MOOSE JAW — Facing inflationary pressures of minimum wage hikes and higher operational costs, city council has agreed to give the Moose Jaw Humane Society an increase in operational funding of almost six per cent.
During its Aug. 11 regular meeting, council voted unanimously to approve amendments to the animal services agreement between the two parties for the operation of animal control services.
Furthermore, council agreed to give the animal organization an extra $14,750.95 from this year’s unallocated investment earnings in the long-term investment portfolio to support the funding increase. As of July, roughly $25,800 in that investment earnings folder remained unallocated.
Also, council authorized the mayor and city clerk to sign the amended agreement for the municipality.
The City of Moose Jaw and Moose Jaw Humane Society signed a 20-year agreement on April 10, 2017, which outlined the provision of animal control and pound-keeping services, a council report said. The agreement included a clause allowing annual Consumer Price Index (CPI) adjustments to the base funding amount.
During last fall’s 2025 budget deliberations, the animal organization asked council for an increase in annual funding of 5.92 per cent to address rising operational costs — and to close the funding gap — due to minimum wage hikes, which had increased by 36.86 per cent since 2017, the document continued.
City hall met with Human Society officials and proposed several updates to the agreement, the report said. Those updates included:
- Annual fee increase: The city will increase the Humane Society’s 2025 funding allotment to $267,909.05, which reflects the original 1.6 per cent CPI adjustment plus the extra $14,750.95 to help offset wage-related increases
- Department references: All references in the agreement to the planning and development service department will now refer to the community services department for clarity and “operational alignment”
- Fleet vehicle: Instead of reimbursing costs, the city will provide the Humane Society with a fleet vehicle for animal control use and look after registration, insurance, maintenance and replacement, while the Humane Society will pay for fuel costs; this change reflects current practices
- Contact person: The director of community services will now serve as the city’s contact for all agreement-related notices
Coun. Jamey Logan said the use of a fleet vehicle was not included in the financial implications section of the report. He wondered why that was and whether there were concerns in handing over a vehicle to the organization.
Derek Blais, director of community services, said the update to the agreement affected only words in the document but did not change the current practice. Specifically, the municipality was already providing the animal organization with a vehicle and covering the automobile’s insurance.
“Previously, they provided the insurance. (But) as the owner of the vehicle, we’re the ones who need to insure it,” he added. “So it created a lot of administrative (hassles). So it’s covered under the city’s policy now and reduces the cost to them.”
The next regular council meeting is Monday, Aug. 25.
