Essex County OPP Detachment Board-North approves 2026 Budget with 3.05% increase
By: Sylene Argent, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Essex Free Press
Members of the Essex County OPP Detachment Board-North approved its budget for 2026 at its November 3 meeting.
The Operating Budget for the Board in 2026 is proposed to be $118,371, which is a 3.05% increase over the approved 2025 Budget.
Margaret Misek-Evans, Tecumseh CAO, presented the document. The Board budget is split between the communities in which this Board serves, Essex, Lakeshore, and Tecumseh.
The draft allocations are $39,276.65 for Essex and Lakeshore, and $39,817.69 for Tecumseh, as it provides for the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) pension plan costs.
That does not reflect the positive variance from 2025.
Misek-Evans noted the Board’s 2025 Variance Report, which is detailed until the end of August with a forecast to the end of the year, shows a projected surplus of around $4500. The Board, however, was slightly over with wages and benefits, primarily due to the CUPE bargaining negotiations in Tecumseh.
Office supplies, professional development, insurance, and public relations, was favorably balanced, Misek-Evans said. That set the Board in a favourable position.
In terms of the 2026 Budget, Misek-Evans noted the Board’s annual wages and benefits are estimated at $80,446, memberships with the OAPSB and Zone 6 are estimated at an annualized cost of $7,745, professional development expenses for some members to attend the annual OAPSB conference and Zone 6 meetings, insurance is projected to cost of $4,100, in addition to the public relations costs.
The Detachment North Board will forward the 2026 Budget to the Municipality of Lakeshore, the Town of Essex, and the Town of Tecumseh for consideration of approval as par of their own 2026 municipal budget deliberations.
The Board Chairperson, or alternate, was also authorized to present the 2026 Draft Detachment Board Budget to each municipal Council when each municipal budget is tabled.
Essex Mayor Sherry Bondy took a moment to note the Board’s administrative team is strong, adding the North Board is the envy of many others.