCMP statistics, crime severity, clearance rates, officers paid for and working, CSO activity and private-security results, as Brandon does.
- Open up the Police Advisory Board: publish its membership, agendas and minutes, and recruit resident members publicly.
- Measure the private patrol before making it permanent: incidents, calls and costs, by area.
- Grow the CSO program under the provincial Community Safety Officer framework, as Portage la Prairie did, for by-law, traffic and lower-risk calls.
- Give the safety plan's actions owners and dates: victim services, retail-crime prevention, youth programs, Crime Stoppers and COPP recruitment.
- Press the province on mental-health calls (up about 24% in a year), for example Institutional Safety Officers to handle hospital transports, as the safety plan suggests.
- Revisit the policing model on a cost basis at contract renewal, as the 2011 task force did, comparing RCMP and municipal options.
About this page
- Where this topic comes from. Most crime discussion at council happens during RCMP and COPP delegations and budget items. Residents' concerns appear mainly in public hearings on housing developments. Unrecorded committee meetings, budget study sessions and the RCMP advisory board may have covered more.
- Transcripts. Meeting quotes come from automatic transcripts of the official videos. The transcription often misspells the city's name; quotes show it correctly as Steinbach. Other words are left as transcribed, and trims are marked with …. Each quote links to its moment in the video.
- Speakers. Every named quote is from a speaker identified with high confidence. In two meetings a speaker label was shared by more than one person (an RCMP commander and a councillor on Apr 2, 2024; several councillors on Sept 15, 2026). Only turns clearly belonging to one person were quoted, and councillors' Sept 15 questions are summarized from the minutes.
- Names. Council members, city staff and RCMP officers appearing in their official roles are named. Residents and representatives of community groups (COPP, Headway) are identified by initials.
- A sensitive quote. H.K.'s description of the police as “our local Gestapo” is reproduced exactly as said, in context; this page doesn't endorse it. Residents' accounts of theft, trespass and unanswered 911 calls are their own and haven't been verified.
- Numbers. Officer counts, crime severity and clearance rates are from Statistics Canada tables 35-10-0077, 35-10-0076, 35-10-0189 and 35-10-0026. The police survey is now done every two years, so 2025 is the latest. Steinbach's RCMP cost is estimated from three quarterly invoices of $1,000,258 (July 2024 to March 2025). Peer costs come from budgets that aren't fully like-for-like (Brandon's includes provincial money; Portage la Prairie's is a 2024 budget). Winkler's and Morden's policing costs couldn't be confirmed from current official sources. Clearance rates depend on many factors besides police effort.
- Not confirmed. Whether Steinbach's CSOs hold provincial Community Safety Officer designation; who funds the school special constable; whether the 2026–27 priorities were approved outside a regular meeting; and the August 2026 decision on the $200,000 grant. No litigation about policing was found.
- Coverage. All 103 regular council meetings from January 2022 to September 15, 2026 were searched, along with minutes, council packages, Statistics Canada data and peer-city sources.
Sources
Council meetings (official YouTube recordings): Mar 1, 2022 · May 3, 2022 · May 17, 2022 · Jul 5, 2022 · Aug 2, 2022 · Mar 21, 2023 · May 2, 2023 · Jun 6, 2023 · Jul 4, 2023 · Nov 21, 2023 · Mar 19, 2024 · Apr 2, 2024 · Jan 7, 2025 · Mar 4, 2025 · May 6, 2025 · May 20, 2025 · Jun 17, 2025 · Nov 4, 2025 · Dec 2, 2025 · Apr 7, 2026 · Jul 21, 2026 · Sept 15, 2026
- Statistics Canada: Police personnel and selected crime statistics, municipal police services (35-10-0077); Police personnel, provinces (35-10-0076); Crime severity index and weighted clearance rates, police services in Manitoba (35-10-0189); Crime severity index, Canada and provinces (35-10-0026); Police personnel and expenditures in Canada, 2025
- City of Steinbach: Community Safety and Well-Being Plan (2026); 2026 Financial Plan; council minutes and packages (RCMP invoices, Urban Policing Grant letters, 2025–26 priorities form)
- SteinbachOnline: Community safety amid growth (Jun 2026); More provincial policing money (Jul 2023); Census means 90% RCMP cost share (2017); Task force reviews municipal police vs RCMP (2011)
- Manitoba: $1.1 million in public safety funding for municipalities (Apr 22, 2026); Municipal police boards (2012); Safety Officer Program
- Brandon: Brandon Police Service 2025 annual report
- Portage la Prairie: Community Safety Officer Program; 2024 Financial Plan
- Selkirk: CTV News, community safety officer (Jan 2026)
- Global News: RCMP retroactive pay and municipalities